3 call center agents shine in PGMA Iloilo visit
Sharon Caceres-Acusta worked as a secretary in Brunei in 2006 where she earned a higher salary compared to her counterparts here.
But after two years, she decided on coming home to be with her daughter even if she was sure that she would have been given a raise and more benefits if she stayed longer.
But the 30-year-old mother said it was difficult for her to be separated from her now eight year-old daughter.
She came home last year and was hired in September as a probationary employee of the TeleTech call center here.
Yesterday, Acusta became a regular employee joining around 1,600 others coming mostly from Western Visayas who have been hired by the company.
Acusta was among three call center agents who shared with President Macapagal-Arroyo their experiences in finding jobs after working abroad or in Manila.
The President led the inauguration of the site at the 3rdfloor of the SM City mall in Mandurriao District here.
She also unveiled a marker at the entrance of the site along with company officials led by Executive Vice President for Asia Maulik Parekh.
The President lauded the company for “bringing families closer together.”
She also heard the testimony of Joel Calle who was hired in February last year. He was quickly promoted, becoming a supervisor this month.
Calle said it was fortunate because his wife, also a former Overseas Filipino Worker, came home four years ago after her contract in Hong Kong ended. She is expecting their first child this month.
The President also congratulated the company and its employees for being the top site of all off-shore sites of TeleTech handling a major account of the company.
She said this only shows the growth of the business processing outsourcing industry in the country from 5,000 employees in 2001 to nearly 500,000 this year.
Parekh said they are optimistic in the growth of their company and the BPO industry in the country.
TeleTech has nearly filled up the 750-seat site in Iloilo and hired 1,600 employees after a year of operations.
The company has 12 sites in the country with around 23,000 employees.
“We are not stopping. We are hiring 150 employees (in Iloilo) for the month of March alone,” Parekh told reporters.
TeleTech aims to reach around 25,000 employees or an additional 2,000 by the end the year.
“We believe that it’s quite possible that we will hit that goal way before the end of the year,” said Parekh.
He dispelled concerns that the global economic recession could affect opportunities in the BPO industry.
He said that for the past two years, TeleTech has been hiring a net of 5,000 employees annually but they could hire more this year.
“We clearly haven’t felt the impact of the economic recession or the slowing economy yet,” he said.
He said the recession, especially in the United States and other developed countries, has actually boosted opportunities in the Philippines and other less developed countries.
He lauded the Iloilo site for being the top site in all their global operations.
“Iloilo is a very successful site. We consistently get good feedbacks from clients,” he said.
He credited this to the “excellent communication skills” of the Ilonggo folk.
“We believe that they have the right customer service attitude that helps them convey that empathy with customers of our client. They have the right work ethic. They have a lot of pride in what they do,” said Parekh.