UK firm to double RP workforce

Posted November 12, 2008

OFFICIALS of Global Solutions provider Logica said Tuesday outsourcing opportunities for the Philippines would grow in Europe despite the global financial crisis and more Filipino professionals would be needed to serve demand.

Logica CEO Andy Green, a veteran of British Telecom, visited the Philippines to check out prospects for a new office and discuss hiring requirements with Manila-based officials.

"The economic downturn in the US and the political overtones regarding outsourcing may affect expansion plans in that part of the world, but in Europe we face a different environment," he told reporters.

"Falling labor numbers, partly because there is not much immigration going there and because of low birth rates, will drive more companies toward outsourcing. The main area for Logica is human resource solutions, SAP and enterprise content management," he said.

Neil Elias, CEO of Logica's Philippine delivery center, added that talent in the Philippines offers a good cultural fit with the West, with strong language skills not limited to English.

But the officials declined to provide more details, saying they would make an announcement when plans have been finalized.

The company had 36 employees in 2007. It grew this talent pool to 200 in January 2008, prompting it to occupy another floor in its facility at the Trafalgar Building in Makati City. It presently has 400 employees.

The company started out by providing human resource and SAP solutions but recently added network maintenance and customer service to its portfolio. To this end, Logica acquired French IT services group Unilog and Swedish IT services and BPO provider WM-data.

Referring to the Philippines as the "best-secret" in Europe, Martin Blackburn, head of LogicaCMG's Global Service Delivery, said recently that the company chose the Philippines as its second offshore site, rather than opening a second site in India, because the former was ideal as a disaster recovery site. "More and more high-value work will be delivered from the Philippines," Blackburn said.

Logica has innovation centers in Portugal and Bangalore. It is a leading global IT and management consultancy company, employing 39,000 people across 36 countries.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer, November 11, 2008
By Riza T. Olchondra