Taking its share from India.
As each business day begins in New York City, Wall Street becomes flooded with expensive cars and designer suits. Meanwhile, as the sun sets in Manila, some Filipinos get ready to start their workday at a call center.
While the typical workforce in Manila begins to settle down for the night, the faceless army of call-center operators are preparing to take your call. The lives of operators, armed with dual monitors and headsets are drastically altered in order to accommodate Western time zones. This synchronization ensures that Filipinos are better suited to assist the American customer.
Westerners may be unaware of the burden that operators face, as call-center employment is far from your typical nightshift. Some workers liken adjusting their body clocks to the sleep habits of vampires, but that just scratches the surface of their social and cultural sacrifice.
The outsourced industry in the Philippines is expected to reach 1.3 million employees by 2016, according to Cesar Tolentino of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines. Entry-level call operators can earn between 10,000 to 14,500 Philippine pesos per month ($300 to $360), excluding bonuses, allowances and incentives. That's a fairly robust salary in the Philippines, where the cost of living is low, and taxes are a fraction of what's paid in the West.
Filipinos are trained to acquire American accents and humor, so they can better adapt to customers' needs an ocean away. Clocks on the wall remind employees of the time they are working on across the other side of the world. Even their holidays are based on the U.S. calendar.
Call-center workers of Acquire Asia Pacific take a yoga class in the office, which is instructed by fellow employee Mallet Gamez. Gamez wanted to share his way of relaxing in the office, and coping with the drastic time change.
Call-center operators take pride in their positions, bringing in plenty of disposable income for luxury items -- ironically, comparable to the American population they serve.
India has traditionally been the leading country for call-center outsourcing, but Filipinos have grown up watching American television, learning American English and eating American fast food, which leads to a more natural fit for talking to North American customers.
Local businesses have also adapted to the shifting time. It's a common sight to see groups of people drinking in the early morning, after they finish their shifts at the call centers. Retail and service industries are doing business with these emerging Filipino socialites, who are dressed in designer clothing, ad wielding the latest technology in their palms.
Keep coming back for more from Content Writer Ahmedabad.
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