Contact Center Solutions Featured Article

November 24, 2008

Report Shows Strong Growth Anticipated in Caribbean Contact Center Market

By Susan J. Campbell


The worldwide contact center industry will be interesting to watch over the next few years as the dynamics are sure to change dramatically. While domestic companies once turned to offshore outsourcing to reduce the cost of customer service in order to strengthen profit margins, this outsourcing is now a move to try and stay in business.

Not all companies are finding that moving customer service operations offshore is a viable or financially sound move. Many companies have made the move back to the U.S. with their customer service divisions simply because the indirect cost of creating frustrated customers was offsetting the promised financial gains from operating in a lower cost region.
 
This is not to say that every offshore location will deliver less than excellent service for domestic companies. Many offshore contact centers can in fact deliver better service than their U.S. counterparts. Dissatisfaction is instead often born of the impression that offshore support creates in the mind of the consumer – creating a less than satisfactory experience, no matter the quality of service.

For many domestic companies who have found that offshoring to the other side of the world to be out of their bounds of their progressive strategies, another trend is emerging – that of nearshoring their customer service operations. According to a new report, the Caribbean is one are of keen interest.
 
The Caribbean Contact Center & BPO Report 2008-2010 is a newly updated report published on the Caribbean region by the Zagada Institute. This report shows that the Caribbean agent positions now number roughly 66,000 and is expected to exceed 101,000 by 2010.

The report also indicated that just over 90 percent of this growth is a result of service suppliers fulfilling projects for Fortune 1000 and large U.S. corporations. The report provides significant detail to show the factors driving the high level of satisfaction that U.S. corporate customers and their clients are reportedly receiving from Caribbean vendors across regional markets.

The concept of nearshoring is gaining more and more attention as it can provide many of the same benefits that are offered by offshore locations, yet provides a closer proximity to corporate headquarters. This geographic consideration creates a perception of greater control over operations – whether it is actually true or not – and helps to drive satisfaction for the corporation.

As the economic situation continues to deteriorate, it is unclear as to the direction of the global contact center industry. One thing is for certain, companies that are able to survive will need to continue to support their customers and will need to do so as cost effectively as possible. For many, offshoring or nearshoring provides the logical answer.
 

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMCnet and has also written for eastbiz.com. To read more of Susan's articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Tim Gray


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