1.3 million to be directly employed in IT-BPM by end of 2016
The Philippine information technology and business-process management (IT-BPM) industry has global leadership in voice-based services, as well as continuing improvements in nonvoice and complex-process outsourcing. To cement its position in the global IT-BPM sector, the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (Ibpap) advocates for employees’ skills development.
The IT-BPM industry includes sectors in animation, contact center, digital-game development, global in-house center, health-care information management and software development.
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The health-care IT-BPM sector is represented by the Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines (Himap). It primarily provides service competencies in pharma, health IT, and provider- and payor-
centric processes.
Himap brings together the Philippines’s most distinguished players in the health-care information management-documentation industry, servicing the needs of the health-care information management (HIM) service organization, HIM education and training centers and vendors promoting the Philippines as the destination of choice for quality HIM services.
The Philippine target for 2016 set by the association is to fully employ 182,000 and earn revenue of $2.7 billion.
Health-care is one of the fastest- growing sectors in the IT-BPM industry, providing huge opportunities for our country and people, said Beng Coronel, president of Pointwest Technologies and the new president of Himap.
Other elected officials of Himap are Jeff Williams of Infinit-O as chairman, Roger Salazar of United Health Group Philippines as vice president, Raymond Ang of Edulynx Corp. as corporate secretary, and Judy Whisenhunt of TeleDevelopment Services as treasurer.
The global health-care outsourcing industry is a large and rapidly expanding market that is expected to grow at a rate of 7.6 percent, compounded annually, from 2013. By 2018, the global health-care IT-BPM industry is expected to reach $180 billion and assigning key segments of the work to the Philippines is seen as a way to reduce the cost, as well as meet the demand, for high-level health care.
The Philippines is known for the quality of its medical professionals. About 83,000 US registered nurses were educated and trained in the Philippines, said Jeanette Carillo, executive director of Himap. Local players are exploring other areas of health-care information management as the market expands, looking to provide higher-value services due to developments in the health-care industry overseas.
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Recently the Philippines sent a delegation to the Healthcare Information Management Systems Society 2016 conference. During the courtesy call, Consul General Mario de Leon Jr. of the Philippine Consulate in New York City discussed initiatives of the consulate to promote the Philippine IT-BPM industry in North America. He noted that foreign investors see the Philippines as being economically sound.
The Philippines is a one-stop destination for IT-BPM, offering various services that a typical client requires. Aside from IT, voice and other clinical services in health care, the country offers analytics, back-office support and even creative services, like game development and animation, Coronel said.
The Affordable Healthcare Act of the United States gave Philippine companies lots of opportunities for growth. The former president of Himap, Myla Reyes, gave examples of how Filipino nurses do medical calls; IT professionals provide integration and automation; and IT-BPM experts do process management.
Collaboration with other Asean countries in the global sourcing industry is encouraged. The Philippines should take a leadership role in the region, since it is a pioneer in the industry having expertise and experience.
The consul general said assigning work to the Philippines allows American companies to focus on their core competencies and save money.
The industry must focus on talent development, Whisenhunt said. She added that the Philippines must continue to build the capability of its human resources.
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Over half-a-million graduates are expected to join the labor force this year. Data from the Commission on Higher Education showed that the projected total number of graduates for the current academic year is 692,602.
The IT-BPM industry has career opportunities for Filipinos with qualities and skills essential for business leadership and organizational success in a global marketplace.
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