The world cannot imagine a modern global business ecosystem without BPOs for sure. Life without customer service is not rational, and IT support is always necessary. Let’s not forget the global supply chains, payroll process, manufacturing, and global talent.
Early Years
It is essential to mention that its origins are not noble at all. The data-driven transformational partnership was nothing but a simple solution for businesses back in the days. Companies hired other outsourcing teams because they had money until 1967 when Morton H. Meyerson of Electronic Data Systems Corporation decided to propose it as a business strategy.
Outsourcing was present in the 60s and the 70s, but it became worldwide known after transport and telecommunications became famous and affordable. Back in the days, it was known as “time-sharing,” and the so-called “timeshares” were administered via remote terminals at far away from facilities. Companies like IBM built enormous computing machines used for the process.
The first impact happened in the late 80s. Out of nowhere, Eastman Kodak decided to outsource its IT systems and shocked most people. It was the moment where outsourcing was finally recognized as a business strategy for technological necessities.
Before the era of the internet and after Kodak’s announcement and success, organizations started to use BPO service providers all the time. They were either nearshore or domestic. It has been estimated that the share of value from outsourcing tripled from 20 percent in 1946 to 60 percent in 1996.
Organizations saw an opportunity they couldn’t miss, and due to competition increase, they started to take advantage of the value. Also, they wanted to save costs.
This period was beneficial for Asia due to its socio-political changes. The economic liberalization that happened in India, China, and the Philippines brought low-cost and enthusiastic skills. The countries became berth for business requirements. Not only they delivered lower costs but also delivered high services.
The New Century
Much maturity came with the new century. Everyone asked if they could do more in the mid-2000s. BPO companies decided to shape their present. They proved that they could become strategic partners to their clients and also indicated that they could move beyond non-core and back-office operations. Lean and Six Sigma were adopted. The portfolios started improving. They brought complex, high value and knowledge fulfilled processes on the table.
The present is bright. Now, BPO providers offer a lot. From high-end capabilities to automated data processing. They help their customers make higher value by integrating disparate products and services.
BPO service providers are not only used for operational efficiency and strategic know-how. They are now used for innovation as well. Remember, data and data-driven insights are now essential drivers of growth. Thus, BPO enterprises obliged their customers with data analytics services. BPOs now give actionable intelligence to their clients. Thanks to this intelligence, the clients reach critical business goals.
The Future
The last decade was perfect for the BPO market. It is accessible and has gained this growth thanks to industries such as banking and finance, insurance, healthcare, retail, and more. It is believed that the BPO market will be worth $344 billion by 2026. Fortunately, they do not stop here.
BPOs made a step further. They set foot in metrics-based, transformational alliance with their clients. To make things perfect and to stay relevant, the BPOs acquired technologies like robotic process automation. Thanks to RPA, they improve their agent experiences and also make the results more impactful.
RPA, for example, is a proven method and takes on more significant tracts of BPO operations. From invoice management to document formatting. The effectiveness of it is demonstrated in many fields, and it allows organizations to implement more in the competitive environment successfully.
BPOs plan to use emerging technologies as well, and at the same time, their focus is on developing, training, and reskilling their workers. In short words, the future brings robotic process automation, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and predictive analysis.
