September 7, 2018
Over the last few years, the Philippines has already surpassed India as the number 1 destination for BPO Companies. Dubbed as one of the largest growing industries, outsourcing has helped the Philippine economy and accounts for an average of 2.4% increase in the country’s GDP. As the outsourcing sector started to prosper, one of the places in the Philippines which continues to thrive and is currently the hotspot in the outsourcing industry is Clark, the neighboring city northwest of Manila.
But the question is, why should these outsourcing companies choose Clark over Manila when there’s a lot of great opportunities in Manila itself? In this article, we will discuss why we think Clark is the best location for your outsourcing partner.
1. Industry Growth
Clark is now being managed by Bases Conversion and Development Authority or BCDA which worked for other finest infrastructure projects in the Philippines namely, SCTEX, McKinley Hill, BGC, etc. With BCDA’s eyes and hands on Clark Pampanga it is expected that business infrastructures will soon rise and will open employment opportunities for the locals. This will also mean that there will be less interference with local government units when it comes to policies related to your business.
2. Fiber Optics Connection
Local and National ISP are offering Fiber Optics but not all areas throughout the Philippines are being covered. Clark, Pampanga has had access to Fiber Optics as early as 2015 and the bandwidth connection improves every year which means virtual communication is as fast and responsive as if you were communicating personally with your offshore staff. This is also one of the reasons why Clark, Pampanga is a top choice for BPO companies.
3. The next “BIG Thing”.
The Philippine government has its eyes focused on Clark as it is seen to be a hot location for investment since it reaches the northern talent for staffing and businesses for investing within Clark. This comes in line with the plan of de-congesting the Philippines capital, Manila and enable the people from north to easily visit home instead of living in Manila. This means Clark Pampanga is set to be the hottest hub for various business districts, industries, as well as a tourism.
4. Strategic Location
Clark is nestled in the heart of Pampanga and it is known as one of the best places to have a business in the Philippines due to the attention it gets from the government. In the surrounding areas, housing is built by the top real estate developers which have access to fiber optic internet and are starting to follow the European building standards and build high tech facilities. It is also benefiting from huge infrastructure projects in order to become more accessible to tourists and nearby regions. The Clark International Airport makes it very accessible for clients to easily come visit their partner BPO any time.
5. Sufficient support from the government
Today’s Philippine Government administration is making Clark part of the country’s economic strategy as it is seen to have thrived in the past five years. A main contributor of the industry growth is the emerging outsourcing businesses in Clark, Pampanga. Business owners are drawn to Clark as a prime outsourcing destination because of the sufficient support they are getting from the government, fiber optics as mentioned before, less congestion and tax concessions.
6. Excellent infrastructure
A railway connecting Clark, Manila and Subic is one of the top priorities for the government, another one is expanding and upgrading the Clark International Airport. With the projects that have been lined up for Clark, it will soon be rich with new funding from large businesses that will earn massive support from the government as well as from foreign investors.
7. Western Culture
Filipinos have been greatly influenced by westerners since the late 1990s. Clark became accustomed to western culture due to its past as Clark field was previously a large US Military base and most of the US forces live nearby Clark. Various nationalities have also been treating Clark, Pampanga as their home. Meaning, local residents within Clark are accustomed to interacting to foreigners and are very much aware of the western culture and know how they work.
8. Expandable and very educated talent pool
Skilled professionals are becoming open to BPO companies because of the work-life balance culture and competitive salary. Local employees from north from Region I-III are flocking to Clark for work, in fact the number of Clark workers increased to 100,000 earlier this year. People work in Clark because of the same opportunities, competitive salaries and most importantly, they are away from the dreadful traffic of Manila.
9. Cost Competitiveness
While Clark is slowly being urbanized, officials in Pampanga are still striving to maintain and preserve it as a province. When it comes to expenditures, utility bills are still cheaper compared to the cost of living in Manila and traffic is never an issue which means less fuel cost.
10. Tax Exemption
Businesses that are planning to register within the area of Clark Philippine Economic Zone Authority or PEZA are given privileges to various tax incentives and other advantages such as, Income Tax Holiday or exemption from corporate income tax for 4 years and may be extended to a maximum of 8 years. Just imagine how much savings would that cost especially if you’re a start-up business.
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