The country’s information technology and business process outsourcing (IT-BPO)
industry expects to generate $3 billion in revenues this year, according to the IT-Business Process Association of the Philippines (IT-BPAP) president Jomari Mercado.

Mercado said the industry can “easily” reach $3 billion in 2016, which represents only a 14 percent increase, as it is already posting that growth rate. While official numbers for 2015 are yet to be released, Mercado pegs overall BPO revenues at $22 billion, putting the industry on track to hit its $25 billion revenue target this year.

The IT-BPO industry generated $18.9 billion in revenues in 2014 and employed over 1 million Filipinos. With 15 to 18 percent annual growth rate, the industry expects to reach $21.5 billion in total revenues by the end of 2015 and equal cash remittances by 2017. Remittances from Filipinos working abroad reached $25.8 billion in 2015.

Voice services continue make up the bulk of BPO revenues. The voice segment accounted for 65 percent of overall earnings in 2014, according to the Contact Center Association of the Philippines. However, the non-voice segment is rapidly growing as many companies expand their offerings to include complex and higher value functions.

The healthcare information management (HIM) sub-segment currently employs 87,000 Filipinos who provide healthcare support to international clients. Demand for software and game developers is also rising. The 2015 IT-BPM survey conducted by IBPAP showed that digitization is a big concern among BPO firms, and automation is a top growth driver particularly in the healthcare segment.

The IT-BPM survey showed that most companies expect to see 10 to 25 percent growth, while firms with over 1,000 employees expect 15 to 25 percent growth. The U.S. remains the top customer, accounting for a 60 to 75 percent share of BPO services in the country. The U.K, Europe and New Zealand make up from 5 to 15 percent. Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing region (15 to 25 percent growth rate) due to strong demand for government in-house support services.