I am impressed with the offerings of BPOs – student

WESTERN BUREAU

If Tuesday’s tour of Conduent Jamaica’s operations by students of the Montego Bay Community College is anything to go by, the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector could experience a welcome boost of additional talent to its labour pool in the near future.

The tour, which was led by country director Lyn Langford, introduced students pursuing customer service engagement studies at the Montego Bay Community College (MBCC) to the day-to-day operations of the outsourcing sector, which left a lasting impression on the group.

“The tour provided a different perspective and insight from what exists on the streets,” said 17-year-old Melissa McKnight, a Level 2 student under the Career Advancement Programme. “I am now clear in my mind that the BPO industry is where I want to start my journey towards charting my career path, once I complete my course of study and I reach the required age.”

VAST ARRAY

McKnight’s classmate, Romario Stephens, admitted that he never knew that the sector offered such a vast array of services. “Based on the testimonials of the senior managers who started out as agents, this is definitely where I want to be, there is growth and experience all around,” he told The Gleaner. “I now have a better understanding of what a BPO is and I am impressed.”

Conduent Jamaica, the pioneer of local outsourcing with locations in Montego Bay, Kingston, and Portmore, currently employs nearly 5,000 workers, and is one of the largest employers of labour in the lucrative industry.

But while many people are making a sizeable income from working in the BPO sector, there are those who have complained about what they considered to be ‘slavery-like’ treatment and poor working conditions.

For Langford, the tour was to provide insight into what the industry offers to potential job seekers.

“The premise of this was to introduce the BPO world to these young people and to show them that it is a viable career opportunity,” she said. “We are very proud of what we have, so if we can help to let the young people who are just about to enter the working world, know and understand that the BPO is a viable career opportunity, we will make use of that opportunity to facilitate them in our plant.”

She said the company constantly seeks to attract employees to provide high-level customer services in finance and accounting, debt collection, reservations, and other highly technical services.

“‘We offer superb customer service, in reservation for several cruise lines, debt collection, payroll processing,” she shared with the students. “We process healthcare forms, we handle retails, we do cruise line reservations, do finance and accounting, provide legal support, and handle transportation logistics.”

Several senior and middle managers, many of whom started as agents, also shared their journey with the group, including Shereice Williams, who said that since she started working in the sector eight years ago, her life has been positively transformed after leaving her previous job as a sales executive with no realistic opportunity for development.

“I started as an agent and within a year, I was promoted to supervisor, in two years to senior supervisor, then to operations manager, and now a senior manager,” Williams said. “I did eight years at that company sitting in one position, and now I had eight years at Conduent and I’ve moved up the ranks.”

Marsha Buck, a trained teacher, said the potential for economic growth is limitless.

“I am not sure if I was still working with the Government in a teaching capacity, this would have happened,” said Buck, who left the classroom 20 years ago. “I love teaching, but I have no regrets.”