Accenture Incorporated started out as an accounting consultancy firm. They were known then as Andersen Consulting until they progressed to a more diversified outsourcing company. They service different companies across 3 different towers of business within the organization namely, services, technology, & corporate. They collaborate with their clients and help them become high performance organizations. Accenture is located around the world. They are across Europe, across Asia, across Africa and Australia. They probably have an office in every continent except Antarctica.
I worked for Accenture for over 4 years and I must say that they are the best company I have worked for so far. Benefits are great but will vary depending on what tower you are employed under. They have their own cooperative called ASLA or Accenture Savings & Loan Association which, by the way, is accredited by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. That's saying a lot for this company if you ask me. They will give you the option to own their stocks by allotting a certain portion of your salary every payday.
The company has great executive leadership, a very sound and credible corporate governance and has garnered awards time and time again from prestigious business organizations.
You can enroll in their "Death and Fire Assistance Program" if you choose to and this will benefit you in case of those two unfortunate events in your life. When our house burnt down back in 2007, I was able to avail 8,000 pesos as financial assistance because I was a member and when my mom died a few years later, I also got around that much as bereavement assistance. They will send you flowers for the wake as well as part of their program and I appreciate that very much.
Accenture also boasts of different events and activities where different clubs are organized to create camaraderie among peers across all towers and sites. There's the movie club where they reserve at least 2 cinemas where employees can watch a movie for free. Then there's the Accenture Dragon Boat Club, Dance Club for hip hop and urban dancing instructions. There's the archery, mountaineering, photography and a whole lot more. One time, there was a Mixed Martial Arts Club but I guess the powers that be in Accenture do not want to promote violence so the club got axed very early in its existence. There are about a dozen more of these clubs that you can join for free. And by the way, their gym is equipped with a rowing machine and a personal trainer to boot.
The pay is above the industry standard. They pay not just the 13th month but up to 14th. Leave incentives are progressive and you still get a paid time off on top of that. Their facilities are well taken cared of and most of your co-workers and colleagues from across towers are all professionals. I think they only hire college graduates here but from what I heard, they have recently opened their doors to non-graduates.
I can never say anything bad about Accenture and if anybody who worked for this company before have any bad experience leaving, feel free to post your comments. My experience wasn't all pretty and nice, I have had brushes with the management but all's well that ends well. Being part of the management team here was the best experience I had.
Check out their career website below but if you're in a hurry, I think they have re-opened their recruitment hub on the 3rd floor of Robinson's Forum on Pioneer street.
Click here: http://careers.accenture.com/ph-en/Pages/index.aspx
Monday, August 25, 2014
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Convergys Inc.
Convergys is one of the biggest names in the call center and BPO industry and they probably have the most diverse list of clientele ranging from communications to automotive, from cable & satellite to retail, from financial services to travel & hospitality, as well as from technology to healthcare, they service everyone. They started in the US and had been operating for over 30 years overall and 10 years now in the Philippines and with offices located across the globe.
I don't know if you've heard that Stream Global Services, after buying out eTelecare, also bought APAC, who in turn, bought out NCO. Now, Convergys bought Stream Global which in effect consolidated all 5 companies making Convergys very huge in terms of infrastructure and head count.
Anyway, Convergys doesn't pay as much. They are included in the Top 10 lowest wage providers in the top name BPOs category. Benefits are ok and their HMO starts on day 1 upon getting hired. You can enroll up to 2 dependents after getting regularized. Their night differential is at a measly 10% which is also among the lowest. Their facilities are top notch though and the work culture and environment is worth a nod of approval even to the most discerning call center vets.
They probably have the most sites in the country with Convergys San Lazaro, Baguio, Starmall, Sta. Lucia, Imus, Makati, Ortigas, and their latest - Megamall.
I encourage all call center virgins to try it out first at Convergys. The pay isn't a lot but when you think of a long term goal like building a career and moving up in this industry, this is a good place to start it. You will learn a lot.
Visit their career website here: http://www.convergys.com/index.html#joinourteam
I don't know if you've heard that Stream Global Services, after buying out eTelecare, also bought APAC, who in turn, bought out NCO. Now, Convergys bought Stream Global which in effect consolidated all 5 companies making Convergys very huge in terms of infrastructure and head count.
Anyway, Convergys doesn't pay as much. They are included in the Top 10 lowest wage providers in the top name BPOs category. Benefits are ok and their HMO starts on day 1 upon getting hired. You can enroll up to 2 dependents after getting regularized. Their night differential is at a measly 10% which is also among the lowest. Their facilities are top notch though and the work culture and environment is worth a nod of approval even to the most discerning call center vets.
They probably have the most sites in the country with Convergys San Lazaro, Baguio, Starmall, Sta. Lucia, Imus, Makati, Ortigas, and their latest - Megamall.
I encourage all call center virgins to try it out first at Convergys. The pay isn't a lot but when you think of a long term goal like building a career and moving up in this industry, this is a good place to start it. You will learn a lot.
Visit their career website here: http://www.convergys.com/index.html#joinourteam
Friday, August 8, 2014
IBM Daksh Business Process Outsourcing Inc. (formerly IBM Daksh)
IBM Daksh was an indian-ran company when I started working here. The company manages customer care services and back office processes for leading
global organizations in the domains of banking, insurance, financial
services, travel, technology, telecom and retail. Their services include
customer care, technical support, data conversion, collections,
telesales, transaction processing and other value additions.
I was a CSR for a wireless telecommunications company based in the US. I perform customer service, upselling, activation, plan and other feature modifications and first tier troubleshooting. On top of these, I need to pass the toughest QA I ever had to deal with. Their software where we do our magic is called P2K.
Below are the two sites that they have here in the country. I worked in the latter.
18F CyberOne Building,
Eastwood City - Libis
Quezon City Philippines
30/F PBCom Tower
6795 Ayala Avenue
Makati City, Philippines
Their recruitment process back when I started was tedious. The exam can rival Mensa's. It was tough! I started with a 14k base salary and HMO card will be provided after 6 months. I took the job. VA training was for two weeks and this is where accent neutralization and American culture steps into your psyche. Product training was about 4 weeks so I had about almost 2 months of non-toxic work days before I became a full pledged CSR. I had the distinction of making the first ever sale in the history of that account being part of Wave 1 (some centers call it batch) and the first ever top seller. It got me a lot of perks because of that distinction.
IBM Daksh paid wages and commissions on time. The downside is the HR process when you leave the company so my advice is, stay longer and you will see your self move up. I only stayed here for over 2 years and the people I worked with back here all got promoted or have moved up the corporate ladder in different roles.
The pay isn't as much but the benefits are ok. Commissions and incentives are paid regularly if you do your job properly. No company or system is perfect. You wouldn't have to worry about IBM closing down because it will never happen. Not ever! Bottom line is, whether it's being managed at the helm by an expat or not, IBM is the best 3 words you can put on your chest like a badge.
I suggest that if you are able to get in IBM, stay longer. Trust me!
I was a CSR for a wireless telecommunications company based in the US. I perform customer service, upselling, activation, plan and other feature modifications and first tier troubleshooting. On top of these, I need to pass the toughest QA I ever had to deal with. Their software where we do our magic is called P2K.
Below are the two sites that they have here in the country. I worked in the latter.
18F CyberOne Building,
Eastwood City - Libis
Quezon City Philippines
30/F PBCom Tower
6795 Ayala Avenue
Makati City, Philippines
Their recruitment process back when I started was tedious. The exam can rival Mensa's. It was tough! I started with a 14k base salary and HMO card will be provided after 6 months. I took the job. VA training was for two weeks and this is where accent neutralization and American culture steps into your psyche. Product training was about 4 weeks so I had about almost 2 months of non-toxic work days before I became a full pledged CSR. I had the distinction of making the first ever sale in the history of that account being part of Wave 1 (some centers call it batch) and the first ever top seller. It got me a lot of perks because of that distinction.
IBM Daksh paid wages and commissions on time. The downside is the HR process when you leave the company so my advice is, stay longer and you will see your self move up. I only stayed here for over 2 years and the people I worked with back here all got promoted or have moved up the corporate ladder in different roles.
The pay isn't as much but the benefits are ok. Commissions and incentives are paid regularly if you do your job properly. No company or system is perfect. You wouldn't have to worry about IBM closing down because it will never happen. Not ever! Bottom line is, whether it's being managed at the helm by an expat or not, IBM is the best 3 words you can put on your chest like a badge.
I suggest that if you are able to get in IBM, stay longer. Trust me!
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Bank Of America (BA Continuum) is shutting down operations in the Philippines
Hey guys, listen! This just in...
I got word about this yesterday when I went to BGC (Bonifacio Global City to some). I crossed paths with a former agent of mine who is now (still) working at BA Continuum. BA Continuum is what's printed on his ID lace anyway but the mother company they are working for is Bank of America. BA Continuum Philippines Inc. is a nonbank subsidiary of Bank of America that provides business processes, business support functions and IT enabled services. The different LOBs or line of business include back office transactions, customer support and service functions, technology support and services, general human resource functions, business planning and general financial services.
Anyway, after exchanging pleasantries, he blurted out that BA Continuum will be shutting down totally by the end of this year. Two LOBs had already been cut and his LOB will be the last to go (back office). The reason that their bigwigs gave them was, and I quote, "we don't want to teach and transfer how we really do our business." CRAP! There's a reason why they're pulling out, I told my friend off and I believe that's not the B.S. that his company told them. Teach and transfer!? Effin' really??! C'mon!?
The good thing about what's happening though is that all the other financial companies within BGC, namely, Wells Fargo, Barclays, JP Morgan, etc are already lining up for the fallen precious headcount. Everybody will get their severance/separation pay and they were all given additional goodbye blues benefit pay for sacking everyone. It's also good to know that they are no longer required to come in on the last 30 days of their operations but will still get paid for it. My friend who stayed there for the full 3 plus years will get more than a hundred thousand pesos by December.
Now, what I'm pretty sure about, come December is, my friend's Christmas is gonna' be way better than mine.
I got word about this yesterday when I went to BGC (Bonifacio Global City to some). I crossed paths with a former agent of mine who is now (still) working at BA Continuum. BA Continuum is what's printed on his ID lace anyway but the mother company they are working for is Bank of America. BA Continuum Philippines Inc. is a nonbank subsidiary of Bank of America that provides business processes, business support functions and IT enabled services. The different LOBs or line of business include back office transactions, customer support and service functions, technology support and services, general human resource functions, business planning and general financial services.
Anyway, after exchanging pleasantries, he blurted out that BA Continuum will be shutting down totally by the end of this year. Two LOBs had already been cut and his LOB will be the last to go (back office). The reason that their bigwigs gave them was, and I quote, "we don't want to teach and transfer how we really do our business." CRAP! There's a reason why they're pulling out, I told my friend off and I believe that's not the B.S. that his company told them. Teach and transfer!? Effin' really??! C'mon!?
The good thing about what's happening though is that all the other financial companies within BGC, namely, Wells Fargo, Barclays, JP Morgan, etc are already lining up for the fallen precious headcount. Everybody will get their severance/separation pay and they were all given additional goodbye blues benefit pay for sacking everyone. It's also good to know that they are no longer required to come in on the last 30 days of their operations but will still get paid for it. My friend who stayed there for the full 3 plus years will get more than a hundred thousand pesos by December.
Now, what I'm pretty sure about, come December is, my friend's Christmas is gonna' be way better than mine.
s
and IT enabled services. This includes back-office operations and
transactions, customer support and service functions, technology support
and services, general human resource functions, business planning and
general financial services. - See more at:
http://careers.bankofamerica.com/asia-pacific/our-company#sthash.C06TtODS.dpuf
s
and IT enabled services. This includes back-office operations and
transactions, customer support and service functions, technology support
and services, general human resource functions, business planning and
general financial services. - See more at:
http://careers.bankofamerica.com/asia-pacific/our-company#sthash.C06TtODS.dpuf
Monday, August 4, 2014
eTelecare Philippines
If you have been around the block, you definitely heard about eTelecare. They started in 1999 in the US and took the front seat in the call center scene here in the Philippines back in the early 2000. Technically, they are no longer around since they had been bought by Stream Global Solutions but I won't focus on that for the meantime.
Moving on, the company provides a range of services, including technical support, customer service, sales, customer retention, chat and email from both onshore and offshore locations. eTelecare’s first call center went live with inbound telecommunications and financial services programs in September 2000.
The first two sites were in Eastwood City (when Eastwood was still in its infancy) and at the PBCom Tower on Ayala Avenue in Makati City. I had the privilege of being in both sites back then when I handled outbound calls for a DSL giant in the US. The sleeping rooms in both sites didn't separate the male employees from their female counterparts so you can just imagine the enjoyment every couple had during breaks which cause them to go on overbreak (hihihi). They didn't have beds. What they had were single sloping arched ottomans that would favor couples who really want to get close to each other (at least, that's what I think :) It could really get cozy most of the time and you could blame the air conditioning that is set just about right around 19 degrees (insert naughty thoughts here).
Anyway, in some centers like Sykes, they call it account, some call it program, others call it project but at eTelecare, they call it campaign. This is where I first encountered spanish-speaking agents (because we serve Latin American customers too). And you can bet your dirty dollar that all the agents here speaking spanish fluently are our very own chavacanos from Zamboanga.
eTelecare had grown since. From just two sites, they are now also located all over the country. They were probably one of the very first who headed to the rural areas to start new sites. They have a site in Pampanga, Cebu, and Davao aside from sites in Mandaluyong and Muntinlupa.
Honestly, their base salary is at an all time low nowadays but they provide bonuses and commissions, medical and dental coverage, 401k retirement plan (applicable to US employees only), paid time off, tuition reimbursement, paid training programs, transportation allowances, and night premium rates at 10%. Overall, they have a very comfortable work environment.
In May 0f 2004, Phase 2 Solutions was acquired by eTelecare International. Phase 2 Solutions was the 8th largest independent wireless reseller in the US. By February 2005, eTelecare International became known as eTelecare Global Solutions. In December 2008, Ayala Corporation and Providence Equity Partners acquired all of the outstanding shares of eTelecare in the Philippines and all of the outstanding eTelecare American Depositary Shares in the United States. By October 2009, Stream Global Services has acquired EGS Corporation - the indirect parent company of eTelecare Global Solutions in a stock-for-stock exchange. eTelecare Global Solutions is now known as Stream International Global Services Philippines, Inc. and is still a major player in the call center/BPO industry.
It's a great company to start your career with and would add credibility to your resume when you plan to search for greener pastures afterwards. Their training department are full of credible people. I would have stayed longer if not for the lame pay grade. :)
You may visit their career website here: www.etelecarecareers.com The site could already be down though so visit Stream Global's site instead which I will review in a future post.
Moving on, the company provides a range of services, including technical support, customer service, sales, customer retention, chat and email from both onshore and offshore locations. eTelecare’s first call center went live with inbound telecommunications and financial services programs in September 2000.
The first two sites were in Eastwood City (when Eastwood was still in its infancy) and at the PBCom Tower on Ayala Avenue in Makati City. I had the privilege of being in both sites back then when I handled outbound calls for a DSL giant in the US. The sleeping rooms in both sites didn't separate the male employees from their female counterparts so you can just imagine the enjoyment every couple had during breaks which cause them to go on overbreak (hihihi). They didn't have beds. What they had were single sloping arched ottomans that would favor couples who really want to get close to each other (at least, that's what I think :) It could really get cozy most of the time and you could blame the air conditioning that is set just about right around 19 degrees (insert naughty thoughts here).
Anyway, in some centers like Sykes, they call it account, some call it program, others call it project but at eTelecare, they call it campaign. This is where I first encountered spanish-speaking agents (because we serve Latin American customers too). And you can bet your dirty dollar that all the agents here speaking spanish fluently are our very own chavacanos from Zamboanga.
eTelecare had grown since. From just two sites, they are now also located all over the country. They were probably one of the very first who headed to the rural areas to start new sites. They have a site in Pampanga, Cebu, and Davao aside from sites in Mandaluyong and Muntinlupa.
Honestly, their base salary is at an all time low nowadays but they provide bonuses and commissions, medical and dental coverage, 401k retirement plan (applicable to US employees only), paid time off, tuition reimbursement, paid training programs, transportation allowances, and night premium rates at 10%. Overall, they have a very comfortable work environment.
In May 0f 2004, Phase 2 Solutions was acquired by eTelecare International. Phase 2 Solutions was the 8th largest independent wireless reseller in the US. By February 2005, eTelecare International became known as eTelecare Global Solutions. In December 2008, Ayala Corporation and Providence Equity Partners acquired all of the outstanding shares of eTelecare in the Philippines and all of the outstanding eTelecare American Depositary Shares in the United States. By October 2009, Stream Global Services has acquired EGS Corporation - the indirect parent company of eTelecare Global Solutions in a stock-for-stock exchange. eTelecare Global Solutions is now known as Stream International Global Services Philippines, Inc. and is still a major player in the call center/BPO industry.
It's a great company to start your career with and would add credibility to your resume when you plan to search for greener pastures afterwards. Their training department are full of credible people. I would have stayed longer if not for the lame pay grade. :)
You may visit their career website here: www.etelecarecareers.com The site could already be down though so visit Stream Global's site instead which I will review in a future post.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
ePerformax Contact Centers and BPO
I didn't work for ePerformax but I had the chance get inside their office when I applied for a job back in 2003. The account that they only have back then were directory assistance (411) and IP Relay for the US market. Directory Assistance is pretty simple but very tasking in terms of the volume of calls you can get in a day which is around 700 - 1000 calls. IP Relay is a relay service for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to place and receive text-based relay calls from their personal computer (PC) and/or mobile device. An IP Relay operator will connect an IP Relay caller to a voice party which means there are 3 individuals in this transaction where the operator is in the middle. This was the position I was applying for and their paramount requirement is that you should be a touch typist with the ability to type around 70 words per minute (wpm) with at least a 90% accuracy. They pay an added premium for this job but I didn't take it. Why? Please read below:
You only get an allowance of around 200 pesos a day for the next two weeks of training
I had a child on the way that time so I had to bail out. Although the salary was quite attractive, I can't be with a fast food pay package for the next two weeks at that period in my life.
There are a number of expats roaming around in their office, same with Sykes, so you need to practice EOP or the English Only Policy which is enforced throughout the building. Well, at least in the premises.
My wife got in as a DA operator and the pay grade was around 13k when she started. You naturally would have to work the night shift because you serve the US market. Night differential was at 15% only but all government-mandated benefits are in place. The only downside at this time for ePerformax was a female Operations Manager who didn't know a thing about what she was doing and got the account axed by the 411 management.
The office is at the old BPI building along Gil Puyat avenue and beside Pacific Star Plaza on the corner of Makati avenue so some of the facilities were just upgraded with design and new cubicles. The pantry and locker rooms were okay but not really affable.
What's nice about the company though is that it's being run at the helm by a filipino and supported by a mix of other pinoys and american expatriates. This info I think is important in gauging what your salary pacage would be. :)
Here's my score for this company:
Base salary for a call center virgin: Good
Work Environment: Good
HR & Management: Good
People Culture: Good
You have to understand that the ratings I provide here are based on the situation at that time hence my objective is purely to give call center newbies an idea of what they can expect. You may visit their career website here: www.eperformax.com/careers.html
You only get an allowance of around 200 pesos a day for the next two weeks of training
I had a child on the way that time so I had to bail out. Although the salary was quite attractive, I can't be with a fast food pay package for the next two weeks at that period in my life.
There are a number of expats roaming around in their office, same with Sykes, so you need to practice EOP or the English Only Policy which is enforced throughout the building. Well, at least in the premises.
My wife got in as a DA operator and the pay grade was around 13k when she started. You naturally would have to work the night shift because you serve the US market. Night differential was at 15% only but all government-mandated benefits are in place. The only downside at this time for ePerformax was a female Operations Manager who didn't know a thing about what she was doing and got the account axed by the 411 management.
The office is at the old BPI building along Gil Puyat avenue and beside Pacific Star Plaza on the corner of Makati avenue so some of the facilities were just upgraded with design and new cubicles. The pantry and locker rooms were okay but not really affable.
What's nice about the company though is that it's being run at the helm by a filipino and supported by a mix of other pinoys and american expatriates. This info I think is important in gauging what your salary pacage would be. :)
Here's my score for this company:
Base salary for a call center virgin: Good
Work Environment: Good
HR & Management: Good
People Culture: Good
You have to understand that the ratings I provide here are based on the situation at that time hence my objective is purely to give call center newbies an idea of what they can expect. You may visit their career website here: www.eperformax.com/careers.html
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