Âé¶¹Éç’s Guide to Outsourcing, Part 1: Emerging Markets

Businesses seeking to maximize efficiency shouldn’t just stay with stalwarts like India and China.

By Ping Jiang | edited by Dan Bova | Feb 14, 2017
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Opinions expressed by Âé¶¹Éç contributors are their own.

Outsourcing is one of the top trends in business today, a near-necessity in the age of a globalized, increasingly networked world. Often, outsourcing done right can be the difference between profit and loss, a critical factor that can make (or break) your business.

To that end, entrepreneurs seeking to maximize efficiency and offshore effectively shouldn’t just stay with stalwarts like India and China. Instead, they should look further afield to other emerging markets, destinations with a booming economy, a large population, and a hunger to prosper and consume.

Common characteristics of emerging markets

Before we take a deeper look at emerging economies, it’s important to understand . These factors include a large, young population to fill out the ranks of the nation’s workforce, a fledgling middle class that will provide the foundation for future consumption, a large domestic market, reasonably strong government institutions, and a middling level of infrastructure (enough for basic operations to keep the economy running, but with opportunities to build more).

The last two factors are a little harder to pin down. While institutions do need to be strong enough to carry out routine duties like enforcing laws or collecting taxes, legal institutions and norms cannot always predict economic success. In some business environments, .

As for infrastructure, emerging markets do need some basics such as roads, airports, and harbors to begin their economic expansion. However, opportunities to build new infrastructure can further fuel economic growth and development. For instance, from 2011 to 2013, , as part of its quest to build not just new malls and apartment buildings, but also roads, airports, dams, and subways.

With these factors in mind, let’s take a look at three prosperous emerging markets that you should consider moving your business process operations (BPOs) to.

The Philippines

Though this island nation has been making headlines lately for , its economy has thrived. In Q3 2016, the Philippines won the distinction of being the fastest growing economy in Asia, , beating out regional rivals like Vietnam and India.

: industries, which grew by 8.6%, and services, which grew by 6.9%. Within the services sector, , forecasted to grow at 30% in this decade alone. includes key outsourcing mainstays like call centers, technical support, and even coding and technical design.

: first, a highly literate, young population that speaks American-accented English (a legacy of the nation’s history as a former American colony), and second, the creation of special economic zones (SEZ) with incentives for BPO firms. In fact, : in 2012, the Philippine BPO sector employed 400,000 call center workers, about 12% more than India.

It’s true that the nation still faces a number of social and political problems, . Still, all things considered, the Philippines is on the rise, a healthy and growing economy in the process of shaking off its tumultuous past and emerging into the 21st century.

Vietnam

Though it hasn’t been as celebrated as the Philippines, , along with a GDP increase of 6.4% in Q3 2016 alone. Key factors for this strong performance include generous foreign direct investment, a high volume of exports, a resilient agriculture sector, and most of all, a powerful manufacturing sector, which grew 11% from January through September 2016 alone.

Because of its young population and relatively lower salaries, , becoming the largest Southeast Asian exporter to the United States in 2014. Much of this is due to demographics: while other ASEAN nations have an elderly population of about 10%, Vietnam’s elderly only comprise 6% of the population. In fact, , providing a huge workforce for factories.

That’s not to say that there may not be difficulties in Vietnam’s future: for instance, while the nation strongly supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), , the TPP does not look likely to pass, especially given .

Yet even without the TPP, Vietnam’s economy is still strong. For one, . Tech giant , while rival .

Clearly, whatever trade agreements are passed (or vetoed), Vietnam’s economy will still remain a manufacturing powerhouse, as .

Rwanda

Though it is mainly known in the West for the disastrous genocide of 1994, Rwanda today is a far cry from the war-torn nation struggling to heal the deep rifts between its Tutsi and Hutu populations. In fact, , though much of this expansion has been due to small-scale, local businesses and subsistence farmers.

While the nation’s growth is impressive, , Rwanda is still beset by a number of issues, namely a lack of infrastructure and a heavy reliance on foreign aid. There’s also the matter of South Africa and Kenya, traditionally the two other African economic powerhouses, particularly where it concerns tech.

But don’t be fooled. Kigali, Rwanda’s capital and largest city, , thanks to government incentives and construction projects. Perhaps the most notable undertaking is the Kigali Innovation City, a massive tech complex that will be home to incubators as well as the local branch of Carnegie Mellon University.

The proof is in the profits: Rwandan incubators, , the best-known of which is Torque, a SaaS platform that counts Heineken as among its clients. Further, Rwanda’s tech sector has .

Additionally, the Rwandan government is not sitting idle; it’s and hosted entrepreneur challenges like the . As TechCrunch notes, : central government intervention and the creation of economic incentives to spur development and innovation.

After all, , Singapore’s premier and a pioneer of a particular, peculiarly successful mix of soft autocracy and economic prosperity. While only time will tell whether Kagame will succeed in his endeavors, for now, the economic picture is quite promising.

Emerging Markets Beyond the Headlines

Take a glance at the news today, and it’s easy to focus only on the BRICS nations. However, entrepreneurs, CEOs, and COOs seeking inexpensive, quality manufacturing and BPOs should look beyond the BRICS nations, and instead turn to the emerging powerhouses listed above.

As in the case of China or India, early adoption and expansion can mean the difference between successful, profitable outsourcing and coming late into an already-developed, increasingly expensive market.

Outsourcing is one of the top trends in business today, a near-necessity in the age of a globalized, increasingly networked world. Often, outsourcing done right can be the difference between profit and loss, a critical factor that can make (or break) your business.

To that end, entrepreneurs seeking to maximize efficiency and offshore effectively shouldn’t just stay with stalwarts like India and China. Instead, they should look further afield to other emerging markets, destinations with a booming economy, a large population, and a hunger to prosper and consume.

Common characteristics of emerging markets

Before we take a deeper look at emerging economies, it’s important to understand . These factors include a large, young population to fill out the ranks of the nation’s workforce, a fledgling middle class that will provide the foundation for future consumption, a large domestic market, reasonably strong government institutions, and a middling level of infrastructure (enough for basic operations to keep the economy running, but with opportunities to build more).

Ping Jiang • CEO & CIO of Ping Capital Management, Ltd.

Dr. Ping Jiang is one of the world's foremost macro traders, due to his successful... Read more

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