Kingston, Jamaica – Sutherland Global Services (SGS) investment in Jamaica’s Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector has been recognised by London-based fDi Magazine as one of the top foreign direct investment (FDI) projects of 2012, an honour that has earned it a joint runner-up award in the ‘Best Outsourcing Project’ global category.
The project, which is expected to ultimately create 3,000 jobs at SGS’ new global delivery centre at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, was among a pool of global greenfield projects assessed by the influential magazine’s editorial team from its 2012 cross border investment database. The SGS project emerged as one of the winning deals that had significant impact last year, and will be featured in a special cover story in the February/March 2013 issue of the magazine, which was released on February 11.
“In the global ‘Best Outsourcing Projects’ category, Sutherland Global Services’ decision to establish a global deliver centre in Kingston was awarded joint runner-up. This makes it a top three project globally in the sector, which is a great accolade,” stated fDi Magazine editor Courtney Fingar.
“This project stood out in the first instance for its strong job creation, with the potential for 3,000 new hires. But more importantly, it presents an opportunity for workforce training and enhancement of skills. Its placement on a university campus is an ideal scenario for offering jobs to recent graduates as well as others. It is an investment that will benefit the area, and that makes for a successful FDI project,” Fingar further explained.
SGS, one of the largest independent BPO companies in the world, commenced operations at its global delivery centre at the University of the West Indies in December 2012. The facility currently has over 100 employees, and the company is expected to increase staffing to 1,000 by the end of this year. SGS will be recruiting the majority of its agents from the UWI student population to provide a range of contact centre and BPO services to its clients.
JAMPRO, the national investment and trade promotion agency, has been working very closely with SGS from the outset to facilitate the company’s investment in the island. The agency strengthened its initial engagement with the multi-national company by meeting directly with key executives at major industry fora such as NASSCOM in India, Nearshore Nexus in New York and the Jamaica Investment Forum held in Montego Bay last year. JAMPRO has been providing advisory support and facilitation services to SGS Country Head and Assistant Vice President, Odetta Rockhead, who is spearheading the deployment of the company’s delivery centre at UWI.
Recognised as a top leader in technology and telecommunications on the 2012 International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) Global Outsourcing 100 list, SGS currently employs over 30,000 professionals across 35 delivery centres across the world. Over 80 per cent of the company’s clients are Fortune 1000 companies, and it derives 40 per cent of its revenue from Fortune 50 companies.
fDi Magazine is a specialist publication from the Financial Times, based in London, and is widely regarded as one of the world’s premier publications for the business of globalisation. With a highly targeted circulation of more than 15,000, fDi Magazine provides corporate decision-makers and senior-level executives at multinational companies with an up-to-date image of the ever-changing global investment map.
