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DATAMONITOR: El Salvador- Funes election win may not be bad omen outsourcing
(M2 PressWIRE Via Acquire Media NewsEdge)
RDATE:17032009
The recent election of Mauricio Funes as the president of El Salvador
has many in the global outsourcing community questioning the viability
of the country as an optimal location for business process outsourcing
(BPO) delivery. However, independent market analyst Datamonitor is
cautiously optimistic that the new president-elect will not jeopardize
the positioning of El Salvador as a third-party function delivery site.
Mauricio Funes was elected as president of El Salvador on March 15,
leaving many outsourcing executives concerned about the possible impact
on the country as a location of choice for BPO delivery, which to date
has attracted investors including Sykes, Teleperformance and Atento.
Scenes of militants waving red flags in the streets and laudatory
congratulations from Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez are certain to
reinforce such concerns, at least in the short term. However,
Datamonitor feels that existing and prospective BPO investors need not
be worried about the long-term commercial direction of president-elect
Funes.
Throughout the course of the election campaign and during his
post-victory remarks, Funes has made it abundantly clear he favors a
policy course similar to those of Brazilian president Lula Da Silva and
Chilean president Michele Bachelet. Both of these individuals have
proven to be moderate leaders that have been encouraging of both
foreign direct investment and the BPO industry in their respective
countries.
It should also be reassuring to BPO investors that president-elect
Funes has been adamant in his willingness to work with the US. He has
explicitly stated he wants to reinforce ties with Barack Obama's
administration. Considering the massive amount of investment from the
US into Latin America (part of which includes BPO), this should be
interpreted as a positive sign by businesses.
The strength of the ruling party's opposition should prove beneficial
for business. While Funes has won a presidential mandate, his margin of
victory was narrow, a point that he cannot ignore when looking to
produce legislation. The El Salvadorian legislature is divided among
multiple parties, meaning that consensus will be required in order to
pass any type of law. Usually, in such situations, moderation wins out
over extremism in terms of policy direction, which should hearten
prospective BPO investors looking at El Salvador.
Anecdotal evidence collected during research on BPO in Latin America
indicates that a major impediment to investment in El Salvador is
crime, which is among the worst in the region. Throughout the election
campaign, Funes indicated a reduction in criminal activity would be a
major aim for his administration. If accomplished, this could help in
improving the overall business climate of El Salvador in the eyes of
foreign investors wary of instability.
There remain threats to business that could originate with the new
administration, however. While some believe Funes's cabinet is likely
to be well-balanced, with ministers of various political backgrounds,
his hard-left vice president, Salvador Sanchez, is said to be
enthusiastic about taking the government in a direction that could
negatively affect BPO investment in areas such as taxation and labor
laws. Despite initial optimism, Datamonitor advises that BPO investors
looking to invest in El Salvador exercise considerable due diligence in
assessing the new president's administration once it takes office.
Notes to Editor:
Peter Ryanis head of contact center outsourcing analysis at
Datamonitor. He brings with him a wealth of experience in the
technology sector, gleaned through strategic marketing work with the
Bank of Ireland Treasury & International Banking, Gateway Computers,
and NFO Prognostics. His areas of research expertise include:
--
Company profiling/intelligence
--
Offshore and outsourcing
--
Voice business issues
--
Economic analysis
--
National and sectoral market segmentation
--
Market sizing and feasibility
--
Internal and external customer satisfaction
--
Commercial online content analysis
Peter has authored reports covering enterprise software market events,
outsourced call centers in Canada, call centers in EMEA, North Africa
and Eastern Europe, as well as voice applications investment. He has
presented his views at various conferences including Voice Leadership
Forum 2005 in Sydney, SpeechTEK 2004 & 2005 in San Francisco, LangTech
2003 in Paris, DiData 2004 in Zambia and ICT 2005 in Delhi, Offshore
Summit 2005 in Prague, SACCCOM Annual Convention in Johannesburg and
The Russian Outsourcing Summit 2006 in Moscow. He holds a Bachelor of
Arts in Political Science and Economics from University of Saskatchewan
(Canada), and an MBA specialising in International Business from
Dalhousie University (Canada).
Datamonitor is the world's leading provider of online data, analytic
and forecasting platforms for key vertical sectors. We help our
clients, 5,000 of the world's leading companies profit from better,
more timely decisions. Through our proprietary databases and wealth of
expertise, we provide clients with unbiased expert analysis and
in-depth forecasts for seven industry sectors: Automotive & Logistics,
Consumer Markets, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, Retail and
Technology. Datamonitor maintains its headquarters in London and has
regional offices in Frankfurt, New York, San Francisco and Sydney.
CONTACT: Denis Mason, Datamonitor
Tel: +61 2 8705 6903 (Asia-Pacific)
e-mail: dmason@datamonitor.com
Branton Morataya, Datamonitor
Tel: +1 312 416 3854
e-mail: bmorataya@datamonitor.com
KrishnaRao, Press Officer, Datamonitor
Tel: +44 (0)20 7675 7271
e-mail: krao@datamonitor.com
WWW: http://www.datamonitor.com
((M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information
provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties.
Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at
http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to
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Copyright ? 2009 M2 Communications Ltd.
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