English proficiency has long been a standard claim of the Philippines outsourcing industry, but there has never been an actual test for it until now. Pearson Talent Assessment recently released the results of its Versant English test, and the Philippines ranked first in the outsourcing field.
The country got a score of 61.84, the highest in a list that included India, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Its closest BPO competitor in Asia, India, ranked third with 55.62. This test affirmed the claims of outsourcing companies in the Philippines about the higher rates of English proficiency. Its history as a former American colony is frequently mentioned, as is the status of English as the primary medium of instruction on all levels.
Since the first Philippines outsourcing boom in the early 2000s, English proficiency has often been mentioned as the country’s biggest advantage over other destinations. It’s the primary reason that call centers made their way into the country and did business. Now, as outsourcing companies move beyond customer service into such diverse fields as BPO, web content writing, and IT outsourcing, English proficiency is once again being promoted for outsourcing to the Philippines.