By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Reporter
THE information technology and business process management (IT-BPM) industry said growth this year is expected to moderate because it will be measured from a bigger base in 2024.
IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) President Jonathan R. Madrid said that the industry has yet to issue an official forecast for 2025, adding that more clarity is expected by midyear.
“No official forecast yet, but it will be positive growth,” Mr. Madrid said via Viber on Wednesday.
“It will probably be slightly more moderate, as our base is bigger now,” he added.
In October, Mr. Madrid said growth will be less than 7% in 2025. If realized, the industry will not be hitting its 2 million staffing goal this year.
The industry ended with 1.82 million full-time employees (FTEs) and $38 billion in export revenue in 2024.
Mr. Madrid said performance will hinge on global demand from US banks, financial institutions, services, and healthcare companies.
About 70% of IBPAP depends on North American clients or are controlled by North American companies.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) US Investment in the Philippines report, the IT-BPM industry was identified as an opportunity for US investors.
According to CSIS, 395 US-based firms have invested $22.4 billion in the Philippines between 2003 and 2021, $7.8 billion of which went into IT-BPM.
The industry was also identified as one of the top performers for the Philippine Economic Zone Authority.
Under the Philippine IT-BPM Industry Roadmap 2028, the target is to grow into a $59-billion industry and increase the FTE count to 2.5 million.
However, Mr. Madrid said the projections are up for review at midyear.