GBS WORLD NEWS | WEEK 5 | OCTOBER 2022

Changing global customer experience (CX) dynamics have also been reflected in the American chocolate industry, according to Clootrack Software Labs’ End to End Customer Experience in the Chocolate Industry in the USA report. An increasing number of consumers are buying their favorite chocolate brands online from all corners of the world, which presents an array of new CX challenges for chocolate companies that they have never dealt with before.

More CX news in the US, Silvergate Capital Corporation, a leading provider of financial infrastructure solutions to the digital asset industry, announced that it has enhanced its operations to provide 24/7 customer support. The improved customer support model allows customers to conduct certain activities outside regular banking hours for general service inquiries and requests.

South of the border in Mexico, Confie, a US-based provider of insurance distribution, announced that its business process outsourcing (BPO) division is expanding with a new service center in Tijuana. Confie currently employs more than 1 200 staff members at its current Tijuana site, the majority of whom are bilingual and bicultural. The company plans to hire an additional 200 employees at the new facility.

Nairobi, Kenya is home to Vertiv’s new cutting-edge CX center, which will meet the growing demand in East Africa for the American company’s critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions. The new facility will provide presales, sales and product training, as well as full-service certification courses for Vertiv’s authorized service partner network.

In the Philippines, ibex, a leading global BPO provider, was recognized as one of the country’s Best Employers in 2023 by the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Statista. ibex was selected as a winner from more than 2 000 eligible employers with at least 250 employees based in the Philippines. The company has eight client service centers in the country and employs more than 12 000 people.

Approximately 77% of European Union companies that outsource business services commission contracts to providers within the Eurozone, according to Eurostat. Due to cultural and geographic proximity, EU businesses also outsource work to other European countries (17%), the UK (14%) and the US and Canada (11%). Although India (17%) remains an attractive GBS destination for EU companies, due to lower operating costs.

Making headlines again this week, the Canadian arm of Amazon introduced its newest robotics facility, YOW3, which opened in Barrhaven, Ontario, creating over 2 500 jobs. It is the only facility of its kind in Canada and one of five globally. YOW3, spanning more than 2.6 million square feet across four floors, will store up to 20 million items at a time.

In global news, customers are returning to physical retail outlets, but still expect a seamless, exceptional experience across all communication mediums, as explained in a CMSWIRE article. In November 2020, 34% of consumers indicated that they maintained significant interactions with physical stores, a number which grew to 67% in November 2021. Interestingly, year-on-year online retail sales have increased by 2.2%, while in-store sales grew by 13.4%.