GBS WORLD NEWS | WEEK 3 | JULY 2023

Digital experience platform, Yext, based in New York, has launched a capability for businesses to deliver more individualized and engaging customer experiences in response to reviews. AI Generated Review Response will allow businesses to combine the use of artificial intelligence (AI) with their own data to generate automated individualized review responses that are brand-specific and contextually appropriate.

However, there was discouraging news regarding AI originating from Emad Mostaque the CEO of the open-source generative AI company, Stability AI. He has predicted that AI will render most outsourced coders in India jobless within the next two years. Mostaque expects that the continued rapid growth of generative AI will impact countries differently, and that India – home to over 5 million software programmers – will be hit hard.

Meanwhile, Mohr Partners, a global corporate real-estate advisory and outsourcing firm, has announced its plans to establish a corporate outsourcing business in India. The decision has been made after years of successful business in the area through strategic partnerships – and the company now wishes to internalize back-office operations. The new location will act as the platform for Mohr Partners’ planned expansion to offer business process outsourcing (BPO) services.

Nigeria is projecting (ambitiously) that the country will earn five billion dollars from the outsourcing industry in 2024. The announcement came from the Nigerian Export Promotion Council at the National Conference on International Trade-in-Service. Council members believe that the increasing success of Nigeria as a location for outsourcing services is accredited to a combination of factors, including high population, low labor costs, strong English proficiency, and favorable time zone.

In consumer retail news, there is an increasing desire for more convenient shopping options. About 65% of consumers would like to purchase directly from a link in-content according to the AiBuy report, “2023 Consumer Path to Purchase”. The report revealed that 20% of consumers will abandon their cart and not move forward with purchasing because of too many site pop ups, while 18% will leave if they are prompted to create an account, and 17% because of being redirected more than once.

Sigma Connected, a UK-based provider of BPO and contact center services for various sectors, has announced a year-long partnership with the Trussell Trust. The national foodbank charity was selected by Sigma Connected employees, who will be opting to donate between £1 and £10 of their salaries each month to the charity to aid in combating food hunger in the UK.

Globally, the recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) market is set to experience huge growth within the next six years. HTF Market Intelligence, a leading market research company, has released a report analyzing worldwide RPO activities. It evaluates market risks, trends, expected growth, technologies, key players, and opportunities across the globe.