IT, BPM, a billion dollar sector soon

The IT and BPM (Business Process Management) sector though often downplayed by policy makers has enormous potential to be a billion dollar industry.

The export revenue from the sector is expected to be around US$ 850 this year and US$ 1 billion by end next year, Chairman, Sri Lanka Association of Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM), Jayantha de Silva said.

He said it was very unfortunate that such a vast sector with a massive potential for export earnings is misconstrued by legislators.

“The absence of a national policy for the IT and BPM industry is a huge drawback for the expansion of the sector which has immense potential to be a major foreign exchange earner to the country.

SLASSCOM is eager to support whichever government is in power to formulate a national policy with established bodies such as the Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) and the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka,” de Silva said. SLASSCOM, the IT and knowledge services industry trade chamber acts as a catalyst of growth of the IT and BPM industry by facilitating trade and business, propagation of education and employment and supporting the creation of a national policy framework.

“The country took cover behind the war for several years as it is the nature of human beings to grab the closest excuse to evade commitment to a task.

We need to come out as a nation from the shell and emerge as a vibrant destination for IT and software services,” de Silva said.

The IT-BPM industry which is growing rapidly is a $ 3 trillion global market.

Many countries in the region are leveraging on the potential of this industry to grab the lion’s share of the market.

The Indian BPM industry has come a long way during the past decade and has transformed itself to emerge as a global nerve centre for BPM outsourcing activities.

India’s BPM sector is expected to transcend into a US $ 50 billion entity by 2020.SLASSCOM had a focused plan for the first six months this year with a short-term plan to strengthen the long-term strategy of the Association. The BPM industry goes on undeterred by political scenarios.

By harnessing the talents of youth to achieve export targets the industry is optimistic of reaching great heights.

The Association has set a target of making the IT-BPM sector a US $ 5 billion industry by 2022 with 200,000 direct employment opportunities and 1,000 startups driving the industry to become the number one export revenue earner.Lack of capacity due to the absence of the right number, the right people and marketing of the country are major issues that stifle the growth of the industry. The Association is building an eco-system with schools and universities to encourage students to take the IT-BPM path. SLASSCOM has inked an agreement with the Open University to support a knowledge-based program.

SLASSCOM with ICTA and CA Sri Lanka has embarked on a program to develop a specialised qualification targeting the Financial Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) and the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in the country.

“The lack of readily employable staff with the right skills and attributes to match job demands has been a major impediment for the industry. This initiative will be an added impetus to the industry with a more skilled workforce,” de Silva said.

The IT-BPM industry is today close upon a US$ 1 billion industry. The number of companies has increased from around 33,000 to over 75,000.SLASSCOM will host former creative director of Apple’s popular ad agency, TBWA/Chiat/DayOpen and author of the book ‘Insanely Simple’, Ken Segall at the Cinnamon Lakeside on July 24.

-LF