U.S.-Based E-Telecare Launches Business in Developing Country with Exposure to U.S. Economy
DALTON TANONAKA, CNN ANCHOR: You probably wouldn't want to do this: launch a business in a developing country with exposure to the U.S. economy when the Nasdaq was in freefall. U.S. based E-Telcare did something similar to that. But as CNN's Andrew Brown reports, it's longshot gamble may pay off.</s>ANDREW BROWN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, complaints from every corner of the United States are piped underneath the Pacific Ocean to the tropical. Philippines. Most of the callers don't know that the person on the other end of the line has probably never set foot on U.S. soil. E-Telecare began operating a call center in the Philippines last year. So far, 500 young Filipinos have been trained. They field questions about U.S. politics and geography.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This large swamp wetland land area of Florida is know as?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is the Everglades?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.</s>BROWN: And of course E-Telecare instills vital phrases like:</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me just thank you for calling customer service, and again, my name is Yuai (ph). You have a good day,</s>OK,  BROWN: There are compelling reasons for U.S. companies to outsource customer care to the Philippines. Service providers like E-Telecare can operate at a cost than competitors that base call centers in U.S. In the Philippines, wages have long been depressed, and there are skills in abundance. E-Telecare estimates one worker in five is overqualified for the job they're doing.</s>JIM FRANKE, PRESIDENT, E-TELECARE: We often joke that it's like hiring people from Harvard and Stanford to work in your call center.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For 40 points, this is the classic black and white movie that is shown around Christmas?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is "It's a Wonderful Life.?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.</s>FRANKE: Even more important than having a good American accent is that people here have a cultural understanding of America. So when they're trying to build rapport with a customer on the phone, they can talk about the latest "Survivor" episode.</s>BROWN: A simple gesture that may be worth a great deal.</s>FRANKE: In the U.S., this is $100 billion industry that employs over two million people. So when you think about even a small portion of that business migrating offshore to a country like the Philippines, it can have tremendous effect.</s>BROWN: Jim Franke won't say call centers are about to eradicate poverty in the Philippines, but he points out, restaurants and other businesses have opened up across the road from E-Telcare's office and are packed with his staff. (on camera): So some of the money originally invested in technology ends up in the neighborhood, with service providers, retail outlets and restaurants, including McDonald's, another U.S. institution. You just can't get away from them. Andrew Brown, CNN, Manila.