Modern purpose-built building to open in Kingston in June while upgrade coming to itelbpo’s facility in St Lucia this month

Jamaica-based firm itelbpo has unveiled what it says is the Caribbean’s first COVID-19 ready business process outsourcing (BPO) facility.

The modern, purpose-built building will open in June of this year.

In addition, intelbpo’s facility in St Lucia will be upgraded this month with a second building and outdoor dining and recreation area.

The new facilities are designed with employee comfort and safety as a priority. Both facilities are designed and built around COVID safety protocols and requirements.

The mammoth 80,000 square foot facility in Jamaica is located on Molynes Road along the bustling St Andrew thoroughfare and will be the largest of any single intelbpo facility so far.

The much-touted itelbpo Molynes Road facility has already been approved Special Economic Zone (SEZ) status by the Jamaican government, therefore benefiting from tax incentives under this facility.

The Jamaican outsourcing firm boasted that “the new facility is designed from the ground up for COVID-19 risk mitigation, adapting to the changing business environment while remaining true to the company’s objective of filling 5,000 additional seats in five years”.

Staying ahead of the game

According to itelbpo founder and chairman Yoni Epstein,”it (building) will enable safe scalability as we maintain the trust of both existing and new employees and clients”.

Epstein added: “The company has been agile and nimble amid the COVID-19 crisis and this is just another opportunity for us to stay ahead of the game.”

The building is a Chalmers Commercial development and is a joint venture between Musson Jamaica Limited and Mayberry Investments. This is itelbpo’s  newest venue, following the opening of its sixth location in Vieux Fort, St Lucia last June and its regional expansion into Canada early last year.

The facility is being structurally designed to the specifications of established COVID-19 guidelines. These include a built-in HVAC system, general seating arrangements to allow excess space for social distancing between employees well within a six-foot distance from each other.

In addition, “there are two feet directional walkways so team members and guests won’t come into contact with each other while traversing the building or production spaces and cubicle partitions at a minimum of 36 inches, which is higher than normal, just to name a few,” said Epstein.

He added: “Given that we have built it to spec with the COVID-19 virus in mind, we can actually operate onsite at a safe capacity while protecting the health and wellness of our team.”

The outsourcing and shared services sector in Jamaica generates an estimated US$700 million annually while employing more than 40,000 people. The resort destination of Montego Bay and the surrounding St James has traditionally been the epicenter of BPO activity on the island.

Kingston BPO push

However, Jamaica’s capital city of Kingston, with its larger population and strong pool of university-educated talent, offers expansion opportunities for continued growth of the sector in this region.

“We expanded our Kingston facility over three years ago and began making long-term plans to establish a larger footprint in the capital. After COVID hit, we went back to the drawing board and redesigned the approach to our new facilities, both in Kingston and St Lucia, to meet COVID safety requirements,” explained Epstein.