Sitel’s Investment in Nicaragua “Like Striking Gold”

By Kirk Laughlin

Sitel’s Nicaragua operation has been one of the “biggest success stories over the last 18 months” for the global BPO and contact center organization,  Andrew Kokes, VP of Marketing at Sitel, told Nearshore Americas last week.

That’s a pretty bold statement for a company that employs over 60,000 workers in over 140 facilities in 27 countries around the world. But, Kokes says the value of Nicaragua became so apparent so quickly that the company opened a second facility within the first year, which is a rarity for Sitel.

“It’s been a phenomenal experience,” said Kokes. “What made it a tough place to be in the 80s, has changed dramatically…  now everyone has come home and they have come back bilingual, and educated.”

In fact, about 75% of the nearly 2,000 person staff working at Sitel’s two in-country facilities have either lived in the United States or were educated there. “We offer a wage that is better that what is offered through the local economy,” he says.

Sitel first came to Nicaragua in the early part of 2008. The other major BPO players in Nicaragua are Stream through its acquisition of E-telecare and Concentrix, which  established its operations in early 2009, with the take-over of Intelligent Outsourcing.

For more about Nicaragua’s emerging services industry, check out our recent posting on PatentVest, California-based business that does the groundwork for companies seeking patent intelligence.