How to get back to the top of ‘super cities’ list

IT leaders advise: Collaborate, develop skilled manpower, adapt to market

STAKEHOLDERS in the Information Technology–Business Process Management sector should strengthen collaboration and support for each other especially in the age when digital transformation and innovation are paramount for development.

Innovation Council of Cebu (ICC) President Michael Cubos said yesterday that this is a way to move the industry forward amid Cebu City’s slipping in the Tholons’ latest ranking of “super cities” for outsourcing.

Cubos said that the drop in rankings of Cebu City from 8th place to 12th place was not much of a concern.

He was referring to the Tholons Services Globalization Index (TSGI) 2017, released last Wednesday, which placed Cebu City at 12th place, down from the 8th spot the previous year.

“This is bad in the sense that we went down the ranking based on the new criteria for obvious reasons. Had the old criteria or ranking category been retained, Cebu would have been within the top 10 or even a notch higher. But the world has changed,” Wilfredo Sa-a Jr., managing director at the Cebu IT/BPM Organization (CIB.O), told Cebu Daily News.

Cubos agreed and also said that local stakeholders in Cebu did not think digital innovation would be used as a measurement by a firm as influential as Tholons, but added that he thinks the city is doing good in that area.

After more than a decade, Tholons, which is a London-based group, introduced in its latest report “innovation, startup ecosystem, and digital transformation” as additional key components to define its index.

“Digital is now a critical element in disrupting and transforming industries globally. Technology, Business process management companies and multinational corporations need to align with the stark reality of digital innovation and transformation,” Tholons said in its report.
Prior to this, the London-based group only considered talent; skills and quality; cost; risk and quality of life; business catalyst; and infrastructure as

key metrics in determining top cities.
Based on the latest index, Cebu scored lowest in infrastructure, risk and quality of life, and digital innovation.

CIB.O head Sa-a, for his part, said that Cebu should become more digitally active and capable as well as work its way toward becoming an iCity, which is described as being more “intelligent, interconnected, integrated, interactive, innovative, intuitive and inspiring.”

To achieve this, transactions within local governments should be done online, and there should be more connectivity among different government offices.

He also pointed out the need to teach computer literacy early in primary school as well as to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship among the younger generation.

Sa-a said the local government unit will play a big role in helping Cebu City reclaim its place in the top 10, adding that the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) can also address connectivity issues.

Business groups such as the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) and CIB.O can encourage the growth of technology-based startups as well.

Meanwhile, Joel Mari Yu, Ceby City government’s point man for business and economic development, in a phone interview said that the recent decline of Cebu City’s rank is a reflection of the change in the needs of the outsourcing market.

Yu said that the market has already expanded and is demanding suppliers of other services including digital innovation, softwares and and artificial intelligence (AI).

To address this, he said that we need to develop more talents for these products and services that the market is looking for.