MORE jobs are on the horizon within the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector, as Ibex Global Jamaica is set to host a job fair in Portmore, St Catherine, this weekend.

The job fair is to fill positions at its new location at the GTECH Park, which was initially set to provide employment for an additional 1,500 people. However, in a recent interview with the senior vice-president of operations and Jamaica country manager at Ibex, Tamara Ricketts-Brown, she says that number has been extended to 2,000.

“We’re hiring for customer experience, we’re looking to hire field managers and operator managers as well, those three are in focus right now,” Ricketts-Brown told the Jamaica Observer. “We’re looking to hire these 2,000 over the next two months or so,” she added.

With the bulk of the recruitment geared towards customer service representatives, the country manager is reminding everyone that persons with high school qualifications will be eligible for the role, as training and development will be available to ensure growth within the company as staff retention remains a priority for the company. Leadership development and training will be provided to allow employees the opportunity to advance their careers through internal promotion.

“Eighty per cent of the mid-level managers here have been promoted internally from agent level; if you came in as a customer service representative and you have displayed all of the qualities and we see the potential that you can be a manager, then we’re putting you through some courses to equip you for the next level,” she revealed.

Ibex is also making improvements to its employee experience in efforts to retain employees. Benefits such as a VIP programme, which is offered annually, where the top five per cent of staff are taken to an all-expense paid weekend at a hotel, is being offered to recognise employees. “As I’m stepping into the role of country manager, a lot of those things you know we are re-evaluating and making it better,” Ricketts-Brown said with surety. She also highlighted more improvements to keep staff members satisfied. “One of the steps we’ve taken already is to adjust compensation, trying to make it more competitive from a market perspective. We want to make sure that we are remaining competitive, and that will help with the employee experience,” Ricketts-Brown shared with the Caribbean Business Report.

Ibex now has 6,000 employees and is growing rapidly, with another job fair slated for Ocho Rios, St Ann, next weekend. “We’ve had a lot of success with our existing clients, which is why more clients want to come to Jamaica, which is fuelling our growth, so the investment here is a long term one. There has been a history of success for Ibex in Jamaica, so that is going to continue,” said Ricketts-Brown.

The new location, which occupies 80,000 square feet of space, is located in ‘Building Two’ at the GTECH Park in Portmore, St Catherine, and is the second of three buildings occupied by Ibex Global at the site. The company now has five locations across the island.