(UPDATE) Arroyo inaugurates second Dell call center in RP

MANILA, Philippines -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo inaugurated Thursday morning Dell's second call center facility in the Philippines at the Eastwood Cyber park in Quezon City.

About 1,200 workers are eyed for the facility, bringing the company's workforce total to 2,600. The Eastwood facility currently employs 200 agents and Dell plans to hire 1,000 more employees this year. 

Dell's other call center facility is located at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City and was opened in February 2006. The facility provides service and technical support to Dell consumer customers in the United States.

Richard Hunter, vice president of Dell's Customer Experience and Support Team, noted that Dell is expanding its global network of customer support centers to keep up with its growth as a company. 

Dell operates facilities in 25 locations, including the Philippines and India.

Asked how Dell's call center operations locally compare with India, he replied: "We are also growing rapidly in other locations. But in terms of percentage basis, growth in the Philippines is higher than anywhere else in our global network."

Hunter declined to divulge how much Dell has invested so far in its Philippine operations.

Texas-based Dell Inc. is one of the world's largest computer companies.

In a statement, Dell said the company selected the Philippines for its customer contact centers "because of the strong language and communication skills of its high-quality workforce." 

"With its English-savvy population, about 100 similar facilities in place and 650,000 students, the Philippines is fast becoming the contact center location of choice in Southeast Asia," the company said.