CIB.O

26/05/2026

𝐂𝐕𝐋 𝐖𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍’𝐒 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 | 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐩 🏆🔥

Legends were tested. New contenders rose. And history was written on the court last Sunday, May 24, 2026, at the CIB.O Volleyball League Finals.

But at the heart of it all, one team once again proved why they stand above the rest — the unstoppable Innodata Knowledge Services, Inc. 𝐋𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬.

Dynasties are not built overnight, and the Lady Strikers once again proved why they remain the standard of excellence in the Women’s Division. After conquering Season 1 in 2024, they returned with unmatched composure, hunger, and championship mentality, ready to defend their place at the top.

Standing in their path was a fearless and rising Concentrix 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬 squad, and the finals quickly evolved into a battle defined by intensity, shifting momentum, and pure determination. In their debut season in the league, the Concentrix Game Changers Women’s Team immediately made their presence felt, pushing the champions to their limits and announcing themselves as a force to watch in the seasons ahead.

Still, when experience met pressure, composure made the difference. The Innodata Lady Strikers rose when it mattered most and secured a hard-fought 3–1 victory, adding another championship to their legacy. 👑🏐

Behind the championship spotlight, another story of consistency and resilience unfolded.

The Teleperformance Philippines 𝐕𝐢𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬 once again delivered a strong performance, securing the Bronze Trophy against Optum Hapaqueras. With back-to-back podium finishes, the Vipers continue to establish themselves as one of the most consistent and competitive teams in the league. 🥉🔥

𝐖𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍’𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐒 🌟
• Best Setter – Jersey #1, Concentrix Game Changers, Ms. Sarah Loy Streeter
• Best Libero – Jersey #14, TP Vipers, Ms. Reginemae Geollegue
• 1st Best Middle Blocker – Jersey #14, Innodata Lady Strikers, Ms. Danilyn Tugahan
• 2nd Best Middle Blocker – Jersey #11, Concentrix Game Changers, Ms. Fatima Mae Allera
• 1st Best Outside Hitter – Jersey #3, Concentrix Game Changers, Ms. Tracy Cortes
• 2nd Best Outside Hitter – Jersey #20, Innodata Lady Strikers, Ms. Wellamel Lim
• Best Opposite Hitter – Jersey #4, Concentrix Game Changers, Ms. Maria Mae Rabago
• Season MVP – Jersey #3, Concentrix Game Changers, Ms. Tracy Cortes
• Finals MVP – Jersey #14, Innodata Lady Strikers, Ms. Danilyn Tugahan

Congratulations to all teams for an unforgettable season filled with intensity, heart, and historic moments that defined the 2026 campaign. 🏐🔥

𝐒𝐞𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐬!

26/05/2026

𝐂𝐕𝐋 𝐌𝐄𝐍’𝐒 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 | 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐌𝐀𝐃𝐄 🐍🏆🔥

Big games. Bigger stakes. And a championship battle that delivered intensity from start to finish. Last Sunday, May 24, 2026, the League reached its dramatic conclusion.

At the center of it all stood the undisputed champions, the Teleperformance Philippines 𝐕𝐢𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬, once again proving why they are the standard of excellence in the league. With discipline, composure, and relentless ex*****on, they overcame every challenge thrown their way in the finals against Foundever 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬.

With a commanding 3–1 victory, the Vipers defended their throne and made history as the 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤-𝐭𝐨-𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐈𝐁.𝐎 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐠𝐮𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔. 🏆🔥

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐀 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑
But the story of the finals was not only about dominance, it was also about arrival.

In their very first season in the league, Foundever 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬 delivered one of the most impressive debut runs in CIB.O history. From newcomers to finalists, they shocked expectations and fought their way into the championship stage with discipline, chemistry, and fearless volleyball.

Finishing as 1st Runner-Up, they established themselves instantly as a future powerhouse, proving that their journey is only just beginning and their presence in the league is here to stay. 👏🔥

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐂𝐄
Behind the championship spotlight, the Accenture in the Philippines 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐬 continued to reinforce their reputation as one of the most consistent and dangerous teams in the league.

Once again securing the Bronze Trophy after defeating Innodata Strikers, the Sharks proved that their competitive edge and discipline keep them firmly among the league’s elite. 🥉🔥

𝐌𝐄𝐍’𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐒 🌟
• Best Setter – Jersey #11, Accenture Sharks, Mr. Matthew Bryan Ahito
• Best Libero – Jersey #17, Accenture Sharks, Mr. Mark Joseph Bucayan
• 1st Best Middle Blocker – Jersey #23, Innodata Strikers, Mr. Brenton Taneo
• 2nd Best Middle Blocker – Jersey #17, TP Vipers, Mr. Julius Bryan Albretch
• 1st Best Outside Hitter – Jersey #21, Foundever The Pioneers, Mr. Dominic Sazon
• 2nd Best Outside Hitter – Jersey #16, TP Vipers, Mr. Jelly Ace Mendoza
• Best Opposite Hitter – Jersey #14, Accenture Sharks, Mr. John Nichol Allosada
• Season MVP – Jersey #21, Foundever The Pioneers, Mr. Dominic Sazon
• Finals MVP – Jersey #2, TP Vipers, Mr. Kim Bataluna

CIB.O President Aseem Roy extended his heartfelt congratulations to all participating teams for an outstanding season filled with passion, sportsmanship, perseverance, and unforgettable moments that brought the entire IT-BPM community together. He also expressed his sincere appreciation to the CVVAR officials and staff for their dedication and professionalism in ensuring the success and smooth flow of the tournament.

CIB.O Executive Director Buddy Villasis closed the season with a powerful message: the rivalry, legacy, and hunger for the next championship have only just begun, with an exciting new twist coming in Season 4!

25/05/2026

In September 2025, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said the company slashed 4,000 customer service roles, opting for the remaining 5,000 support workers to share their roles with AI agents.
“I need less heads,” Benioff said at the time.
But as more companies adopt agentic AI in hopes of replacing or making human workers more efficient, one top economist has noted that customer service roles—particularly those overseas—are only growing.

Citing data from the𝗜𝗧 & 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀, Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok noted in a recent blog post that from 2016 through 2025, call center employment in the Philippines has risen each year, nearly doubling to 2 million over the 10-year span.

He also found that from 2021 to March 2026, unemployment rates in the Philippines have decreased from 9% to about 4%, suggesting AI has not displaced offshore workers. In India, unemployment has remained steady at around 7%. The Philippines dethroned India as the largest call center employer about 15 years ago.

Offshore call center jobs began booming in the late 1990s and early 2000s as a cost-cutting measure. The labor is considerably cheaper overseas than in the U.S., with Filipino call center workers earning wages of 15,000 to over 120,000 Philippine pesos per month, or about $243 to $1,948. In the U.S., the average monthly wage for call center workers is about $2,866, according to Indeed.

But these jobs are also among the most susceptible to AI displacement. The Brookings Institution estimated that 86% of customer service representative tasks had high automation potential.
The apparent contradiction of the job’s potential to be automated alongside rising employment points to a centuries-old economic paradox reflected across labor more broadly, according to Slok.

“This is Jevons paradox in action,” he wrote. “As AI makes call center work cheaper and faster, companies are buying more of it, not less.”

𝗝𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘅 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟭𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝘆
Jevons paradox refers to an observation made by English economist William Stanley Jevons in 1865: The invention of the Watt steam engine made coal a more efficient energy source. But instead of coal consumption decreasing because of increased efficiency, consumption skyrocketed as energy became cheaper.

In the age of AI, Jevons paradox has been resurrected and applied to how the technology may be impacting the labor market: While tech leaders like Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have predicted AI will replace white-collar workers, Slok instead posits that the cost of professional work will fall as AI boosts task efficiency, increasing demand for certain roles and ultimately expanding available jobs.

“Lower cost per interaction does not mean fewer interactions,” he said. “It means more customers served, more channels opened and more markets worth reaching. The technology that was supposed to shrink the industry is fueling its expansion.”
This is already being seen in some professions previously predicted to be replaced by AI. A decade ago, “godfather of AI” Geoffrey Hinton declared radiology would one day no longer need to be performed by humans because of its potential to be automated.

Instead, Christoph Herpfer, an economist and business administration professor at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, said the number of radiologists in the U.S. has actually increased by 10% over the past decade.
“We actually have a huge shortage of radiologists. So the exact opposite of this prediction has happened,” he told Fortune.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗢𝗳 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 & 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
Labor economists are already seeing evidence of AI increasing the productivity of call center workers, which could bolster the role’s demand. A 2023 study led by Erik Brynjolfsson, director of the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, found that for more than 5,000 customer support agents, an AI-based conversational assistant tool increased productivity by an average of 14% per hour.

His research from a decade ago similarly found that an early AI feature able to translate listings on eBay increased international exports by 17.5%. Emma Harrington, an economics professor at the University of Virginia, believes this principle could be applied to today’s AI boom.

“What we’re now seeing in the data might be a modern version of the same phenomenon,” she told Fortune. “We can trade labor more easily across countries when language can be traded more seamlessly.”

While some economists expect AI’s strengths to bolster productivity and subsequent employment, others argue the technology’s weaknesses will sustain the call center industry.

Benjamin Shestakofsky, a sociologist and information science professor at Cornell University, told Fortune that AI may not yet be sufficiently trained to navigate the complexities of certain problems. Moreover, humans experience something akin to “AI brain fry” if inundated with an increased case load; AI may be able to increase how many customers agents can serve, but humans still have limitations in how much they are able to process.

In other cases, some companies may explicitly seek out human customer service agents simply because of their brand, according to Shestakofsky. As the world becomes more automated, it’s sometimes a relief to talk to a human on the other line.

“Even if the LLMs get so good that eventually they can deal with those complex issues—which I don’t think they can do now—I would still expect that you would see some companies seeing the value and offering more human interactions that help customers feel seen, feel like they’re more than just a number on a spreadsheet,” he said.

“The technology that was supposed to shrink the industry is fueling its expansion,” said Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok.

24/05/2026

Cebu’s business landscape is evolving fast — and the leaders driving its growth are all in one room.

Join industry pioneers, government leaders, investors, and decision-makers at as we discuss investment, connectivity, and sustainable growth shaping the future of Cebu.

Featuring insights from top executives and business movers across the Philippines, this is your opportunity to connect, learn, and be part of the conversations that matter.

May 25 | 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Skyrise 4B by KMC, Cebu IT Park

Register now and secure your seat: asia-ceo. org

18/05/2026

𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗔𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆?
Seats are almost full for the 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱. 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲. 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺. (𝗟𝗜𝗧) 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 happening on May 25 in Cebu.

This event is organized by the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP).

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry leaders and elevate your leadership impact.

📍 Summit Galleria Cebu
⏰ 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM
💼 CIB.O Rate: ₱3,000 + VAT

👉 Register now: https://bit.ly/CCAPLIT20206

Secure your slot—registration closes soon!

18/05/2026

📢 𝐂𝐕𝐋𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐃𝐀𝐘! 🏆🏐🔥
The journey ends here. The battle for the crown begins NOW!

After weeks of intense matchups, powerful rallies, and unforgettable moments on the court, it all comes down to this, the FINAL showdown of the CVL2026 Volleyball Tournament!

Now, only one team per division will claim the title.
Every set matters. Every rally counts. Every point brings them closer to glory.

📍 Join us this Sunday, May 24 at Cebu City Sports Institute, Cebu City
🕘 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM

Get ready for an electrifying day of nonstop volleyball action as the best teams battle it out for the ultimate championship title!

Bring the energy. Fill the venue. Cheer for your teams.
This is more than just a game, this is 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐃𝐀𝐘! 🔥🏆

𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐁𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒? 👑

17/05/2026

🖥️𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗖𝗛 𝗡𝗢𝗪 | 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀?

The Philippines built its middle class on the BPO industry.
AI is about to take most of it apart, and nobody in charge is saying it.
1.7 million jobs. 8 10% of GDP. An IMF study finding 89% of BPO workers have high AI exposure. This video covers the full picture: the colonial labor history that made the industry possible, what AI is actually doing to call center employment, who gets hurt and why, the corruption that left the industry with nothing underneath it, and the genuinely hard question of who is to blame when the system itself was designed to produce the outcome we are watching unfold.

The Philippines built its middle class on the BPO industry.AI is about to take most of it apart, and nobody in charge is saying it.1.7 million jobs. 8 10% of...

13/05/2026

📰 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐍𝐎𝐖! | AI CASUALTIES | Meta targets May 20 for first wave of layoffs; additional cuts later in 2026

Meta is preparing to lay off nearly 8,000 employees as part of a fresh restructuring exercise aimed at streamlining operations and accelerating investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure and next-generation technologies.The workforce reduction is expected to affect nearly 10 per cent of t...

12/05/2026

📰 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐍𝐎𝐖! | The anxiety around AI at work is real — from fears of job loss to the pressure to keep up with rapidly evolving technology,” Microsoft wrote in this report about how AI is changing jobs released last week.

As AI and agents take on ex*****on, our own agency expands. The question is whether organizations are built to capture it.

12/05/2026

🖥️𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗖𝗛 𝗡𝗢𝗪 | Millions of Jobs are at Risk. Are companies ready to deal with the AI Threat?

This Front Page video explores how artificial intelligence is significantly impacting the BPO industry in India, with projections indicating substantial job losses.
The content highlights the potential for automation to reshape the future of work, leading to a profound reinvention of the sector. As AI continues to advance, the job market faces major shifts, and this discussion highlights the critical implications of AI replacing jobs in call centers, not just in India and the Philippines but the rest of the world.

This Front Page video explores how artificial intelligence is significantly impacting the BPO industry in India, with projections indicating substantial job ...