The global services market registered modest growth in 2024, with revenue increasing by 2-4% to approximately US$290 billion. This growth marked a continued deceleration from the strong post-COVID-19 rebound, driving an approximately 12% surge in global services delivery revenue in 2022. Growth slowed further in 2023, with revenue rising by only 3-5%. Moreover, the global services market saw a marginal increase in headcount in 2024, with roughly 200,000 FTEs added to the workforce across regions. In this Global Locations State of the Market Report 2025, we analyze the global services locations landscape, evaluate developments, and assess key trends to design an optimal locations portfolio strategy. The Key Trends report in this analysis examines global locations and the center landscape, adoption trends from 2024, and leaders’ priorities for building a successful location mix in 2025. The report also analyzes headcount and revenue growth trends in the global services market at geographic/regional levels. It includes a breakdown of new center setups by geography and function, including IT application development and maintenance, IT infrastructure, engineering, R&D, contact center operations, and non-voice business services.

The demand for top talent is growing fast as the job market shifts from economic uncertainty to a dynamic environment. In this scenario, maintaining a strong employer brand is vital. Organizations prioritizing talent will gain a competitive edge in a landscape where specialized functional and behavioral skills are key differentiators. Global Business Services (GBS) employers have a unique opportunity to attract and retain exceptional professionals by adopting a multi-faceted strategy. By fostering a culture of innovation, growth, and engagement, these companies can position themselves as employers of choice in today’s talent-driven world. The 2025 Top GBS Employers™ – Comprehensive Edition report analyzes how over 400 GBS employers are perceived across India, the Philippines, and Poland. It evaluates them across compensation and benefits, work environment, work-life balance, hybrid work policies, culture and values, leadership, career development, and diversity and inclusion. The report also examines each GBS employer’s perceived performance in local talent markets based on prevailing attrition rates, growth, and employee satisfaction ratings. It assesses best-in-class GBS employers’ initiatives to differentiate themselves in talent markets. GBS employers can leverage these insights and Everest Group’s talent performance framework to optimize their talent management strategies and build future-proof talent models. This analysis is based on publicly available information only to capture prospective employees’ perceptions about these top GBS employers. The assessment reflects market trends as of Q1 2025. We will continue to track this market and update our assessment annually. Scope Industry: all Geography: India, the Philippines, and Poland Source: This analysis is based on various publicly available data sources, such as global, regional, and local employee forums, job posting websites, social media, professional media, and Everest Group (2025) analysis Research methodology: This analysis is not a survey- or interview-based research of employees / target candidates Application: To validate and/or identify gaps in your internal pulse surveys, compare it with your external branding strategy to see what is working and what is not, and leverage this independent outside-in assessment in your branding initiatives Contents In this report, we examine Key employee value proposition drivers, such as compensation and benefits, work environment, work flexibility, remote work, work culture, career development, and diversity and inclusion, and their impact on employer brand perception and perceived success in the talent market An outside-in employer brand perception assessment to identify which GBS employers are perceived as more favorable Key factors enabling top GBS employers in India, the Philippines, and Poland to build a distinctive employer brand Trends and factors shaping employer brand perception across industry segments YoY trends in GBS employers’ employer brand perception

As the job market shifts from economic uncertainty to a dynamic environment, the demand for top talent is growing fast. In this scenario, maintaining a strong employer brand is vital. Organizations that prioritize talent will gain a competitive edge in a landscape where specialized functional and behavioral skills are key differentiators. Global Business Services (GBS) employers have a unique opportunity to attract and retain exceptional professionals by adopting a multi-faceted strategy. By fostering a culture of innovation, growth, and engagement, these companies can position themselves as employers of choice in today’s talent-driven world. The Top GBS Employers™ 2025 report analyzes employer brand perceptions for over 400 GBS organizations across India, the Philippines, and Poland. This report also analyzes the perceived performance of GBS employers in local talent markets based on prevailing attrition rates, growth, and employee satisfaction ratings. This executive overview presents key quantitative insights and a preview of current trends (as of Q1 2025). This report will comprehensively assess the leading GBS employers across various research dimensions. We will continue to track this market and update our assessment annually. Scope Industry: All industries Geography: India, the Philippines, and Poland Source: This analysis is based on various publicly available data sources, such as global, regional, and local employee forums, job posting websites, social media, professional media, and Everest Group (2025) analysis Research methodology: This analysis is not a survey- or interview-based research of employees / target candidates Application: To validate and/or identify gaps in your internal pulse surveys, compare it with your external branding strategy to see what is working and what is not, and leverage this independent outside-in assessment in your branding initiatives Contents In this report, we examine The 2x2 positioning matrix of top GBS employers across geographies Top GBS employers’ detailed scorecards by benchmarking performance across key employer brand perception dimensions

Everest Group’s Location Spotlight reports provide a crisp, insightful assessment of established and emerging/next-wave global services delivery locations by country and city. The reports help global sourcing practitioners or location strategy professionals stay ahead of the competition in understanding key market dynamics and the related opportunities each location presents. Our report on Cebu City, Philippines offers data-backed research to understand the market’s attractiveness in terms of: Key drivers, challenges, and untapped opportunities for the global sourcing industry Talent and skills availability (at both entry and experienced levels) Depth and maturity across functions Financial attractiveness (including wage inflation and attrition) Enterprises and providers’ delivery presence Key languages supported Key operating and business environment risks (such as macroeconomic, geopolitical, infrastructure, safety and security, and legal and regulatory) Location Spotlight, combined with other reports in Everest Group’s Locations Insider™ subscription, makes for the industry’s most comprehensive resource on location trends and perspectives. The Locations Insider™ subscription provides up-to-date and actionable insights on which enterprises can base their location decisions and strategies. Membership(s) Locations Insider™ Sourcing and Vendor Management

Customer Experience Management (CXM) Service Provider Compendium 2024 – APAC offers detailed and fact-based snapshots of 35 CXM providers offering services in APAC. Each profile offers a comprehensive view of the provider’s scale of operations, proprietary digital solutions, partnership ecosystem, portfolio mix, and delivery locations. The compendium will enable providers to benchmark their capabilities against their competition, while CXM buyers will be able to assess the providers based on their specific capabilities. Scope Domain: CXM Industry: all Geography: APAC Contents In this research, we feature profiles of 35 CXM providers offering services in the APAC region and examine their: Services’ suite and scale of operations, including key leaders, FTEs, revenue, recent developments, proprietary solutions, and partnerships Key delivery locations worldwide Capabilities, major engagements, and revenue by geography, industry, and buyer size Memberships Customer Experience Management (CXM) Services, including Contact Center Outsourcing Sourcing and Vendor Management

Everest Group’s Location Spotlight reports provide a crisp, insightful assessment of established and emerging/next-wave global services delivery locations by country and city. The reports help global sourcing practitioners or location strategy professionals stay ahead of the competition in understanding key market dynamics and the related opportunities each location presents. Scope Our report on Davao City, Philippines, offers data-backed research to understand the market’s attractiveness in terms of: Key drivers, challenges, and untapped opportunities for the global sourcing industry Talent and skills availability (at both entry and experienced levels) Depth and maturity across functions Financial attractiveness (including wage inflation and attrition) Delivery presence of enterprises and service providers Key languages supported Key environment risks (such as macroeconomic, geopolitical, infrastructure, safety and security, and legal and regulatory) Location Spotlight, combined with other reports in Everest Group’s Locations Insider™ subscription, makes for the industry’s most comprehensive resource on location trends and perspectives. The Locations Insider™ subscription provides up-to-date and actionable insights on which enterprises can base their location decisions and strategies. Membership(s) Locations Insider™ Sourcing and Vendor Management

In 2023, the APAC region's Customer Experience Management (CXM) market witnessed moderate growth, fueled by the adoption of omnichannel solutions, generative AI, and cloud services and the evolving social media landscape. Enterprises seeking to collaborate with CX service experts are driving this expansion to reduce costs, diversify operations, and support regional expansion. The travel and hospitality sector notably increased its CXM outsourcing due to a surge in tourism in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines, while telehealth services’ rise in India and China spurred CXM’s demand in healthcare. Additionally, increasing mobile penetration and retail and e-commerce growth have amplified digital CXM solutions’ need across the region. Providers have established centers of excellence focused on deploying advanced solutions, such as knowledge-as-a-service, conversational AI chatbots, and agent-assist tools, to accelerate innovation in digital CX, including generative AI. Many providers are also partnering with hyperscalers and AI startups to bolster their AI capabilities and broaden their service offerings. In this report, we analyze 29 CXM service providers’ capabilities across industries in APAC. Each profile examines the provider’s service focus, key IP and solutions, domain investments, and case studies. Scope Industry: all Geography: APAC This assessment is based on Everest Group’s annual RFI process for the calendar year 2024, interactions with leading CXM service providers, client reference checks, and an ongoing analysis of the CXM services market Contents In this report, we: Examine the CXM market in APAC Assess providers’ key strengths and limitations Provide sourcing considerations for enterprises Membership(s) Customer Experience Management (CXM) Services, including Contact Center Outsourcing CX Excellence Sourcing and Vendor Management

As businesses expand their operations to different parts of the world, it is becoming increasingly important to communicate with customers in their native language. While English is widely recognized as the lingua franca of business, global companies can expand their market reach even further by operating in different languages. Over the past decade, the demand for Asian language speakers has increased drastically. However, the availability of most Asian languages outside of the Asian subcontinent is limited. This means that most companies need to leverage Asian markets to support delivery in any Asian language. Today, several Asian countries can support a wide range of Asian languages – primarily due to the increased globalization of the Asian bloc and the growing bilateral trade relations among multiple countries within the Asian subcontinent. This has opened a gateway for enterprises and providers, as they no longer need to limit themselves to just the native Asian country for services delivery in a specific Asian language. This Everest Group handbook supports organizations in their efforts to identify the right locations for delivering services in Asian languages. It highlights the relative attractiveness of key global locations based on a holistic and multifaceted approach. The report covers various parameters to assess the attractiveness of language delivery, including language scalability potential, language proficiency, salary premium compared to English language delivery, and the operating and business environment. Scope Industry: global services Geography: APAC Contents In this report, we analyze 12 locations in Asia for Asian language services delivery. The report focuses on eight Asian languages – Hindi, Indonesian Bahasa, Japanese, Korean, Malay Bahasa, Mandarin, Thai, and Vietnamese. Membership(s) Locations Insider™ Sourcing and Vendor Management

Customer Experience Management (CXM) in APAC – Service Provider Compendium features accurate, comprehensive, and fact-based snapshots of 17 CXM service providers in APAC. It features their scale of operations, digital solutions, and delivery locations, along with Everest Group’s PEAK Matrix® service provider assessment. The compendium also looks at the CXM service provider landscape in APAC. The study will enable current and potential buyers of CXM in APAC to assess the providers based on their strengths and limitations for desired capabilities. Scope Domain: CXM Industries: all Geography: APAC Contents Each CXM service provider profile provides the following details: Services suite and scale of operations: key leaders, FTEs, revenue, recent developments, proprietary solutions, and partnerships Delivery locations: details of key delivery locations worldwide Capabilities and client details: major engagements and revenue split by geography, industry, and buyer size Everest Group assessment: the provider’s position on Everest Group’s PEAK Matrix®, market share and delivery capability assessment, and overall evaluation of capabilities Membership(s) Customer Experience Management (CXM) Services, including Contact Center Outsourcing Sourcing and Vendor Management

On January 12, 2020, a small volcano (Taal), south of Metro Manila, spewed a massive plume of ash and steam, drowning dozens of towns and cities, including the main business district of Makati City, in ash fall and volcanic particles up to 2.5 inches in diameter. This event prompted the Philippines government to issue an advisory for private firms to suspend their operations temporarily, evacuate thousands of people from volcano-affected areas, and shut down the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila. IT and business process services companies in the Philippines should start testing/activating their business continuity and disaster recovery measures. (Please refer to Everest Group’s Global Locations Annual Report for a detailed risk profile.) Click here for more information on our location and service provider risk tracking services. Membership(s) Catalyst Locations Insider™ Market Vista™