When I first started outsourcing to the Philippines, their internet wasn’t really good. Like, 256Kbps wasn’t uncommon.
That’s “K” – Kilobits. Not “M” – Megabits. 5Mbps was really fast!
For years, the Philippines had the dubious reputation of having the slowest internet service in Southeast Asia.
Fast forward to now, and their internet has gotten so much better. It’s so good that I didn’t notice that they used mobile data when working until they told me about it.
Case in point, my OFS, Jam, sent me a picture of his work set-up.
He’s currently working in a school parking lot. He drives his daughter and a couple of other kids to a school far from home. Rather than drive back home to work, he set up a workstation at the back of his car. He’s using mobile data for internet.
I initially thought that this was an isolated case. Maybe Jam was just working in a place where the internet was really good. But then I started asking around. I found out that even my developers sometimes use mobile data because it’s gotten to the point where it’s good enough that they can use it for work.
I know this doesn’t apply to the entire country, nor would this work for all jobs. The internet in rural areas with underdeveloped infrastructure still isn’t enough. Mobile data isn’t as fast or stable as a fiber connection. My video editor/graphic designer rarely uses mobile data because he usually handles big files. He’s always uploading or downloading something, so mobile data is never enough for him.
But the trend is really good. The country’s mobile internet median download speed is now at 21.41 Mbps, and its broadband median download speed is now at 68.94 Mbps. We see improvements in internet speed every few months. Musk’s Starlink was also approved to operate in the Philippines this year, so even the most isolated places in the Philippines are expected to have an internet connection soon.
The fact that several people in my team can work anywhere means that YOU can hire anywhere. You don’t need to worry whether or not their internet can handle the work. Their internet can handle it. Just focus on finding the best Online Filipino Specialist for your business.
Finding the best OFS for your business doesn’t have to be painful or tedious. I’ll walk you through my easy and painless process at OneVAAway.com.
Want to know what tasks an Online Filipino Specialist can do for your business? Go to OFSTasks.com.
John