Amazon will open a customer service centre in Cape Town in October, the US Internet retail giant announced yesterday.
According to a statement, the centre is expected to create more than 600 jobs during its first two years of operation, with an additional 400 seasonal jobs to be added during the fourth quarter holiday season.
Amazon's first presence in Cape Town was a software development centre that opened its doors in 2005. Chris Pinkham, who was instrumental in developing Amazon's cloud computing strategy, spearheaded that initiative. Since then, however, Amazon has kept a low profile in the Mother City.
Fagri Semaar, interim CEO of BPeSA Western Cape, says: “Amazon's investment in the Western Cape once again underlines the province's quality as a world-class BPO [business process outsourcing] destination.”
“It's important to have customer service representatives available when it's convenient for our customers,” notes Brent Jaye, director of Amazon's North America Customer Service.
“We are pleased with the South African and the Western Cape government's commitment to developing a customer service centre industry. Cape Town is widely regarded for its hospitality and we are excited about drawing upon this customer-centric talent pool.”
Semaar thanked the Western Cape minister of finance, economic development and tourism Alan Winde for his role in supporting BPO investments in the province.
“This deal is a major boost to the economy of the Western Cape. It is not only creating a thousand jobs, but installing confidence in our ability to host world-class clients, and I wish them all the best,” Winde says.
The centre in Cape Town will provide services in English and German, and available positions will be listed at http://www.amazon.com/careers.
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