The global outsourcing landscape is undergoing a massive transformation—from AI-driven automation to shifting corporate spend. What does this mean for Jamaica and the wider Caribbean? On the latest episode, we are joined by Yoni Epstein, the Founder and CEO of itel and the Chairman of the Global Services Association of Jamaica (GSAJ). Yoni gives us an unfiltered, executive view of: the real story behind recent industry contractions in Jamaica; how AI is changing the sector, not just replacing jobs; the strategic shift required toward higher-value services; and what would demonstrate signs of strong recovery of the sector in Jamaica.

 

This episode is also available on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.

For over two decades, the Global Services Sector has served as one of the Caribbean’s primary economic engines. It has been an avenue for foreign direct investment and job creation, whilst also accelerating the development of countries’ digital infrastructure across the region, thus helping countries, such as Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Guyana and Belize, to position themselves as leading locations for nearshore outsourcing.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, unprecedented growth was experienced across the region, but in recent years, the global market dynamics have shifted, due to, among other things, high interest rates, tighter corporate spend, shifting consumer demand and generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). As a result, the sector finds itself at a pivotal crossroads. Recent contractions across the Jamaican business process outsourcing (BPO) landscape have highlighted a critical truth: the playbooks that built the industry over the last decade must now evolve.

In this episode of the ICT Pulse Podcast, we are joined by Yoni Epstein for a candid conversation on the true state of Jamaica’s offshore outsourcing sector.

 

Introducing our guest

Yoni Epstein

Yoni Epstein, CD is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of itel, an internationally acclaimed Customer Experience provider with over 18 industry awards and 7 facilities across the Caribbean and Latin America. In 2012, he launched itel with just 7 people. Thirteen years and several countries later, itel is 3,500 team members strong with a diverse regional footprint and a leading brand known for its evolution from a local success story to an international player.

With 20+ years in customer experience delivery, Yoni has led the delivery of contact centre services for some of the globe’s most recognisable brands. Under his leadership, itel became an innovation trailblazer, the first nearshore partner to develop its own AI platform for scalable and accurate quality assurance, customised coaching and actionable data insights. Now, itel is the Caribbean’s largest homegrown, tech-forward business process outsourcer, providing job opportunities with continuous learning and career advancement.

Having developed and expanded over 500,000 square feet of purpose-built contact centre space across the region, Yoni has been recognised with multiple national and regional awards for his contributions to the region’s business processing outsourcing sector and recently took up the post of Chairman of the Global Services Sector Association for the second time, to advance the industry.

 

Insights into our conversations

Few leaders better understand the development of Jamaica’s outsourcing sector than Yoni Epstein. Currently, he is the Chair of the Global Services Association of Jamaica (GSAJ), and as the Founder and CEO of itel, one of the region’s largest homegrown multi-national customer experience and tech management firms, he sits at the direct intersection of strategy, policy, and market reality.

Unlike other experts who have expressed concern about the impact of AI on the BPO, Yoni was quick to highlight the benefits for both the employer and employee. He also believes that Jamaica, in particular, can reverse some of the contraction the local sector has experienced, which to a considerable degree will require stakeholders to “go down to brass tacks” and refocus on the fundamentals that have made the sector too big to fail.

Below are questions posed to Yoni that drove our conversation.

  1. You were last on the Podcast in 2020, and at the time Jamaica’s offshore outsourcing industry and the industry across the region were experiencing strong growth. Please give us a sense of what has been happening since we last spoke.
  2. You were a founding member of the Business Processing Industry Association of Jamaica in 2013 and its first Chairman. How does it feel to be back leading GSAJ at a time when the industry seems to be faltering?
  3. There’s a common assumption that AI is gutting the outsourcing sector, but you’ve pushed back on that. What do you say is actually driving the job losses?
  4. Hurricane Melissa did some significant damage in Western Jamaica. How much of the 2025-26 contraction is storm recovery that will reverse on its own, versus structural decline that needs policy intervention?
  5. What does that tell us about how investors are currently viewing Jamaica’s BPO property portfolio?
  6. GSAJ, JAMPRO, the Port Authority, and the Special Economic Zone Authority have formed a multi-agency task force. What’s actually in that plan, and what’s the timeline for seeing results?
  7. Looking two to three years out, what would “stabilised” look like for you — is it 50,000 jobs again, a smaller but higher-value workforce, or something else entirely?

 

We would love to hear your thoughts!

Do leave us a comment either here beneath this article, or on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages, or via Twitter, @ICTPulse.

Also, if you or a member of your network is interested in joining us for an episode, do get in touch.

Let’s make it happen!

 

Select links

Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that were mentioned during the episode, or otherwise, might be useful:

 

 

Images credit:  itel;   itel;  rawpixel.com (Magnific);  DC Studio (Magnific);  rawpixel.com (Magnific)

Music credit: The Last Word (Oui Ma Chérie), by Andy Narrell

Podcast editing support: Mayra Bonilla Lopez