Our Partnership with JP Duminy

Since announcing our partnership with JP Duminy in October, we’ve been busy getting various development projects underway, such as the BPO Academy and the BPO Careers Expo. Now we thought we’d take some time to describe our partnership with CapeBPO’s new brand ambassador, JP Duminy.

For those who are unfamiliar with his name, JP Duminy is a South African cricket commentator and retired international cricketer. He is also the founder and chairman of the JP21 Foundation, an organisation that uses cricket to inspire change in the lives of underprivileged youth and help them get on the right path. This is where our goals align.

While JP21 keeps children in school and off the streets, our hope is to assist them once they matriculate and become young adults.

Many young people living in communities affected by poverty, gang violence, and substance abuse don’t have the opportunity to attend tertiary education institutions after obtaining their matric certificates. With the help of JP, we hope to provide skills training and job opportunities to these individuals – where they can not just survive, but thrive – within the BPO sector.

Speaking from an impact sourcing perspective, CapeBPO CEO Designate Clayton Williams says, “It’s really important to understand the demographic profile of the kids coming into our sector. I think primarily 65 – 70% are from the Cape Flats and a lot of them don’t have a lot of the things that we’re used to, something as simple as having electricity… So I think the impact related to the community is hopefully giving youngsters and their families an opportunity to have a good life.”

We at CapeBPO already have a number of successful skills development and work-readiness programmes in place – the real work is in letting young adults know that this is an option available to them once they matriculate. This is where JP’s voice assists us.

As JP21 has been operating within schools and communities since 2015, they are well-placed to spread our message to local youth and let them know that they can have successful careers within the BPO industry.

“One of the perceptions that we’re trying to break is that our sector is a job rather than a career – it’s actually a career-based sector, “ says Williams. “We’ve got thousands of examples of youngsters that have come in as agents at 18 years old and in 5 – 10 years are running thousand-seat operations and are making a really good living.”

Speaking about what the ambassadorship means to him, JP says, “I’m certainly excited to be on board as an ambassador… youth empowerment is truly what speaks to me. If I look at what I’m currently involved in with JP21 Foundation, what is our main objective? It certainly speaks into CapeBPO’s goal which is youth development, and creating job opportunities… I think what you guys are busy doing is making a dent not only in the [BPO] sector but in underprivileged communities as well. I’m certainly privileged to be a part of this, so thank you.”

We’re excited about this collaboration and look forward to doing good for local communities, as well as the BPO sector here in Cape Town.