Sarah Leff - Interact CC - Why the Eastern Cape Could Be South Africa's Next CX Powerhouse

In this episode of CX Files, Peter Ryan speaks with Sarah Leff about Interact CC's expansion into South Africa's Eastern Cape, exploring why the region is emerging as a compelling alternative to traditional CX hubs like Cape Town and Johannesburg. Leff explains that while South Africa has long been a natural partner for UK-based customer experience delivery - thanks to cultural alignment, language, and time zone compatibility - the Eastern Cape offers a distinct advantage: significantly lower attrition, abundant untapped graduate talent, and greater cost stability.

The conversation highlights how Interact's people-centric, employee-owned model aligns well with a region where jobs are valued as long-term careers rather than stepping stones, resulting in stronger engagement and performance. Together, they argue that as CX buyers move beyond cost-driven outsourcing toward value, resilience, and talent quality, newer locations like the Eastern Cape represent the next evolution of Africa's role in global service delivery.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-leff-5338124/

https://interactcc.com/

Summary:

Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan discuss the expansion of Interact Contact Centers into the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. Sarah Leff, Managing Director of Interact Global, explains the decision to set up in the Eastern Cape due to lower attrition rates (15-25%) compared to other hubs like Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg (30-40%). The region offers a highly educated workforce, neutral accents, and lower costs. Interact's new site in Port Elizabeth employs around 100 people, with plans to scale up. The company values its people-centric approach and strong client partnerships, which have lasted over a decade.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(428)

Donald Berryman - ProfectusCX - The Future For The Enterprise-BPO Relationship

Donald Berryman is the Founder & Managing Director at ProfectusCX. He is based in Florida, USA. Don writes a LinkedIn newsletter called The CX Advisor Perspective. He recently published several newsle...

25 Jun 31min

Lara Klick - Klick Advisors - Why Patient Feedback Rarely Leads to Better Care

Lara Klick is the Founder and President of Klick Advisors LLC. She is based in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA. Klick Advisors is a trust-centered consulting practice that helps healthcare leaders and teams n...

18 Jun 34min

Guillaume Luccisano - Yuma AI - The Great CX Reset: Why BPOs May Need a New Business Model

The BPO Industry Isn't Dying. But It May Need to Reinvent Itself Faster Than Anyone Expected. Yuma AI CEO Guillaume Luccisano argues that customer experience providers must evolve from labor arbitrage...

11 Jun 37min

David Rickard - Everest Group - Elevate Ethiopia

David Rickard is a partner at Everest Group. He is based in the UK. David recently visited Ethiopia for the Elevate Africa event. In this conversation with Peter Ryan David gives his take on Ethiopia ...

4 Jun 25min

CXOutsourcers 2026 - Voices From The Conference

The annual CXOutsourcers Mindshare event took place in Ottawa, Canada, earlier in May 2026 (May 18-20). Peter Ryan took a microphone onto the conference floor to capture ideas and comments from the de...

28 Mai 28min

Jonas Berggren - Transcom - What Makes Customers Love A Brand?

What makes a customer love a brand? It is a simple question, but it quickly becomes complicated. People often reach for the obvious examples. Apple customers lining up overnight for the latest iPhone....

21 Mai 34min

Stephanie Reeves Millner - Designing CX For Sales and Revenue

Stephanie Reeves Millner is a Global EVP at TP. She is based in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. It is worth noting from the start of this podcast episode that Stephanie is talking in a personal capacity in thi...

14 Mai 27min

Andrew Hall - Ethenta - Enterprise Agentic AI Transformation

Andrew Hall is the founder and CEO of Ethenta. He is based in Portugal. The "DREAM" service from Ethenta is a strategic framework designed to help organizations transition from traditional hierarchi...

7 Mai 39min