Island nations and Central American outposts with Caribbean shores hope to cash in as U.S. firms look at establishing near-shore beachheads.
      Phillip Cohen, a Sweden-based call center consultant, has studied the Caribbean extensively and believes the region is a gem for call center operations that often gets lost behind the hype of India and the Philippines. He says the English-speaking islands offer a cheaper near-shore alternative to Canada.
      "The Caribbean offers a good opportunity and there are at least three hidden jewels — Jamaica, Trinidad and the Dominican Republic," he says.
      Also in the mix is El Salvador. Dell, which has been shifting customer service operations in and out of India, is recruiting about 500 English-speaking workers and plans to begin operations this spring in San Salvador. Eric Dithmer, general manager of the facility, said Dell sited its center in the Central American country due to its proximity to the U.S., El Salvador's emphasis on education and training and the strong reputation of its work force.
      El Salvador is emphasizing availability of English-speaking call center workers, says Ernest Montalvo, CEO of GCM Contact Center, one of the country's first homegrown centers. This can be attributed to the country's civil war from 1980 to 1992.
      "A lot of people left the country for the U.S. during the war," Montalvo says. "Now, many of their children are back in El Salvador and they speak very good English."