Call centre firm Ascensos dials up new South African outpost

Call centre firm Ascensos has announced its expansion into South Africa with the opening of an operation in Cape Town – aiming to create 600 jobs in the site’s first year.

The business, which is headquartered in Motherwell, said the new location officially opens later this month, and will create 150 jobs initially.

Ascensos said it has expanded internationally since its 2013 launch, with its network of offices now spanning the Isle of Wight, Bucharest and Istanbul, as well as several bases in Scotland. The business – which was signed up by the Scottish Government to boost Covid-related contact tracing efforts – currently has more than 3,000 staff.

John Devlin, co-founder and chief executive of the firm, said: “Cape Town is a premier location with a fantastic talent pool and it’s a well-established market for English-speaking service delivery.

The Scottish firm sees Cape Town as 'a premier location with a fantastic talent pool' (file image). Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto.

“This is a great opportunity to create a large number of high-quality jobs and we are looking forward to building on new business opportunities in the region while servicing our existing client base, which includes some of the world’s best-known brands, from this new location.”

The Cape Town announcement follows the launch of Ascensos Local, a new community-focused arm of the business, which aims to bring digital jobs to rural and semi-rural areas across the UK.

The first Ascensos Local hub opened in Stranraer in August 2021, and five more will debut over the next 12 months, as part of a £1 million investment that will create 500 jobs.

Ascensos boss John Devlin hailed the 'great opportunity to create a large number of high-quality jobs' with the new operation. Picture: Chris Watt.

Mr Devlin continued: “We remain utterly committed to our roots in Scotland, while continuing to expand globally and create jobs at scale.”

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