What makes a company an employer of choice?

MANILA, Philippines – Recent studies show that the median age of Filipinos is 23. This is equivalent to the age of a recent college graduate, a budding entrepreneur or even a young professional.

What does this mean then?

From a young worker’s perspective, the question lies in a deeper labyrinth of economic and political decisions and actions: Are the jobs available appropriate for the individual’s skills and capacity? Will the job sustain his or her lifestyle? Is the company bold enough to put forward a vision that transcends corporate objectives and provide social change for its employees and immediate community?

A jobseeker’s preferences in an employer may vary from person to person. Rappler talked to employees of Globe Telecom Inc. for some salient characteristics on what makes a company an employer of choice, or, to human resources expert Susan Heathfield’s words, “an employer who offers a work culture and workplace environment that attract and retain superior employees.“

Globe has 5,800 employees serving over 25 million subscribers. Its head of talent management, Tina Sioson, shared that, while customer relations in their fast-paced and service-oriented industry is crucial, so is caring for each employee. 

“Our culture is made by the people we have,” she explained.

“Our employees are engaged because they are heard. They find happiness in Globe. Happiness could be different for everyone. We engage people based on the anchors of their happiness,” she added.

Dynamic environment

Globe has a young, dynamic and progressive pool of employees that Griselda Go, digital new media head, said makes the working environment “never static.”   

“Globe encourages growth and challenges every individual to push themselves so as not to grow stagnant and complacent,” she noted. 

She said this is complemented by a “dynamic business environment, clear vision, systems and processes that work.” 

Transparency, communication

Being heard is another experience that finance employee Ada Caguioa cherishes. 

“You’ll be more energized and your voice will be heard. You don’t need to be somebody else to be able to participate in terms of your team and in terms of your company,” Caguioa shared.

“You don’t have to be super. What you think or what you say is important as is,” she added.

Growth and opportunities

“We don’t offer jobs, we offer careers,” Sioson stressed, highlighting professional growth and talent opportunities at the telco firm. 

“We allow each and every employee to share his career aspirations and work with his line leader to move closer to that. While an employee is with Globe, we help them to move closer to their career goal while adding value to the organization,” she expounded. 

That is clear to Gene Tamesis from marketing. “Globe gives me the opportunity to run my own race while contributing to the collective goal of the company,” he noted.

Work-life balance

Globe’s work and play programs allow employees to unwind and engage in extra-curricular activities to boost camarederie while being fit. 

“A life with Globe means a rewarding experience. You will strive to be your best in order to serve the customer and the company you love the best way you know how,” Go shared.

Strong, resilient

These characteristics were on display when Globe was being criticized for the quality of its network services while a modernization project was underway. 

“A clear manifestation of our strength and resiliency is when we were hit by competition through so many negative advertisements in different media. We were quiet. We didn’t retaliate,” Sioson of talent management group said.

“We sent letters from the heart to our subscribers, our customers and…told them about the modernization that we’re doing which is first in Asia…Yes there are downtimes because we are doing something quite extraordinary. It’s like preparing and fixing the car while the car is in motion,” she explained.

“It’s the honesty and authenticity. We told them the truth, engaged them in our journey and that’s what makes us strong.” – Rappler.com