PLDT is Employer of the Year
PMAP top award reaffirms telecom leader’s world-class excellence
The PLDT HR team and other executives bask in the limelight after the winner was announced.
The country’s leader in telecommunications and acknowledged as the best managed large company is also the Philippines’ best employer. For the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), being named such reaffirms a culture of excellence that propels the organization to being world-class.
During the recognition night of the People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP), the PLDT group received the much coveted Employer of the Year (EOY) award for the leadership, dynamism and professionalism that mark its human resource management operations.
The award recognizes the company’s exceptional accomplishments in the field of people management that put PLDT a cut above the rest during a period of global economic uncertainties.
PLDT Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan expressed elation over the win, which comes on the heels of the company performing “better than last year” in terms of profit. “Sa PMAP, sa board of judges at sa mga empleyado ng PLDT group, maraming, maraming salamat po,” he said.
This year’s PMAP Awards EOY board of judges was made up of Philippine Daily Inquirer president and CEO Alexandra Prieto-Romualdez (chair), AIM professor Maya B. Herrera, former labor secretary Bienvenido E. Laguesma, Federation of Free Workers national president Allan S. Montano, Semiconductor and Electronics Industries of the Philippines president Ernie B. Santiago, and Philippine National Bank chair Florencia G. Tarriela.
Empowering HR
During his speech before the 46th conference of PMAP two days before the awards night, Pangilinan underscored the value of human resources (HR) or people management in a huge corporate organization such as PLDT’s.
“We believe that what HR does affect the bottom line as well. Something is wrong when the CEO says that his most important asset is people – yet builds only a mediocre HR unit. Something is wrong if HR is pigeonholed into the admin functions of payroll calculations and collective bargaining, and not made an integral part of senior management. Something is wrong if the HR unit is not truly empowered – if it is not enabled to operate as a full partner in the company’s success.”
In receiving the EOY award, PLDT President and CEO Napoleon L. Nazareno said it was “extremely gratifying” that the recognition came just as PLDT was winding up its 80th year of corporate existence.
He pointed out that the organization is now in the midst of a multi-year program to transform PLDT from a telecommunications company into a communications and multi-media service company.
Meeting challenges
“We’re doing this to meet the challenges of rapid and profound changes that the telecommunications industry is going through worldwide. This is a difficult promise because it requires us to unlearn our habits and ways of thinking, and embrace new ones, along with new skills and competencies,” he said.
As part of the transformation program, PLDT’s top management – including Nazareno himself – goes around the country to meet face-to-face with everyone in the organization to solicit suggestions and support. The road show, which has been going on over the last two years, has covered Tarlac and Metro Manila in Luzon, Cebu and Bacolod in the Visayas, and Cagayan de Oro and Davao in Mindanao.
PLDT Senior Vice President Victorico P. Vargas, who heads the Human Resources and Business Transformation Group, said there is still much to be done although the company has made a lot of progress already.
He pointed out that being named Employer of the Year is a confirmation that we are on the right path towards transformation. During the awards night, union leaders joined top company officials in receiving the EOY award. We share this award with out employees for without them this would have not been possible.
Environment for learning
“It is PLDT’s commitment to its most valuable asset, our people, not only to provide them with competitive compensation and benefits packages but more importantly learning environment that allows them to develop, contribute and be recognized for it. A culture of performance,” Vargas said.
PLDT takes pride in keeping its more than 7,000 employees abreast with fast-paced changes in the industry through consistent competency building and a people management system that is geared to reward performance.
As a company, PLDT has a deliberate strategic human resources management which is development focus. Its people programs are tightly linked to business and transformation objectives.
The company’s HR and Business Transformation Office provides a comprehensive set of programs covering technical skills and attitudinal development, leadership development and various opportunities for employee involvement.
Heart for social responsibility
PLDT employees are also involved in the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in microfinance, sports, education, juvenile rehabilitation, poverty alleviation, disaster preparedness and arts. These are all done through the PDLT Smart Foundation (PSF).
One such initiative in education is the Gabay Guro program which is done in coordination with the Managers Club of PLDT and which seeks to foster the professional development of teachers. Another is a program that provides financial assistance to deserving rank-and-file and supervisory employees under the Employees Educational Grant.
For microfinance, PSF has partnered with ASA Philippines Foundation which has 70,000 borrowers. The program seeks to provide micro-entrepreneurs access to working capital to expand their businesses. Utility personnel such as waiters, janitors, drivers and security guards who work at PLDT and Smart may also avail of loans from ASA.
Reaping the fruits of hard work
In recent years, PLDT has received citations from numerous award-winning bodies, including being named the country’s Best Overall in Corporate Governance and Third Overall Best Company in Asia for Corporate Governance by Asiamoney Magazine.
More significantly, PLDT has been cited as the Best Managed Large Capitalized Company in the Philippines while its chairman, Manuel V. Pangilinan, has been picked as the Best Executive in the Philippines – awards that speak well of PLDT’s admirable stature and its persistent pursuit of lofty standards that place it in the company of the world’s best. CC: