RP's best undergrads meet the best US companies

MANILA, Philippines - From April 18 to 25, the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (AmCham) 7th Business Orientation Program (BOP) linked 28 Filipino student leaders from 16 schools — in keeping with its theme “The Best Meets the Best” — with management professionals from leading American multinational companies in Manila through sit-down discussions and site tours.

“The program created a unique environment wherein the best students from different universities and backgrounds learned from each other and got to interact with CEOs and top-level executives of AmCham member companies,” said BOP Committee chairman Dave Morin, who is also Goodyear Philippines’ president and managing director.

Changing Perceptions

The exposure afforded by the BOP changed the students’ outlook in many ways — from how they see industries to their own country.

Randy Ventanilla, a University of Baguio accountancy student, said that before the visit to Genpact Philippines, a business process outsourcing firm, he mistakenly thought that “the attractive pay of Business Process-Outsourcing (BPO) companies enticed students to work as call receivers at the expense of a diploma.” He discovered firsthand that not only do BPOs have diverse professional services through which an employee can chart a career path, they also have scholarship programs for bachelor degrees, post-graduation degrees and even for Harvard Business School. “By the end of our visit, I was keen on starting my own career at Genpact as a finance and accounting specialist,” he said.

For Sanny-din L. Usodan, an accountancy student at Mindanao State University in Marawi, the visit to Asian Hospital overhauled his concept of medical-care settings. “When I stepped into the lobby, I thought I was in the wrong place! Its hotel environment astounded me.” He realized that “a hospital’s beautiful interiors and exteriors serve to further promote physical, mental and spiritual well being.” 

As for seeing the country in a new light, UP Diliman accountancy student Patricia Ann Rodriguez related how Peregrine’s vice president and chief operating officer James Spore “spoke so passionately of the Philippines and its possibilities” as his team brings in Middle Eastern investors to develop the airport in Clark Air Base into a global logistics center. “They believe in us so much. Maybe what’s left is for us to believe in ourselves with equal passion,” she said.

Ventanilla added that US Ambassador Kristie Kenney moved him the same way. “She told us that if we always read sad news about the country, it is only because good news does not sell; that there is countless great news about the country. If a foreigner appreciates my country for its majestic islands and rich culture, then why shouldn’t I?”

Strategizing For Success

Beryl Ann Manching, a management student at UP Visayas Cebu, said the tour to Sunpower Manufacturing, Inc. at Technopark, Laguna, reinforced her desire to be part of a company whose business also gives back. “Sunpower’s operations also save the environment. In an age where we consume energy more than we replenish, we need renewable alternatives,” she said.

Both Manching and Ventanilla cited AmCham’s General Membership Luncheon Meeting keynote speaker, ABS-CBN Foundation managing director Gina Lopez, as influential. “Educated in the US, she came back to head projects like Bantay Bata 163, Bantay Kalikasan, and BayaniJuan. Listening to this woman with the resources, network and big heart who chose to be an agent for meaningful change inspired me,” said Manching.

Zoe Manguilimotan, a UP Mindanao BS Agribusiness Economics student, echoed the value of finding one’s passion. “I will always take with me what AmCham executive director Jun Salipsip said about passion. That salary-driven people don’t succeed as well as people who truly love their work,” she said.

A BOP highlight was the students, divided into mixed teams, formulating and presenting their business plans to a panel of judges. Usodan said that what they learned about building a strong case analysis — “targeting your potential markets, thinking of feasible marketing strategies, considering the market conditions” — are lifelong applications. From this group collaboration, Manching said she “learned to ask the right questions, to accomplish things on time, and to manage stress by enjoying the light moments. Those are the real, lasting prizes.”

Guiding Future Choices

Manguilimotan said the BOP clarified her career choice. “Before the BOP, I was likely to work in a call center for the salary despite my agribusiness course. AmCham made me realize that I should stay in a field that I love, no matter how difficult. The salary may not be as high at first but with passion, self-improvement and success follow.” She envisions promoting Mindanao someday through her own agricultural products company, which will also sponsor scholars as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Johanah Joyce Co, a business management student at De La Salle University in Manila, was similarly inspired towards advocacy. “As a Juvenile, Type 1 diabetic, I aspire to also walk the talk someday by giving back to a local diabetic foundation in the same way that AmCham has invested in the youth to change tomorrow’s world for the better.”

Co added that the BOP exposure instructed her on the values she would look for in her future workplace. “I would want to join an organization that has employee training like Citibank-Philippines; a work life balance and safety culture like Chevron Holdings; CSR activities like the ABS-CBN Foundation and Philip Morris Philippines; a talent pool like Ogilvy; a sales force like Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines; quality assurance like MeadJohnson Nutrition and Alaska Milk Corporation-Philippines; talent search and development like John Clements and Convergys; business development plans like Peregrine; operations management like Ford Group Philippines; medical assistance like International SOS Inc.; innovation like SunPower and Asian Hospital and Medical Center; location and views like The Bellevue Hotel; and market leadership like CB Richard Ellis Philippines.”

The Best Meet The Best

A rigorous process preceded the selection of participants, with invitations sent to prominent universities in the country. These are: the University of the Philippines (Diliman, Cebu and Davao), De La Salle University, University of the East, University of Asia and the Pacific, Far Eastern University, Centro Escolar University, Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Holy Angel University in Pampanga, St. Louis University, University of Baguio, University of Cebu, Siliman University, Ateneo University de Zamboanga, and the Mindanao State University.