Walking together with Bata and Childhaus
Bata Philippines donated milk to indigent children with cancer at The Center for Health Improvement and Life Development (CHILD) Haus as part of its “Let’s Walk Together” campaign. It pledged 50 pesos for every pair worth 999 and above on Friday sales of August to September 2020. Photo shows Jeanette Cu of CHILD Haus and the children receiving the donation from Juris Soliman of SM Foundation and Arlyn Guanlao of Bata Philippines.
MakatiMed at 52
Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed) marks its 52nd anniversary with a continued commitment of providing compassionate care and excellent healthcare services not just to the patients but also to the employees and the community amid a global health crisis.
Throughout the pandemic, the hospital coped with the surge in cases through adhering to strict prevention and control protocols, expansion of bed capacities, and protection of healthcare workers.
MakatiMed was also one of the first institutions that was certified as a testing center for COVID-19 by the Department of Health. It joined nominated hospitals in the Philippines for a worldwide Solidarity Trial by the World Health Organization to study measured the effectiveness of four treatment options against COVID-19.
MakatiMed launched services that patients can avail of in the comfort of their vehicles or homes.
The hospital now offers Laboratory Drive-Thru Service at the Convergys’ Dela Rosa Open Parking and Integrative Palliative and Home Care Services as well as home-based tests and ENT Home Service among others in addition to MakatiMed TeleMD.
It has opened the PET (Positron Emission Tomography) Imaging Center, which is a key development in the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of diseases, especially cancer. The hospital also introduced the MakatiMed Wellness Center at Ayala North Exchange in Makati City.
Puregold among high-growth companies
Puregold Price Club Inc. has been recognized by London-based business publication Financial Times (FT) in its latest annual ranking of 500 High-Growth Companies in the Asia-Pacific region.
This year’s rankings, compiled in partnership with FT sister publication Nikkei Asia and research provider Statista, lists businesses from the region’s most developed markets, according to their pre-pandemic compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in revenue, between 2016 and 2019. The rankings “show how these businesses have fared over the past year, but they do identify those that were in a position of strength coming into the crisis.”
In its survey results, the Financial Times said Puregold recorded an absolute growth rate of 37.2 percent from 2016 to 2019, which put the retailer at number 483 and one of only 20 Philippine companies in the list. The growth rate translates to a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.1 percent, heading into the year 2020.
Puregold aims to pursue its expansion plans this year as it moves closer to its goal of 500 stores nationwide. The company plans to open at least 30 new stores nationwide.
Baseco youth gets lifeline
A year after Globe Platinum kicked off its #ForFutureHeroes program, more than 2,000 schoolchildren have been given a lifeline by Globe Platinum customers who engaged in various virtual multi-sensory events designed with their passions and interests in mind.
Customer participation was matched with World Vision school kits, which contained DepEd-approved learning modules and school supplies to support the most vulnerable students as they transition to distance learning.
The brand has raised 2,735 homeschool kits, of which 1,662 kits have already been distributed to the children who need them. The rest will be delivered to the children in October just in time for the start of the new school year.
Cebuana Lhuillier 24k loyalty program
Cebuana Lhuillier has launched an improved loyalty program, highlighting the capability of Cebuana Lhuillier clients to sign up for a virtual card online, for free.
The launch of the new 24k loyalty program likewise introduces a 24/7 online accessibility to its members.
The new and improved loyalty program boasts an increase in points earning by 33 percent, with one point equivalent to a P30 service fee, while for gold card holders, the fee only amounts to P25.
The newly revamped 24k program also brings the 24k Gold Card into fruition, with a requirement for 24k members who reach a cumulative 110 points in one year can avail of even more premium benefits such as free jewelry cleaning, priority lane, preferred pawning rate, invite to exclusive Cebuana Lhuillier events, and more.
Mastercard, Netbank tieup
Mastercard announced that Netbank, the Philippines’ first Banking-as-a-Service platform (BaaS), will join its Fintech Express program, giving the regulated Filipino bank access to a vast range of Mastercard’s digital-first products and enabling it to issue debit and credit cards under its partners’ brands.
Netbank is geared towards accelerating the digitalization of its customers–including financial institutions, payment companies, neo-banks, domestic fintechs and even non-bank businesses–offering a full range of white-labelled banking services to institutions that are migrating to digital.
Through its services, Netbank enables Filipino fintechs to scale, supports overseas fintechs to rapidly bring their products to the Philippines, and aids traditional lenders by providing digital financial services to their customers.
Mastercard’s Fintech Express was designed to simplify the way that Mastercard works with fintechs around the world. Through the initiative, fintechs are offered access to a suite of digital products to differentiate their offerings, as well as flexible commercial agreements for fintechs’ early growth stages to reduce barriers to entry.
GrabCar Bayanihan backs vaccination program
Grab Philippines launched GrabCar Bayanihan to provide safe mobility solutions for residents going to and from vaccination centers in Metro Manila.
Initially beta-tested in Quezon City, the GrabCar Bayanihan will pilot with over a thousand vaccinated driver-partners, and will be available in Manila, Las Pinas, Taguig, Pasig, Makati, Quezon City, Pateros, and Marikina. Grab Philippines is working closely with the other local government units to extend GrabCar Bayanihan service to support their residents with safe mobility service going to and from their vaccination sites.
Grab Philippines is also offering its passengers in Cebu a 10 percent discount every time they use the code VACCTONORMAL on GrabCar services going to and from vaccination centers. This offer is available for GrabCar Cebu until July 30.
Both initiatives are part of Grab Philippines’ broader GrabBayanihan Vaccination Support Program which aims to support easier access to the COVID-19 vaccine and to encourage its consumers to get vaccinated through the local government units.
Viber features AR lenses
Rakuten Viber will bring the magic of augmented reality (AR) Lenses to its app through a partnership with Snap Inc.
Using Snap’s developer tools including Camera Kit, Creative Kit and Bitmoji, the Viber app will integrate AR Lenses, enable sharing to Snapchat, and bring customizable Bitmoji avatars to Viber.
Viber Lenses Powered by Snap will offer AR-enabled video messaging and photos to Viber users for the first time. The launch includes 30 new Viber Lenses, including animal masks and Viber Characters, an underwater Lens, silly cat interactions, and more.
New Viber features include: Instant Augmented Reality; Attention-Grabbing Filters; Expressive Masks; Beautification Features and; Customized Bitmoji.
Physical office is optional
To succeed in a hybrid future, organizations need to stop duplicating office-centric practices in a virtual setting and instead shift to a human-centric model. In the new era, the physical office is — and will continue to be — optional, according to Stephen Canning, chief executive officer of JCurve Solutions.
Canning said many have yet to fully realize the potential of technology for both business growth and employee well-being.
Rather than viewing technology as a cost center, he said businesses need to consider technology an enabler, especially facing an uncertain and ever-evolving business landscape.
Canning said consolidating core business functions and systems into a single, unified enterprise resource planning tool helps drive greater efficiency, improves visibility, and leads to better, more informed decision making. Moreover, against the backdrop of a global pandemic, better decision-making could be the difference between survival and extinction for businesses.
“With this in mind, businesses have redirected focus and resources to improving employee experience (EX) at home and work,” said. “COVID-19 has shown leaders that there are many compelling business reasons to commit fully to employee wellbeing. For example, higher EX may translate to higher customer experience (CX), affecting upsell and cross-sell potential.
