CEMEX Holdings investor relations director Pierre Co (center) receives the award (from left) SEC chairman Emilio Aquino, ICD vice chair and president Ma. Aurora Geotina-Garcia, Philippine Stock Exchange president and CEO Ramon Monzon and ICD chairman Cesar Villanueva.
CEMEX Holdings Philippines (CHP) bagged a new Golden Arrow Recognition for being a Top Performing Publicly-listed Company in the Philippines.
This marks the second time CHP has received the prestigious recognition, the first was in 2019, from the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD).
“Receiving a second Golden Arrow affirms CEMEX’s continued commitment to achieve excellence in Corporate Governance by following international best practices and operating with the highest standards of integrity, transparency, ethics and compliance,” said Luis Franco, CHP president and CEO.
Golden Arrow Recognition is given to publicly listed companies that are considered top performing companies in the Philippines based on the 2021 Asean Corporate Governance Scorecard Assessment Results.
The recognition is testament to CHP’s observable conformance with the Philippine Corporate Governance and internally recommended corporate governance practices espoused by the ACGS. It also highlights the sound implementation of its socioeconomic programs and sustainability initiatives that support nation-building.
Robots to enhance employee efficiency, customer service in Davao Light
The 34 new RPA developers from the boot camp pose for a photo with AboitizPower Distribution Utilities Corporate Services vice president Jokin Aboitiz, and president and Davao Light chief operating officer Rodger Velasco during the graduation ceremony last January 20.
Davao Light and Power Co. Inc., a utility company and subsidiary of Aboitiz Power Corporation (AboitizPower), deployed another 34 robots on top of an existing 16 in a bid to further enhance the efficiency of its operations.
“They are not electromechanical robots but software robots,” said Engineer Jeffrey Lingatong, Davao Light’s RPA expert. “Robotic Process Automation (RPA) will perform any established steps, instructions, logic, or error handling using your computer.”
Davao Light currently employs seven robot experts. Together, they created the initial 16 robots, which were responsible for saving 700 hours of manual manpower.
“Doing menial things… is really stressful, time-consuming, and prone to human error,” Lingatong explained. “With RPA, different business processes can now be automated and the employee can do more value-adding tasks, be more creative, and come up with new ideas for the company while the robot performs in the background. Automation will increase the productivity and efficiency of an employee and further improve the quality of our services,” he added.
Called collaborative robots or “cobots,” they help the employees efficiently analyze data to make better and more accurate decisions in less time.
For example, a recently deployed robot in Davao Light processes 25,000 eBillTxt accounts per batch on a monthly basis. eBillTxt is the new billing service of Davao Light, wherein customers can receive their electricity bill through text.
The program is in line with AboitizPower Distribution Utilities’ massive transformative purpose of “Empowering the Evolution of our Cities.”
FWD launches “The One” to offer customizable coverage
FWD Life Insurance has launched FWD The One, a customizable coverage plan to meet the lifestyle and financial needs of multiple generations of Filipinos, from Gen Z to 70 years old.
Easily accessible online, FWD The One reflects the current generation’s definition of what finding ‘the one’ means for them: a perfect partner, a lifelong passion, an advocacy, or a personal goal. FWD designed the product to be flexible for different life stages and to support customers’ evolving digital habits, with benefits that will serve as the ideal lifelong insurance for different generations.
FWD The One is available to Filipinos aged 18 to 70 who are legal residents of the Philippines for at least six months, with no medical tests required during application. It’s available at FWD’s online shop, with the starting premium as low as Php 330, based on the customer’s age, budget and protection needs. Customers can customize their plan and add coverage on top of life insurance, such as coverage against 42 major critical illnesses and accidental death benefit. For those who want a higher benefit amount, they can reach out directly to FWD financial advisors.
This latest innovative product comes with four options: The One for Life, which offers death benefit; The One for Life and Critical Illness, which provides a combination of both death and critical illness benefits; The One for Life and Accident, which bundles death benefit with accidental death benefit; and The One for Life, Accident, and Critical Illness, which covers all three benefits.
The death benefit is renewable until age 99, while the accidental death and critical illness benefits are renewable until the insured reaches 79 years old. A cup of coffee redeemable within 20 days awaits those who purchase the plan.
PhilHair caravan officially launches at the SM Megamall Mega Event Center
Far left, PhilHair President Ricky Reyes delivers his speech during the press launch of the nationwide PhilHair Health & Beauty Caravan.
Right photo, Philippine Cancer Society Representative Dr. Romy Marcaida, PhilHair President Ricky Reyes, Judy Chua, Tiffany Gatchalian, Philippine Red Cross Secretary General Dr. Gwen Pang, SM Supermalls Vice Presiden for Corporate Marketing Grace Magno, SM Supermalls AVP for Premier 2 Operations Ian Mathay
PhilHair has partnered with the Philippine Red Cross to conduct medical health checkups and First Aid training for women and children in the communities surrounding the SM malls
Memorable Valentines
Cebu Pacific (CEB) and Robinsons Hotels and Resorts are offering exclusive discounted hotel rates to its passengers this February.
From February 6 to 28, 2023, CEB passengers can avail of discounted rates at Go Hotels in Lanang-Davao, Dumaguete, Iloilo, and Tacloban, as well as at Summit Galleria Cebu. Each passenger can book up to three rooms for a maximum of seven nights, exclusive of breakfast.
To avail of the discounted hotel rates, CEB passengers must present their valid boarding pass and a government-issued ID upon booking and checking in.
P&A Grant Thornton at 35
P&A Grant Thornton is set to celebrate its 35th anniversary with the theme Shaping a Vibrant Tomorrow to reflect the firm’s long-term commitment to spark inspiration among stakeholders, innovate and transform, answer global calls to promote sustainability and foster stronger collaboration among stakeholders as a catalyst of change.
“Our upcoming 35th anniversary celebration marks another poignant milestone in the history of P&A. For us, it is more than just a reminder of our journey throughout the years. It is a striking portrait of who we really are as a company. If one were to look at our history, three qualities stand out — bold perspectives, divergent thinking, and our persistence to always forge new paths,” said Marivic Españo, chairperson and CEO of P&A Grant Thornton.
The anniversary event will be held on February 15 at the Fairmont Hotel in Makati to be attended by two prominent figures in the Grant Thornton community: Rodger Flynn, Grant Thornton’s regional leader – Network Capabilities for APAC, and Peter Bodin, the CEO of Grant Thornton International. P&A Grant Thornton founders — Ben Punongbayan and Jose Araullo — will grace the event.
Life Track Station launch
Allianz PNB Life and the Philippine National Bank (PNB) are opening opportunities for their customers to take the first step towards a more secure and financially protected future through their brand-new Life Track Station, recently launched at the PNB Financial Center in Pasay City.
“The Life Track Station serves as a physical reminder to PNB’s customers of the importance of protection and health,” said Allianz PNB Life chief marketing officer Gino Riola. “Both organizations share the same customer-centric values, so we want to ensure that, through the Life Track Station, PNB customers know that Allianz’s life-changing insurance solutions are available and accessible to them.”
The Life Track Station at PNB Financial Center features standees of Allianz PNB Life’s ambassadors, Olympic pole vaulter EJ Obiena and volleyball phenom Alyssa Valdez. Its design is new and fresh, with an emphasis on protection and health, as well as Allianz PNB Life’s mantra Confidence in Tomorrow.”
One of the insurance products customers can avail at the Life Track Station is Allianz PNB Life’s eAZy Health, a five -year renewable term insurance solution that provides life insurance coverage with protection against critical illness, accident, and disability.
FedEx Express appointment
ESPINOSA
FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. has appointed Maribeth Espinosa as the new managing director of FedEx Express Philippines.
In her new role, Espinosa will lead a team of more than 1,000 team members and play a pivotal role in supporting businesses of all sizes access cross-border e-commerce opportunities to expand their global footprint.
Espinosa joined FedEx in 1995 as a Dangerous Goods Agent. Over the years, she progressed through the ranks to manage clearance operations for various markets across the region.
Sonak taps MuleSoft
Salesforce, the global leader in CRM, has announced that Sonak Group, an importer, distributor and retailer of sporting goods in the Philippines and across Southeast Asia, is using MuleSoft to transform its retail platform into one where brands and customers are connected and empowered across multiple sales channels.
With MuleSoft, Sonak’s new digital infrastructure has enabled the company to advance with new offerings and automations.
Established in 1966, Sonak is a global trading business with a presence in the Philippines and Singapore, supplying sporting goods and equipment from brands like Molten, Mikasa, Asics and Onitsuka Tiger.
Sonak has engaged with MuleSoft’s Professional Services team at the onset of their digital transformation journey as their trusted technology partner and advisor. The brand has been on a digital transformation journey with MuleSoft since 2019, to revamp their legacy systems into a full-scale digital infrastructure. Their goal was to provide customers with a world-class retail system including the ability to launch and run multiple eCommerce platforms. Using data and analytics, Sonak also aims to empower their store team with a single source of truth about their customers.
