These are uncertain times for Filipino businesses. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage throughout the country, the government has once again called for lockdowns to curb the rising number of cases. Businesses, which have struggled to stay afloat, once again faced weeks of limited to no operations.
In Asian Development Bank’s February 2021 paper COVID-19 Impact on Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises under the Lockdown: Evidence from a Rapid Survey in the Philippines, they reported that micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) saw a significant drop in their revenues at the beginning of the lockdown with 6.1% of micro, 49.1% of small and 35.8% of medium enterprises reporting no revenue.1
As a consequence, Filipino workers have borne the brunt of their employers’ struggles. MSMEs had to lay off their employees at the beginning of the lockdown with a significant portion suspending wages as well.
A year after the beginning of the pandemic, millions remain without work. In June 2021, the unemployment rate was at 7.7%, translating to about 3.76 million jobless Filipinos. Of these figures, subsectors in other service activities lost 241,000 workers followed by accommodation and food service activities, which lost 143,000.2
Increasing uncertainty among businesses and workers facing job insecurity has eroded trust in many employer-employee relationships. But some organizations continue to stay committed to their employees even during these difficult times, like Brother International Philippines Corporation.
Despite Company Size, Brother International Philippines Builds Trust Amid Difficulties
Brother International Philippines promotes and services Brother’s suite of products and solutions in the Philippines that include multi-function printers, labeling machines and sewing machines.
With only 72 employees in the Philippines, Brother International demonstrated how size is irrelevant in an organization that wants to become a great workplace by putting their people first.
The company immediately became a Great Place to Work-Certified™ company despite it being their first time having their Trust Index© evaluated and that they are only starting to build their employer brand.
Their employee experience, for example, is already exemplary, with 88% of their employees saying that Brother International Philippines is a great place to work compared to just 53% at a typical global company.
9 in every 10 of the company’s employees agree that they have competent management (99%) and a physically safe workplace (96%). They also report feeling good about how the company contributes to the community (97%), that people celebrate special events at work (97%) and they are given the resources and equipment to do their job (96%).
The employees’ responses were not at all surprising.
It’s no wonder why Brother International Philippines was declared as “Great Place to Work-Certified”. It makes me feel prouder and more special because in this company I am continuously growing not only as an employee but as a person as well. Brother Philippines never failed to listen to their partners, to their customers and to their employees. The organization always encourages us to provide innovation and change to the company which makes me feel like more connected because I get the chance to contribute to the improvement of the company. I am always thankful as well to have good relationship towards my colleagues professionally. I am also grateful because I gained workmates that can be treated as family too. It is not hard to reach to the people in this organization with whatever concern you may have. This organization pushes us to become better every day at our career and most especially at our well-being. Congratulations Brother Family. I am always proud to be part of this organization and forever will be.
I feel proud working in a company that is a Great Place to Work-Certified, because it only proves that the employees are well taken care of. Working with the management that is continuously looking for improvement in building and maintaining a strong and growing company that looks to its people gives me a sense of pride. It never fails to show that a healthy balanced organization is part of the company priorities, where culture and values are openly shared and respected. And with the strong camaraderie from the associates up to the top management, it is indeed a great place to work.
Trust and respect form the core of the Brother Group’s Code of Practice in their Global Charter, which states, “We must always honor individuals and diversity, and act with trust and respect.”
This perfectly echoes Great Place to Work’s definition, a great workplace where employees trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy the people they work with.
But ideals are not enough for the company as they choose to back these up with action.
“Aligning words and actions is an important key for building trust in the workplace. Our trust in the product we sell, our work environment, our corporate social responsibility and job satisfaction also contribute to our high Trust Index,” said Grace Vizconde, Brother International Philippines’ General Manager for Finance and Administration.
Trust also goes both ways at Brother International Philippines where they ask employees to provide exceptional work in exchange for challenging assignments and bonuses.
“We expect our associates to be positive members of society, share the company’s values, continually learn and improve, maximize their capabilities, strive to achieve their goals and ultimately contribute to our success,” according to Vizconde.
Being part of an organization deemed a "Great Place to Work-Certified" provides a glimpse to its [existing and future] employees that they are generally in professional hands. There are those instances when we ourselves fail to notice our own potential but with the help of fellow associates, I was guided to situations which allowed me to showcase what I am capable of. Given this, I owe my career growth to Brother Philippines, especially management, mainly because they gave me a chance to grow with the responsibilities they have entrusted me with. Moments like these truly embody the company motto, being "At Your Side"
A Clear Path to Having a Great Employer Brand
Brother International Philippines may only be starting their journey in building their employer brand, but they clearly understand its long-term benefit to the company.
Vizconde said that getting their certification during the pandemic validates how they treat their employees and the local community, adding that this will have a lasting impression on the company’s culture.
Ever since, I have always wanted to become a part of an organization with a great platform to work with. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to work with BICP. The culture of this company is great and there is always a room for growth. Communication with employees and managers is always precise. All on board are united and working together as a team to provide good service and solutions with great value. This organization is socially responsible to enrich the contribution of our products to the society and environment as our main priority. Compensations and benefits are bonus part to sustain job performance of all employees.
While the company has a long-term vision of their employer branding journey, they are also aware of their current challenge of attracting talent during the pandemic. But they know that their certification will make them more visible to potential candidates and present them as an attractive and rewarding workplace.
“Listening to their employees will also be key”, said Vizconde.
“This is the reason why we wanted to be Great Place to Work-Certified™. We want to know how our employees see us from a different perspective. [Also], retaining engaged employees helps us attain our goals, targets and KPIs and profitability.”
Employees like Product Specialist – HSM Eleanor Garcia agrees. “It’s no wonder why Brother International Philippines became Great Place to Work-Certified. [The company] never fails to listen to their partners, customers, and employees. I feel more connected to the company because I get the chance to contribute to its improvement.”
Working on a Great Place to Work-Certified™ company gives me a sense of pride. I have been working in BICP for more than 3 years now and I am happy with my current work environment. I'm sure everyone had their share of difficult and stressful episodes while working with clients, meeting deadlines and such. What I like about my company is that the management and my teammates are very encouraging. This is very important so as not to lose the spirit and to overcome the difficulties of your work especially with the current situation. We get discouraged and demotivated at sometimes but with the help of the organization, we get back on track and become able to perform our best.
Like Brother International Philippines, any workplace can be great, no matter its size, as long as it has mutual trust at its heart.
Would you also like to build a workplace that is founded on trust and effectively attracts and retains talent? Let Great Place to Work® Philippines help you start your employer branding journey. Please contact us today for more information.
