MCVOLT-IN: MCVO Leadership Team Insights & News (September 2023)
Welcome to another edition of MCVOLT-IN: MCVO Leadership Team Insights & News! This is a monthly column featuring editorials, updates, and other content from the MCVO Talent Outsourcing Services’ leadership team. This column aims to give our clients, employees, and followers a closer look at what happens in and out of the MCVO office, and what our leaders and teams are up to! Enjoy reading!
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What Leadership Means — And More
By: Maria “Ina” Sabel C. Villanueva | Sr. Client Services Manager, Jr. Operations Manager | mvillanueva@mcvotalent.com
I’m already part of the management as our company’s Sr. Client Services Manager so when the role of being a Junior Operations Manager was offered to me, I had mixed emotions about it. I felt honored and wanted to grab the opportunity to grow further with MCVO in a new position. On the other hand, I was honestly pressured as well and I just knew it would be overwhelming to handle both huge responsibilities. In the end, I decided to take the offer as it was an opportunity I couldn’t let pass.
It was indeed challenging at first, juggling client services and operations. Time management wasn’t one of my best suits but I knew fully well that I needed to change some things to get better results and be able to fulfill my new role.
One of the things I did was to utilize my calendar and plot reminders aside from scheduled meetings. I also color-coded the items on my calendar to help me prioritize my tasks. Red for most urgent, blue for regular and recurring touch base, green for kick-off meetings, and among others. I have also recently incorporated using a journal to keep track of my To-do’s for the day and accomplish tasks instead of the Sticky Note feature you’ll find in most PCs. Additionally, delegating tasks to others whenever possible has been a great help to me. This frees up some of my time so I can focus on other important and urgent matters.
At present, I would say I’m better at managing my tasks and time. There is still room for improvement but I am happy that I don’t push myself too hard these days but make sure I keep moving forward towards further growth so that my team and company can rely on me.
As a Junior Operations Manager, my core responsibility is to people management because people comprise a huge portion of the operations. And you can’t completely understand people. It will take you a long time to really dig into someone’s aspirations, values, motivations, fears, pet peeves, and likes. To make people trust you enough to see you as a reliable leader and for them to actually listen to you because they believe in the direction you are taking the team is no easy feat. It takes a lot of experience—and mistakes.
If I can give two pieces of advice to new and young leaders, that would be:
1. Do not be afraid to make mistakes. It is good if you think about all possible outcomes and the impact of your decision on the people involved but don’t let fear of making the “wrong” decision paralyze you, that you are unable to move forward and provide a course of action to your team. We learn and grow from our mistakes. We become better leaders through it so allow yourself to make some.
2. Give the quiet ones a voice. Hidden talents and strengths of your quiet team members or those who are introverted, go unnoticed and slip under our radar because we don’t exert more effort to get to know them and encourage them that where they are is a safe space where they will not get judged. Be more sensitive and observant. Keep in mind to let everyone, have the chance to showcase or unlock what they are good at. Fade into the background if you must so that your team members can shine.
Being a leader isn’t for everyone because with great power comes great responsibility. But it is a very fulfilling job so I do not regret saying yes to being both MCVO’s Sr. Client Services Manager and Jr. Operations Manager. It’s an everyday opportunity presented to me to guide people in whatever way I can.
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A Trek to the Corporate Ladder
By: Nathalia “Nata” C. Bigornia | Office Lead | nbigornia@mcvotalent.com
People told me that I had to climb the corporate ladder to achieve growth in my career. I got curious but found out there was no ladder. My experience with being promoted as an office lead is like trekking on Mt. Apo.
I saw myself stuck in a loop where I had forgotten the place I wanted to be. This prompted me to take the biggest decision to express my intention of achieving a new role in the company. Luckily, I was given an opportunity to prove my willingness for the position. I was given 3 months of training for the role while working on my previous tasks as an office assistant. The experience was like trekking on a mountain. There are areas that are easy to walk on during the trek, like creating reminders of company policies, establishing office cleanliness, and managing payables to guarantee continuous operation of the office. They might look easy, but doing them all at the same time is like continuing the journey while it rains. I have only made it through by preparing all the tools that I will need and by creating a habit that helped me manage my time.
Just before my 4th work anniversary with MCVO, I was promoted as an office lead. The first month was an easy hike until we had a client who would need most of my time. I was passionate about what I was doing. I do not mind the heaviness of the responsibility since it has given me knowledge on how to start a business. I like planning things ahead of time and creating solutions for problems that have not yet arisen. Nonetheless, there are still some parts that I was not able to anticipate. I always forget that the weather cannot be controlled, even if I follow the usual Filipino superstition. In the end, the client has decided to put the project on hold, which will be planned again for next year. This experience has taught me a lot of things. We cannot always control things, and we have to learn to be flexible in solving problems. We also have to appreciate the scenery of how far we have gone and how to make a stop or rest during the journey.
I also would not have made it through without the help of my managers, superiors, and fellow workmates. I was so used to doing most of the work by myself that I tend to forget to ask for help. However, one must always remember that it is dangerous to hike or trek alone, especially if you are new to the place. No one can do something they are unfamiliar with in just a day. The problems we will face at work will be like slippery slopes or rocky trails, which can make us slip or fall. It’s important for us to know that we can always rely on others and that we are not alone, because that’s what makes us a team. Our team may be diverse, but when combined, we can make a perfect picture, just like a rainbow.
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One Day at the Office
By: Joiada “JD” Cruzate | Marketing Manager | jcruzate@mcvotalent.com
I’m not new to working from home. It’s been my normal way before the COVID-19 pandemic made the world stand still. The privilege to work remotely has long been a critical deciding factor for me whenever I’m faced with new opportunities, mostly because I know that it’s feasible. After all, I’ve been working from home full-time since 2013.
However, even though everyone else’s new normal has been my normal for quite a while, there’s still always something new to discover and enjoy. Before, the benefit of working remotely only came to those who functioned as freelancers or contractors, which meant doing without the benefits that local employees typically enjoy. As the pandemic somewhat forced businesses to embrace remote work in order to ensure business continuity, many employees were able to enjoy the best of both worlds: gain work-from-home privilege on top of the benefits that come with being a permanent or regular employee.
MCVO Talent Outsourcing Services is one of the companies that switched to remote and hybrid work in response to the pandemic. This way, we have been able to continuously support our clients – even better, we got to help even more companies affected by the pandemic by providing them with cost-efficient outsourced services, allowing them to continue their operations at lower costs.
Moreover, the remote work setup also allowed MCVO to hire more talents from across the country. Our workforce steadily grew. As of this writing, we are now almost 200-strong!
Indeed, remote work has a lot of perks. But I’m writing this piece to also highlight the perks of having an actual office!
As I mentioned earlier, there’s still always something new to discover and enjoy. During my trip to our office in Makati last September 13, I rediscovered how I liked working in a fully equipped office – one with workstations/cubicles, dual monitors, and a calm ambiance. Equally important, is a clean bathroom with toilet paper and soap. And let’s not forget: free snacks!
I realized I missed the sound of keyboards other than mine, as well as light chatters and jokes being thrown in from time to time. Funny, but it turns out I also missed eavesdropping when a colleague is in a meeting haha!
I’m glad that as MCVO embraced remote work, it still encourages hybrid and on-site work. This made me realize inclusivity isn’t just about being open to all races, genders, and ages, but also catering to each employee’s work environment preference. MCVO makes sure to support its people’s productivity and growth in any way possible.
While my top choice is still work-from-home, I’ll definitely work on-site again!
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That’s it for this month’s MCVOLT-IN! We hope you enjoyed this edition, and we look forward to sharing more with you next month!
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