Page 174 - May 2018 - December 2018 Issue

2018 4th Quarter

LEAD Talks with REF

By Sigrid Shun, Human Resources
and Administration

The event started with the question and answer segment where with
good humor, MPTC President Rod Franco, answered the first question
from Mr. Bubot Sueta of Management Services, “Sir, nagfifile ba kayo
ng leave at sino ang nag aapprove?” MPT Rod Franco graciously
answered that he takes his leaves but coordinates the schedule with
the other members of the Executive Committee (EXECOM) to ensure
adequate coverage of the business. More serious questions followed
with topics including:

On Staying Young
“Wag magmadali,” said REF. According to him, staying young depends on how one responds to stress which also
consequently depends on one’s outlook, personal core values, and religion. We are exposed to stressful situations –
we live with it and it never leaves us. The worst response to stress is to be carried away by it. It is not important that
you are able to solve the issue as long as you give your best shot at the solution. Handling stress involves a process of
stepping back and looking at the problem from a broader perspective. Then you analyze and plan your counter
attack. Also, never do it alone. Work on the problem with information and help from your colleagues as well as
external stakeholders.

How Best Employees Standout
For REF, best employees stand out when (1) they live the core values – customer focus, integrity, teamwork, innova-
tion, excellence, and social responsibility (CITIES); (2) demonstrate competence and have passed the standards of
the company; and (3) be productive and committed to the company. REF, therefore, advises aspiring leaders to
continue learning and growing through reading and studying like for instance researching and understanding how
projects are undertaken. Our organization and business never stop growing. Thus, keep abreast of development and
upgrade your skills. There is a lot of knowledge to be gained. Also, we should continue knowledge absorption
because current standards will eventually become obsolete due to changes and with the inroad of technology.

Advice to First Time Leaders
“Listen to your people,” was the main point of REF’s advice to first time leaders who just graduated from being a
subordinate to a leader. It is easy to get lost in the complexity of the leadership role and create a divide between you
and your team. Continue to be humble and improve your relationship by communicating and working well with
your team. Don’t lose people’s trust. Leaders most often fail when they no longer have a connection with their
people. They are blinded by their success thinking that they are doing it all right and believe they alone are the sole
determining factor for the organization’s success. They see their subordinates as mere accessories to success. They
consequently lose the support and enthusiasm of their team. And as a leader, never stop talking about the com-
pany’s vision and mission. He said, “My belief if we are on the same page as so far as the vision and mission are
concerned, everyone will be moving on the same path because we have the same fundamental principles.”

Where do great ideas come from?

REF clarified that great ideas in business come from a good understanding of our business and industry and then
making adjustments to adopt the key success factors. One of the most difficult decisions to be made by a leader is
allocating resources such as time and people against several objectives to be met. The decision should be made
based on knowledge and also involves a leap of faith. Given the complex nature of our business, there is a lot of
emphasis on one of our core values — teamwork. We need our people to work together. Building infrastructure
should be a collective and not an individual achievement.

REF continued to emphasize on the importance of teamwork with his message, “Let us take pride and feel that we
are part of one organization, one team. Together, let us dream the impossible dream.”

The LEAD Talks ended with the awarding of the personalized tokens and Thank You cards given to the participants.

173 | NEWS AND EVENTS