If you read your daily newspaper or national magazine, you get an entirely different picture of reality. There are incredible, earthshaking changes taking place every day. “Greed goes out of style,” said the cover story of one international magazine. Just like that? You better believe it because that magazine said it did: “Decades are not a function of calendar time. They are trends, values and associations, bundled up and tied together in the national memory. They begin and end in the middle of the night sometime when everyone is looking the other way.”   When you begin to monitor the trends, keep in mind that most of the trends are manufactured to sell newspapers or magazines, not to help you market your products. Yet marketing people tend to believe the hype rather than the reality. “The consumer marketing equation continues to change in profound and irreversible ways,” said one management guru. “So a basic change in attitude is needed: from managing business to managing change.”

Communications media in the US publish millions upon millions of words and thousands upon thousands of pictures. Not unreasonably, a business executive may ask if it isn’t possible that, out of this flood of words and pictures, some might deal with his company or products. The answer is that millions of dollars are spent each year to distribute corporate news to the press. Independent communications companies came into being because they fill a need; they provide a valuable special knowledge and service. They continue to exist because few businesses can achieve he same results as economically or as efficiently on a do-it-yourself basis.

Through an exclusive agreement with The New York Times Co., Summit Communications reaches the most influential decision-makers in the political, financial and economic communities of North America. Since 1999, over 100 independent reports have been published and distributed with this prestigious media economy and their flagship product, The New York Times Magazine.

“We are the No. 1 media agency because we are working with the most trusted and influential news and information source in the US—The New York Times. Actually, we are working closely with The New York Times advertising department. They allocate some pages [to us] that allow us to publish reports,” explained chief editor Julien Drolon of New York, in a recent interview with this columnist.

“[What we do is] usually we give the platform to emerging countries, such as the Philippines, to showcase their assets and all the positive things happening around the country. We already published two reports about the Philippines in 2001 and 2007. It’s more on focusing on the Philippine economy because [at the end of the day] we try to attract foreign investors. In this case, we invite foreign investors to come and take a closer look at the Philippines,” Drolon said.

According to Drolon, Summit Communications is an independent agency that is solely responsible for the production of these reports. With full control over the timing and editorial content of each report, the company strives to work in cohesion with each of its clients in order to ensure that the correct and desired message is conveyed to the influential readers of The New York Times.

“We provide the necessary experience—and The New York Times the necessary audience—to make a formidable impression on a global scale,” he said.

The New York Times Magazine is a supplement to the Sunday The New York Times newspaper. Its first issue was published on September 6, 1896, and contained the first photographs ever printed in the newspaper. Today, The New York Times Magazine is host to many longer feature articles and continues to attract notable contributors. The magazine is also renowned for its glamorous photography, especially relating to fashion and style.

“The magazine’s average net Sunday paid circulation is over 1.6 million, with 47 percent of readership comprised of professionals and managerial levels. It is, no doubt, the largest Sunday newspaper in the US,” Drolon pointed out.

Through extensive, in-depth and thorough research and interviews with top government officials and key business leaders, Summit Communications provides coverage of worldwide current affairs. From government policies to economic analysis, to a sharp focus on issues from all corners of the globe, “our goal is to influence public opinion, generate awareness and provide content, thought-provoking content, for the readers of The New York Times,” Drolon furthered.

He considers the timing of this new report very important since it will be published right after the US elections.

“It will be the first report that will be sent to the White House about the Philippines [that’s why] we want to have as much coverage as possible,” he stressed.

The report will be released in November this year and will be distributed in the US with more than 1.6 million copies and top CEOs and public officials locally will all receive a copy of its report.

Because of the BusinessMirror’s strong identity in business and financial circles, Summit Communications has forged ties with the local newspaper on an exclusive cross-promotion partnership.

“This is a win-win situation, a more collaborative effort between the two media companies. We will give you a good coverage in our publication. We chose the BusinessMirror because it has a very strong brand and [from my point of view], it is the best newspaper in the Philippines,” he said.

Very often, engaging in product-related collaboration is an easy and efficient way to establish common ground between media outfits. When something is new, it rarely takes more than a few minutes to stumble onto some product or service you both can discuss. It’s a low-stress way to find similar likes and dislikes, as well as a way of filling holes in the conversation. Establishing similar views is more easily done, a handy shortcut in relationship building.

Summit Communications’ reports are now within your reach that connects readers with the most influential, affluent and committed audience of The New York Times via the BusinessMirror. “And to ensure that others see us in the way we would like to be seen, we share information as a way of proving our worth,” Drolon said.

Total talent acquisition

Choosing a value discipline is a fateful event in that it not only commits a company to a single path to achieve greatness, it also purposely destines the company to choose a secondary role in other disciplines. That’s because each discipline requires a company to emphasize different processes, to create different business structures and to gear management systems differently. 

Yet, when we look at these managers’ businesses, we invariably find companies that don’t excel, but are merely mediocre on other areas. Sure, as the ante has risen in their markets, they’ve improved their cost structure and become more aware of their customers. They’ve added new products and line extensions over the years. They’ve kept up with rising parity levels to stay in the game. What they haven’t done is create a breakthrough on any one dimension to reach new heights of performance. They have not traveled past competence to reach excellence. To these managers we say that if you decide to play an average game, to dabble in all areas, don’t expect to become a market leader.

The trick is to pull together as a total corporation—to look at product, sales, promotion and advertising as one entity. Compare it with an orchestra made up of different instruments but all performing one symphony together. Every player has a major role. If we are out of sync, we are in trouble.

“Hiring the right people is often the single biggest hurdle facing business owners, and can put a company at great risk—especially if a new staff is a wrong hire. Besides legal implications, the market reputation of the company is at stake and can lead to loss of business and, in some cases, put the company’s very existence at risk,” Wayne Tollemache, First Advantage Asia-Pacific executive vice president and regional managing director, told this columnist.

Tollemache is spearheading First Advantage’s expansion of offerings in the Asia-Pacific region from background screening—a market dominated by the company—to the full continuum of the company’s hiring-related service offerings. Detailed analysis is given instead of getting the report alone. Companies can then better decide whether they should hire a particular applicant. And to make sure that job applicants are honest, First Advantage provides screening and verification “so as to maintain the company’s high standards in its organization’s structure.”

Background checks are not entirely new to companies in the Philippines. However, these were earlier viewed more as a formality but not a stringent necessity and a risk-mitigation tool. Still, awareness for screening is growing, as risks involved are huge. “A major demand for preemployment screening comes from industries that have a high recruiting and compliance requirements [be it regulatory or client driven] like IT and IT-enabled services, banking, insurance and financial services. But at the same time, most large organizations are seeing the need to find the best personnel to their organizations faster, whilst minimizing the risk and cost in doing so,” Tollemache stressed.

Businesses in the Philippines have been going through a period of rapid growth that puts a lot of pressure on making the correct hires, faster than the market. There has been increasing vulnerability to risks posed by intentional or unintentional malpractices by employees, which would put organizations in a high-risk position with regard to their client information and business practices and responsibility to stakeholders.

Another factor that has driven the market, Tollemache furthered, has been the compliance-related pressure on local employers put by their customers overseas. “Increasingly, companies are now recognizing the high dividends of going through a stringent screening procedure. Also, background screening of employees has become crucial for companies serving North American and European clients as more than 92 percent of Fortune companies have begun to think of their staff as assets and, hence, invest their time and money to ensure that these people are highly productive and competent,” he said.

Illegal reproductions of diploma, certificates and NBI clearances, exaggerated salaries, fake degrees and overstated job titles are very rampant, hoping that their “impressive” curriculum vitae would translate to better employment. Yet, far worse consequences such as blacklisting and court action await individuals with false claims on their CVs.

“The problem is not restricted to the IT and BPO industry, which is expected to add around 600,000 new staff in the next three years, but has spread across retail, banking, insurance and other sectors. These sectors hire about 200,000 employees a year,” Tollemache pointed out.

PRSP at 50

It was a night when everyone glistened like gold as the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP) successfully celebrated, in music and in carousing, their 50 golden years of unrivaled PR excellence at the Meralco Theater in Pasig City.

Spearheaded by PRSP president Jones Campos and PRSP 50th anniversary chairman Milen Sison-de Quiros, the event, aptly themed as “Heritage. Relationships. Stewardship,” was well attended by PRSP past presidents, members and supporters as they looked back and reminisced the fast-growing field and how it has progressed through time.

“In 1957 PRSP had for its founding objective,” said Campos, “to work for the advancement of the welfare of the Filipino people through the dignified, effective and relevant practice of the art and science of public relations.”

“Fifty years later,” he continued, “we continue to enjoin our members to be more competent and ethical in the practice of our profession. Thus, heritage, relationships and stewardship.”

The event also acknowledged the former presidents of PRSP who have, in their own unique ways, shaped how PRSP has grown today. Among those who were hailed were past presidents Leonides Valencia (1974-1975) of Unilever Philippines; Max Edralin, (1975-1976) corporate communications consultant for Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas; Bert Pasquin (1997-1998); and Amylyn Sison-de Quiros, president of Full Circle Communications (2004-2005; 2005-2006).

As part of its celebration, PRSP, in cooperation with ALV Events International, also held a charity concert titled Golden Voices: Divas in Concert, featuring singing icons Kuh Ledesma and Pops Fernandez.

“Having two of the most renowned musical icons in the country to celebrate with us is definitely the icing of the cake,” expressed de Quiros.

Other artists who performed were OJ Mariano (second runner-up, ABS-CBN’s Star in a Million Season 2) and Philippine Dream Academy’s RJ Jimenez and Ronnie Liang.

The beneficiaries of the concert—Operation Smile and the Philippine School for the Deaf and the Blind—also graced the night with heartwarming performances that did not fail to impress the crowd. 

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