AN enduring adage states that good work that gets noticed is repeated. Thus, giving recognition to an excellent performance motivates employees to always aspire to meet the standards of performance. Every year the Social Security System (SSS), as part of its anniversary celebration, takes time to recognize its best-performing employees in three categories—Best Support-Service Employee, Best Customer-Service Employee and Best Supervisor—who have shown outstanding and results-based performance. This year’s awardees were selected out of 392 nominees per category.
The 2014 Best Support-Service Employee award went to Susette Estacio, a senior clerk at the SSS-La Union branch. As the sole worker in her section, Estacio practically performed the functions of five employees. She singlehandedly took charge of all the functions of the administrative section of the branch while serving as the clerk of the accounts-management section. Her excellent work ethic, creativity, resourcefulness and innovativeness have served her well in helping the La Union branch attain its ISO 9001:2008 certification.
Lilibeth Suralvo, senior communications analyst at the Media
Affairs Department of the SSS head office, was chosen as this year’s Best Customer-Service Employee for her unwavering dedication and passion in doing her work of providing information through the media and attending to referrals by them. Twice a month, she attends to live television interviews as early as 4 a.m., on top of several other requests for interviews by public-service radio programs. Last year she attended to 1,000 members and helped them resolve their concerns with the SSS. Her passion for public service has not wavered in the past 33 years that she has been with the SSS. Through her broad network of media friends and partners, she was effective in sending out SSS messages to members and stakeholders.
Judged as Best Supervisor of 2014 is Froilan Misa of the agency’s Internal Audit Services Department II. As an internal auditor, Misa has made various recommendations to safeguard the assets of the SSS, strengthen internal controls, and systematize and simplify procedures. His leadership and supervisory skills have enabled him to motivate his subordinates to accomplish his unit’s commitments and performance targets.
The selection of the best employees in each category went through a rigorous process, which started in July at the department, division, group, sector and, finally, national level. The final judging was done by a group of five judges, headed by Civil Service Commission Chairman Francisco Duque, who was represented by Executive Director Arthur Luis Florentin.
We cannot overemphasize the value of rewarding the good performance of employees. Suffice it to say, in recognizing exemplary work, we set the standards of performance for everyone to aspire to. It creates a positive work environment and fosters productivity.
Also in the offing are awarding ceremonies to honor individuals, employers or organizations that significantly contributed to the SSS’s pursuit of its mandate. On September 25 the SSS will confer the 2014 Balikat ng Bayan Awards to a dozen companies in recognition of their compliance with the provisions of the social-security law in terms of coverage, collection and the giving out of benefits, accuracy and timeliness of their submission of reports, participation in SSS programs, and for being effective partners of the SSS in providing social-security protection to its members.
Congratulations to the 2014 Best Employee awardees, and thank you to the Balikat ng Bayan awardees for being excellent partners in nation-building!
For more information about the SSS and its programs, contact the SSS 24-hour call center at (632) 920-6446 to 55, Monday to Friday, or e-mail member_relations@sss.gov.ph. Visit the SSS website at www.sss.gov.ph and “Like” the Philippine Social Security System on Facebook.
Susie G. Bugante is the vice president for public affairs and special events of the Social Security System, where she has worked for more than two decades handling the agency’s public-information and public-relations activities. Send feedback about this column to susiebugante.bmirror@gmail.com.