(Corporate) Love in the midst of the Pandemic

SIX ELEVEN GLOBAL SERVICES. This is where the plot twist of my life happened. In 2008, I got hired as a call center agent for 611. It was my first exposure to the corporate world after graduation. I didn’t last long in the job because of health reasons. But it is also the gateway to the greatest love story I have ever told. Here, I met the love of my life who would later turn out to be my partner for life.

The young and insatiable version of me hopped from job to job until late of 2010, I got hired in another BPO company – The TryBPO, Inc. (now Empireflippers). I stayed there for about more than 3 years until the call of Motherhood required all of my attention and time.

Why am I writing this?

First, in this time of Pandemic, it is a huge blessing to have a job that continues to give you an income and put food on the table. The BPO industry continues to operate and their employees are well compensated and taken care of.

Second, not all heroes wear PPE’s, gloves and masks. Those who are silently working in the BPO industry, night in and out are considered unsung heroes of the economy along with the essential workers for food, medicine, and utilities.

Lastly, the Philippine economy is still running (although rather slowly) – earning and circulating money - amidst the worldwide downturn of events because of the workers in the Food, Medicine, Bank, and BPO industries keep the economy running.

I am particularly thankful for SIXELEVEN because it is the company that took care of Norman – my life partner- and all his colleagues in the company. In 14 years operating in the BPO industry, they have grown and improved – A LOT.

The company provided its employees with several benefits to provide for them not only during the pandemic but yearly ever since they started. If this pandemic has happened during the early years of the company, it would have been a different turnabout since it hasn’t established itself yet.

But now, this COVID19 crisis brought out the company’s internal values and core characters. Taking care of their employees by providing the following:

• Comfortable all-expense-paid accommodation in a hotel with complete meals
• An exclusive company shuttle service to and from the hotel
• Work From Home employees with complete personal computers and internet subscription
• Premium Health Insurance that can cover up to 70K of hospital expenses
• Nap Area, Game Area and Pantry complete with hot and cold drinks
• Government subsidy for no-work, no-pay employees
• Many more….

Other BPO companies have their fair share of taking care of their employees in their own ways. But because I am a family member of someone who works in 611 and a former employee, I know how the company has tremendously improved over the years. My family has been a constant beneficiary of what the company has been giving its employees through the years. We live a comfortable life because the company takes care of its people and their families. I am forever grateful.

Surely, corporate life is not for everyone and graveyard shifts are not for the weak. And I am certain I am not built for corporate life or for graveyard shifts – for I have lived that life before. So I have very high respect for all who can endure long nights working fighting off sleep and exhaustion. They keep climbing the steep ladder of corporate success and stayed in the same company for a decade or more despite the office politics. Their dedication is unmatched, their loyalty unfettered.

I must admit I put my hands down to all workers at this time of the pandemic. You all deserve a red carpet greeting when this is all over. Thank you for all that you do. Thank you to all the corporate companies taking care of their employees. And thank you SIXELEVEN for showing kindness, compassion and most of all a BIG Heart to everyone you hired – Davao and Gensan branches.

We are grateful. We are appreciative. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

May the good Lord continue to bless Sixeleven company and its workers with unending success in all its endeavors.  Godspeed.

FROM

-Norman, Leah, and Ellie-