One Last Push, PUSO! Chot Reyes Teams up with NorthPine Land

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NorthPine Land, Inc. (NLI), trusted developer of premium communities to the middle-income market, rallied its team for a strong finish this 2019 through a talk titled One Last Push, PUSO! headed by Chot Reyes, former Gilas Pilipinas coach.

PUSO! NorthPine Land leaders, namely (left to right): Erwin Buñag (AVP for Construction Management), Amytis S. Banaag (AVP for HRODA), Benigno A. Tatunay (CFO), Ferdinand M. Macabanti (General Manager), Wilhelmina C. de Ere (VP for Corporate Services), Aileen B. Morales (AVP for Sales Operations) and Paul D. Lamagna (AVP for Project Development) power up NLI Sales Force with Coach Chot Reyes (middle). 

Skyrocketing sales and new milestones for 2019 did not stop NLI to further push its sales team to sustain the winning attitude.Being the man behind the Filipino well-loved battlecry PUSO, Reyes stressed the value of passion in work and pouring one’s heart in order to foster and maintain a winning culture. The multi-awarded coach also highlighted teamwork and the importance of every member’s efforts, which cumulatively, could lead the team to its goals. Reyes headed the talk duringNLI’s second quarter Sales Awards held at The Palms Country Club, Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

Furthermore, Chot Reyes congratulated the company for surpassing its annual target as early as the third quarter of the year and added that, “Winning is a habit, unfortunately so is losing. Even if you have already achieved your target, keep going so you won’t fall into the bad habit of losing. Keep pushing and finish strong.”

NLI General Manager Ferdinand Macabanti also shared that,“The very essence of why we’re in the real estate world is to make dreams come to life. With Coach Chot’s inspiring words, I know that NorthPine team will be pushed to share the opportunity to live a better life with a more driven heart.” 

Back in the game! K & L Covenant Partner Marketing Co. bags the Phoenix Award for Quarter 2.

Meanwhile, NLI also recognized its major achievers for the quarter, namely Lomavin Acolola Jr. (Top Property Associate), Minda Moreno, (Top Property Division Manager) and KyreChing (Top Broker Head). Ultimately, K & L Covenant Partner Marketing Co. clinched the Phoenix Award, the most prestigious recognition given every quarter to the group with the most outstanding current account, highest booked account and biggest cash collections.

NorthPine Land looks forward to accomplishing more exciting milestones before 2019 ends, which includes the launch of Montana Views Lifestyle Hub in the City of San Fernando-Mexico, Pampanga. With its passion and drive reignited, the company is at the top of its game to make a mark as the end of the year draws near. 

Sprout Offers Digital Payroll Solution to SMEs Innovative tech helps businesses stay fully compliant

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Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) now have an easier time complying with government regulations with the official launch of Payroll for Small Businesses by Sprout Solutions at the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s (DICT) Tech Advantage summit held Thursday, November 21, 2019.

Sprout Solutions is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) company based in the Philippines that aims to help businesses through their suite of innovative HR and payroll management solutions.

Payroll for Small Businesses is part of Sprout’s advocacy for improving businesses in the Philippines by giving them access to solutions that will help them grow. Small businesses don’t always have enough resources to efficiently process payroll, which is why Sprout is offering their payroll module for free until they are ready to avail of the full range of services.

Patrick Gentry, co-founder and CEO of Sprout Solutions

“Sprout has always been about impacting Filipino lives by improving business, and the way we want to do this now is by giving smaller businesses a way to focus more on strategic thinking,” said Patrick Gentry, co-founder and CEO of Sprout Solutions. “We were also quite small not too long ago, and we understand how tough it is to handle more people, which is why we decided to offer Payroll for Small Businesses without charging until a client grows beyond 50 people,” he added.

According to the 2018 List of Establishments of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), medium-sized and smaller enterprises make up 99.52% of registered businesses in the Philippines. Many SMEs simply lack the manpower to efficiently process payroll while allowing their HR to focus towards strategic responsibilities like skill and capacity building.

Sprout’s main direction has always been to help businesses by solving problems with compliance. Avoiding non-compliance can bog down budding businesses because of the time and effort it takes to carry out the iterative tasks of payroll and timekeeping. This problem is even more critical for smaller businesses that need to focus resources on operational concerns rather than administrative tasks.

Getting Payroll for Small Businesses up and running takes only five to 10 days, and users can expect support throughout the entire onboarding process, and any time that help is needed with the payroll process. A mixed team of Prince2-certified project managers, expert payroll advisers, and product support staff are ready to address any concerns regarding both the software and payroll.

Aside from the web-based signup and verification, which allows users to initiate the process from the comfort of their own homes, Sprout reaches out to provide basic setup instructions and free payroll training. Sprout also provides a self-onboarding tool, which walks new users through the software’s interface, and access to an extensive knowledge base for both the software and Philippine payroll requirements.

For more visual learners, users can opt to use Sprout Academy, a learning management solution, which provides a more comprehensive learning experience.

“We’re there every step of the way to help out with anything related to the payroll process,” said Gentry. “The way we help businesses isn’t just about giving them the tools to work with; we also want to help them learn how to use those tools,” he added.

Sprout’s payroll solution offers businesses the ability to easily overcome the compliance problem by automating the payroll process, including automatic generation of over 20 government reports and calculation of 32 different pay rates. Business can leverage the technology to navigate tricky regulations that stifle an HR department’s ability to focus on enriching the employee knowledge pool.

“We’ve always focused on compliance because it’s such a huge weight on small businesses,” said Gentry. “We want to see HR departments focus on other important value-adding tasks, not just encoding spreadsheets over and over again.”

It’s not just the automated payroll that helps businesses comply with government requirements, because aside from tax and contributions, the Data Privacy Act of 2012 has mandated companies to adhere to strict standards when it comes to protecting sensitive data. However, with Sprout’s cloud-based 201 file database management and ISO 27001 certification for information security, users can rest assured that their data remains secure.

Sprout Solutions aims to impact Filipino lives through helping businesses redirect resources to skill and capacity building. By alleviating the burden of resource-heavy and repetitive payroll and timekeeping responsibilities, companies can now have their HR departments invest in developing people, leading to improved employee confidence, low employment turnover, which ultimately saves businesses time and money.

Here are more FAQs on PAYROLL FOR SMALL BUSINESSES 

1. What is Sprout Payroll for SMEs?

Sprout’s leading payroll management tool, Sprout Payroll, is now made free for businesses with up to 50 employees. All of Sprout Payroll’s features and capabilities can be used by SMEs without paying a single centavo.

2. How long can I use Sprout Payroll for free?

It’s always free as long as your business has 50 employees or less.

3. What's the catch?

There’s no catch! If your business has up to 50 employees, you can use Sprout Payroll completely free forever. Once you go above 50 employees, Sprout Payroll will be offered to your business as a subscription for a fee.

4. Why are you offering for free?

Sprout wants to empower every small business in the Philippines through technology. We started as a small business a couple of years ago, and this is our way of giving back to our fellow entrepreneurs who want to make an impact in their respective industries. We believe that great things start small, and with our free payroll software, small businesses can focus more on growing their business rather than spending time and money on manual and repetitive tasks.

5. Why Sprout for Small Business?

Small businesses comprise 99 percent of the Philippine economy. With Sprout Payroll now free for small businesses, these small businesses can realize their potential for growth through technology.

6. Product Highlights
1. Process payroll in just a few clicks
2. Automate government reports, available anytime
3. Eliminate miscalculations with automation
4. User-friendly and intuitive interface
5. Access payslips from anywhere
6. Automated Tax and Government Deductions
7. Government Compliance - Audited by DOLE

7. How to Sign Up and Verify
1. Start by creating your company’s Sprout Payroll Free account at sprout.ph/payroll-smallbiz. Click the “Sign Up For Free” button, then fill out your company’s information such as business name, email address, and phone number.
2. Verify your email address by checking your email inbox for an email from Sprout. Click the link to activate your Sprout Payroll Free account, and you’ll be redirected to the Sprout Payroll dashboard login page.
3. Get started right away by logging in on the Sprout Payroll dashboard using your initial login details. You may find these details on a separate email sent by Sprout to your verified email address.

Century Park Hotel Celebrates a Chic and Fabulous Christmas! Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Held

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Century Park Hotel (CPH), one of Manila’s finest hotels in Manila, recently held their Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at the hotel’s Atrium Lounge.

Century Park Hotel owners Dr. Lucio Tan and wife Carmen Tan led the lighting ceremony of the 30-ft. Christmas tree to the delight of hotel employees, guests, and media friends.

This year, the hotel is showcasing Modern Chinoiserie, a fusion of Eastern and Western elegance that perfectly balances symmetry and style, combining modern and traditional artistry. Pink and blue ornaments infused with gold trimmings were accentuated with Chinese designs, lending a unique Christmas vibe to the hotel. It is also a fitting homage to the hotel’s Chinese roots.

Carolers from the Children’s Joy Foundation, Inc. sang Christmas carols to the guests, making the event more festive.

Dr. Lucio Tan and family pose with the Miss Earth 2019 winners during Century Park Hotel's Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony

The event was made more memorable with the presence of newly-crowned queens, Miss Earth 2019 Nellys Pimentel from Puerto Rico, Miss Earth Fire 2019 Alisa Manyonok from Belarus and Miss Earth Water 2019 Klára Vavrušková from Czech Republic.

(L-R) CPH Director for Sales Nel Chua, GM Anthony Tan and Director for Mktg and Corp Comm Myla Cammayo together with Miss Earth 2019 Winners

Dr. Lucio Tan and Ms. Carmen Tan enjoying the Tree Lighting with their daughters  Vivian and Irene (L-R)

Carolers from Children's Hope Foundation entertain the guests during Century Park Hotel's Annual Tree Lighting event

Ms. Irene Tan of Century Park Hotel welcomes the Miss Earth 2019 winners during the Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony

As the event marks the countdown to Noche Buena, Deli Snack also launched its elegant selection of Christmas Hampers starting from P2,780 net which includes delectable delis, sublime breads, jams and satisfying wines.

Avoid the Holiday rush, place your Christmas orders at (632) 8528-5855 to 56 or email foodbev@centurypark.com.ph two days or 48 hours prior to your preferred pick-up date at the hotel.

“Our theme this year is about striking a balance between being modern and traditional. This truly reflects the Century Park Hotel spirit since we have been in the industry for more than 40 years yet we keep innovating to embrace the ever changing times. It has been a memorable 2019 and all credit is due to our employees, clients, friends and media partners. We thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for making us your home away from home,” said CPH General Manager Anthony Tan.

LBC Powers SMEs with Innovative Business Solutions

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Mercato Centrale wins SME of the Year at the 10thAsia CEO Awards

The Philippine entrepreneurial scene is growing, with many business-minded individuals seeking to sell their products and services through online tools or by participating in high touch-point events to reach a wider market. With its bigger portfolio of services, LBC is reaching out to the proprietors of these Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), powered by its innovative business solutions and its legacy of reliability within its nationwide network of services.

LBC has always been a partner for the Filipino enterprise, providing them scalable tools such as COP/COD, Warehousing, and other logistics solutions that are custom-fit for their needs as they grow their business and achieve their dreams. 

Since the company has always been about moving passions and businesses forward, it continuously seeks to promote excellence among the country’s SMEs. LBC Express recently sponsored the SME Company of the Year category of the Asia CEO Awards, which is open to any profit-making independent company employing between 10 to 500 employees that have achieved important success. 

This year, Mercato Centrale was chosen as the Asia CEO Awards SME Company of the Year from among other nominees that included Ask Lex PH Academy, BoteCentral, Go Virtual Assistants, Innoveterra Properties, Sante Barley, and Sprout Solutions. 

RJ Ledesma, Mercato Centrale co-founder says that they are honored with the recognition of their mission to help grow the Philippine food scene and empower more Filipino food entrepreneurs. The company has had to pivot within its nine years, to reach a higher goal, he shares. More than a food market, it has grown to become an incubator for food businesses. They have since started to engineer an ecosystem designed to help small food entrepreneurs grow their business with assistance in the more technical aspects such as microfinance, marketing, or logistics and e-commerce. “We are happy to grow with them through partners such as LBC that have personalized solutions for small vendors, and these are logistics solutions that are ideal for this scale.” 

Mercato Centrale, Ledesma says, is a business model that helps other businesses grow. “We hope that with this award, we can have more vendors come on board, so we can help more people to grow their business ideas and become the next big success story.” Their next big step is to set up food halls in malls and mixed-use properties as their way of offering more food businesses a place to sell their products. 

LBC’s Chief Marketing Officer, Javier C. Mantecon says that being a part of the Asia CEO Awards, through its SME Company of the Year is a way for the company to reach and inspire more Filipino entrepreneurs. The goal is to partner with them through the reliable and scalable services of the logistics company. 

“Our participation for this annual event is one of the many ways to stay in touch with entrepreneurs inside and outside of our country, no matter how big or small they are,” adds LBC’s President, Miguel Angel A. Camahort. “We would like to congratulate all of the winners and the nominees for this event. We believe that everyone who was part of the 10th Asia CEO Awards is moving the Philippine economy forward.”

With a growing network of over 6,400 locations, partners, and agents in over 30 countries, LBC is committed to moving lives, businesses, and communities and delivering smiles around the world, and it has expanded, digitized, and scaled its services to support SMEs, as a partner that is present at every step of the way.

For those who are interested to become food entrepreneurs and be part of Mercato Centrale, send a private message at https://www.facebook.com/mercatocentrale

Philips Hue lights up the way to smart homes in the Philippines

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Signify, formerly known as Philips Lighting is now officially distributing the Philips Hue lineup in the Philippines. 

Philips Hue, the personal smart lighting system that allows people to control their lights in their homes or from anywhere in the world using a smart device.

Filipinos can now experience light in a whole new way through intuitive technologies combined with high-quality LED lighting. Choosing from a spectrum of more than 16 million colors, Philips Hue lets you personalize your home lighting experience with custom settings and program timers to and create the perfect ambiance for any occasion. 

Philips Hue lets you create the perfect ambiance at home with your scenes and routines—all throughout your day. Here are just a few ways how:

Kickstart your day. Philips Hue lights can serve as your gentle wake-up call in the morning by automatically increasing brightness to ease you into the day.

Command at your fingertips. Don’t worry about leaving your lights turned on. You can control your Philips Hue lights from anywhere, just with the app. 

Let your lights welcome you home. Set your lights to welcome you home after a long day out by enabling the geofencing feature on the Philips Hue app. You can also set the right mood with light scenes like a Tropical Twilight or Tokyo Lights or add a customized scene to your liking.

Sit back and chill. Set up a truly immersive entertainment experience by syncing your lights with music, videos, and games with Philips Hue. You can also easily communicate through voice commands with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Nest, and Apple HomeKit, and even synchronize the smart lights with Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube. 

Set to snooze. Tell your go-to smart assistant like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, “Good night,” and your lights will automatically dim to prepare you for a comfortable sleep.

The Philips Hue system can do all of these and more through the Hue White and Color Ambiance (WACA) range. The system provides an entire spectrum of 16 million colors, that can be adjusted to fit any moment of the day– whether it’s a quiet personal moment or a get together with loved ones.

The Hue Starter Kit includes three Hue White and Color Ambiance bulbs and a bridge, that allows you to add up to 50 Philips Hue light bulbs, and up to 12 switches and other accessories through the Philips Hue app. 

“The future belongs to connected living, with smart homes being a key driver today. We at Signify endeavor to deliver a human-centric approach to our innovations and Philips Hue is a perfect example as it can be the first step to turn any home into a smart home, creating never-before experiences with lighting that can be customized around your lifestyle. Filipinos are known to be quick-adopters of technology, and we are excited to introduce the cutting-edge Philips Hue system to help usher in an emerging technological trend – the rise of smart homes,” said Jagan Srinivasan, country leader of Signify Philippines.

Aside from Alexa and Google Assistant, Philips Hue is also known to have the most extensive compatibility with other smart-home platforms like Apple HomeKit, Samsung Smartthings, Microsoft Cortana, Bosch, and Logitech. The new Philips Hue range also features dual Bluetooth connectivity and Zigbee technology for an expanded smart lighting experience.

Get Philips Hue in select PowerMac, Switch, iStore, Nifty, Urban Gadgets, Infomax Glorietta, Abenson Global City and online at the Philips Lighting Official store on Lazada.

Price List Starter Kits as follows:

- Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Starter Kit – 10,390 PHP

- Philips Hue White Ambiance Starter Kit – 7,490 PHP

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Bulbs:

- Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Logo – 2,990 PHP

- Philips Hue White Ambiance Bulb – 1,790 PHP

Controls:

- Philips Hue bridge – Php 3,690 (better to get bundles)

- Philips Hue Wireless dimmer switch – Php 1,290

- Philips Hue Motion sensor – Php 2,690