AirAsia senior leadership changes to drive growth and profitability in the Philippines

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AirAsia senior leadership changes to drive growth and profitability in the Philippines

AirAsia has appointed telecommunications executive Ricardo ‘Ricky’ P Isla as its new CEO of AirAsia Philippines.

Newly appointed AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricky Isla (third from left) is welcomed by AirAsia Philippines Board and Corporate Secretary Atty. Jomar Castillo (first from left), newly appointed AirAsia Philippines Chief Operating Officer Captain Dexter Comendador (second from left) and AirAsia Philippines Chairman Maan Hontiveros (fourth from left).

Mr Isla joins AirAsia after more than a decade of international product development, sales and distribution experience with telecommunications giant PLDT Global Corporation. In addition to his most recent role as Regional Head of Operations for United Kingdom and Europe, Mr Isla has held General Manager positions in its international retail business, as well as in the US, Italy and Singapore.

AirAsia Philippines Chairman Maan Hontiveros said, “I am thrilled to welcome Ricky to our senior leadership team. Ricky has an outstanding track record of leading and transforming businesses, especially when it comes to increasing revenue and market share, customer satisfaction and employee engagement. Together with his telecommunications background and global experience, we are confident he will provide the right foundation to steer AirAsia Philippines to even greater heights.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Captain Dexter Comendador for playing such a crucial part of AirAsia’s growth story in the Philippines. The board and I are confident that his love of people and exceptional flying acumen will prove extremely beneficial to our operations, and we look forward to continuing our work with him as AirAsia Philippines Chief Operations Officer.”

Newly appointed AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricardo ‘Ricky’ Isla

AirAsia Deputy Group CEO (Airlines) Bo Lingam said, “Ricky’s appointment as CEO comes at a time when low-cost carrier (LCC) growth in the Philippines hits an all-time high. AirAsia is on the cusp of developing something really special for Filipinos, and I’m confident that under Ricky’s guidance we will be in the best position to up the ante on our mission to further revolutionise affordable air travel in the Philippines.

“I want to thank Captain Dexter for his contribution as CEO, and ongoing dedication to our Allstars in the Philippines.”

Mr Isla graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University with a Bachelor of Science and Business Management and holds advanced management qualifications from the Asian Institute of Management.

Mr Isla commenced his role as CEO of AirAsia Philippines today.

AirAsia Philippines operates a fleet of 24 aircraft on more than 500 weekly domestic and international flights from its hubs in Manila, Clark, Cebu, and Kalibo.

For the latest AirAsia news, activities and promotions, follow AirAsia on Twitter (twitter.com/AirAsia), Facebook (facebook.com/AirAsiaPH) and Instagram (instagram.com/AirAsiaFilipino).

Free pizza upgrade from LBC and Shakey's

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LBC, the leading courier company in the Philippines, partners with Shakey's in offering free pizza upgrade to its loyal customers.

Customers who claim their international remittance from any LBC branch will receive a promo code through SMS. When ordering pizza from any Shakey's outlet, just present the promo code to upgrade your Manager's Choice Thin Crust from large to party size. Promo is available for dine-in, carry-out and delivery transactions. Customers must delete the code upon availing themselves of the promo.

Take note that the upgrade is only for the Manager's Choice Thin Crust Pizza variant.

Shakey's SuperCard holders cannot use their 10% discount along with the LBC promo. The free pizza upgrade cannot also be used in conjunction with any other promo offerings. Senior citizens can have a choice of using their mandatory discount or this promotional discount by LBC and Shakey's.

The promo code can be used once only before November 1, 2019 at any Shakey's Branch or via online at shakeyspizza.ph.

For more information, visit https://promo.lbcexpress.com/shakeys/ or any LBC branch near you.

*Per DTI-FTEB Permit No. 10244 Series of 2019. Promo runs from July 1 to August 31, 2019.

Cisco Philippines: Communication Technology fully impacts national disaster approach

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Entering the rainy season, the Local Government Units (LGUs) of various regions have kickstarted awareness drives and preparedness programs anchored on Disaster Risk Reduction and Mitigation (DRRM) for this year's Disaster Resilience month.

The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center attributes the effectiveness of disaster reduction and response to the effectivity of managing information before, during, and after a disaster. However, utilizing relevant information is largely anchored on the availability and most importantly, the reliability of platforms for communication in place, according to Cisco Managing Director for the Philippines Karrie Ilagan.

"A huge part of the government's DRRM measures for a disaster-prone country like ours is vigilant preparation as this is the foundation of our response to and recovery from disasters," said Ilagan. "While preparation may involve tasks like having survival kits ready at home or LGUs readying early warning systems and transport systems like rubber boats and trucks, technology is a powerful tool that also plays a crucial role in DRRM and in fact, cuts across all stages of our disaster approach."

Based on Cisco's multinational partnerships, Ilagan forecasts communication technology greatly benefiting each DRRM aspect the government has in place:

1.       Prevention and Mitigation

In order for the development of DRRM plans to be accurate, Ilagan believes communication technology must aid community assessments through solutions that facilitate end-to-end monitoring. 

"Evaluating municipalities will need continual monitoring of areas exposed to natural or man-made risks like flooding or even vehicular accidents," she said.

Ilagan also highlighted that the reliability of these surveillance solutions is hinged on cloud platforms that allow seamless data gathering, storage, and exchange, easing the generation of vital community reports. Likewise, continual communication on surveyed areas are dependent on communication solutions that facilitate consistent exchanges between LGUs and their communities to ensure these reports are updated.

2.       Preparedness

Ilagan further discussed that strong partnerships and coordination among all key players like LGUs and their constituents rely on collaboration solutions that expand from traditional telecommunication platforms.

To Ilagan Video Conferencing will innovate communication between these LGU's, giving critical meetings full context while maximizing the time of each stakeholder through an all in one platform.  With advanced video conferencing technology, stakeholders will be able to utilize all the benefits of reliable audio conferencing with the added value of visual aids.

"We can't grasp in its entirety how much valuable time has gone to waste in preparation just because stakeholders had difficulty relaying critical information to each other. Visual reports are understood, appreciated, and applied faster when everyone involved can see them because they transcend verbal challenges in collaboration." 

3.       Response

Collaboration among stakeholders facilitated by reliable communication solutions carry over to the next DRRM aspect of response. Integrated and Coordinated search, rescue, and retrieval capacities are fortified with resilient, uninterrupted communication among municipality Network Operation Centers.

On the other end, mobile IP-based communication systems will aid on-ground operations using small-scale, independent Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP)—using the internet to facilitate phone calls. These can be enforced to bridge possible communication gaps caused by damaged or destroyed infrastructure.

Tactical kits that are easy to deploy and navigate without the need for technical experts will greatly benefit early recovery implementations as well by assisting in the public's connection to family, friends, and colleagues in devastated regions.

4.       Rehabilitation and Recovery

Finally, on the road to recovery and rehabilitation, communication technology can aid reconstruction efforts for disaster and climate change resilient infrastructure through faster exchanges. Quick relay of data from small municipalities to national government offices like the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRRMC) has the potential to hasten assistance. Tactical solutions can ease reporting on potential or new hazards each region must take into account and can help facilitate monitoring for rehabilitation progress.

While recovery efforts are underway, mobile VOIP solutions can also provide interim connectivity infrastructure for constituents as communication tower reconstructions take place.

"We have plenty of use cases from different countries for our communication and collaboration solutions, Meraki Wifi, Webex, and Emergency Communication Kit--but all of them contributed to the effectivity of each nation's disaster plan and we see the same potential in the Philippines," Ilagan concluded.

Dragonpay’s SureTayo launches own smartphone app

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SureTayo, an escrow service powered by Dragonpay Corporation, has introduced their very own smartphone app to handle the needs of the buyer and seller who are always on-the-go. 

Launched in 2018, SureTayo is a payment solution that makes every transaction convenient and safe. By becoming a third-party, SureTayo receives the payment from the buyer and once the item was delivered and received, SureTayo releases the payment to the seller. And to make it more convenient, SureTayo also utilizes Dragonpay’s popular alternative payment channels. No need to worry about fraud and scammers!

SureTayo saw the growing need of the customers today especially those who rely their businesses on mobile phones. In response, SureTayo has recently launched their very own SureTayo smartphone app.

The mobile app is designed to cope with the demands of every transaction giving the sellers an opportunity to easily facilitate and manage customer payments. SureTayo App’s UI is straightforward, has no complicated processes, and provides the customers what they exactly need.

 The app features six (6) main tools to help the customer’s needs:

PROFILE – For first timers, there is no need to register on PC or laptops because registration can now be done through the app. On the main app dashboard, the profile button contains the seller’s information and link that they can share to their customers to place orders.

ORDER – The sellers can now create invoice through the app! Just click the Order button, fill-up the transaction details and voila! The invoice will be automatically sent to the buyer via SMS, email or other messaging apps. The buyer will receive a message containing the link that he/ she can use to pay via Dragonpay payment channels.

TRANSACTIONS – Once the payment has been settled by the buyer, the seller will be notified through the Transaction button. This button also allows you to check the status of your transactions - from paying to shipping!

PAYOUT – Want to check the total earnings? Payout button helps the seller to see his/ her total earnings for the week and when it will be received to his/ her registered bank account.

FAQ – You have questions? FAQ button can help! It contains several answers to basic questions or even the technical ones.

REWARDS – Stay tuned for exciting promos and special offers that will appear in the Rewards button!

“We created SureTayo with the promise of making the seller-buyer transactions convenient, fast and easy, and I am proud to say that we were able to do it. While we achieved this feat, we in Dragonpay never stopped innovating. We developed the SureTayo app to ensure that we adapt to the needs of our clients,” said Robertson “Dick” Chiang, the founder and Chief Technology Officer of Dragonpay Corporation.

To know more about SureTayo, visit www.suretayo.ph or follow /SureTayoPH on Facebook. You can also download the SureTayo app in the App Store and Google Play.

And Ai Thank You!

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If you realize just how blessed your life is, you will be thankful for all. No material possessions and career successes aren't the only things to be thankful for. The people in your life who you love most are the real treasures. 

Imagine having all those desirable achievements life has to offer—a flourishing career, fame and fortune. But like a bad joke, fate makes a sudden turn. You learn that you will soon have to leave everything behind. 

Meet Aileen dela Rosa (Aiai delas Alas), famous actress, top endorser, concert performer. Her rival to stardom Ursula de Villa (Rufa Mae Quinto) will stop at nothing to topple her down. But how can Aileen fight for her career knowing that she only has 6 months to live? Can she fix her life, protect her crown and win? 

And Ai, Thank You., under Reality Entertainment and Horseshoe studios. Starring Aiai delas Alas, Dennis Padilla, Kakak Bautista, Joey Paras, Juliana... With the special participation of Anjo Yllana, Joross Gamboa and Ms. Rufa Mae Quinto. 

And Ai Thank You! opens Aug 14 nationwide written and directed by Joven Tan.