By Rache Tolentino
UnionBank celebrated its 38th anniversary that was dubbed ‘Pedal to the Metal’ and highlighted by a refreshed and refuelled drive to boost employee morale by kicking off 2020 with an awesome party.
The event opened by celebrating the milestones through the annual Service Awards with some 400 UnionBankers recognized for their loyalty and service to the company. Recipients included Dinesh Sahijwani, Bancassurance Sales Head, who shared an inspiring message on his UnionBank journey and Teodolfo Simbre, the sole 35-year Service Awardee who joined the Bank during its early years.
The 2019 Heroes and Champions, the highest form of recognition at UnionBank, were also awarded key teams who went with maximum speed in delivering the best products, services, and programs. Some of these notable teams and projects were Watchtower, Singapore Fintech Festival, Digital RM (Polaris), and Digital RM (MAX) for the President’s Award, while Financial Supply Chain, Digital Account Opening, The Portal, and i2i for the Chairman’s Award.
Pedal to the Metal also celebrated Aboitiz & Company’s 100th anniversary by presenting the Aboitiz Team Awards, which recognized noteworthy and remarkable projects that uphold the Group’s inspired purpose and brand promise — “to drive change for a better world by advancing business and communities.” Onsite Payroll Card Releasing for JP Morgan Chase & Co., Agile Transformation Team, and Project i2i initiatives received the Integrity, Teamwork, and Innovation awards, respectively.
As an added treat, UnionBankers demonstrated how multi-faceted performers they also are with performances from UBP Dance Crew, The Ark Ambassadors, Retail Banking Center, and Bandwidth.
After nearly four decades in the banking industry, UnionBank has established itself as a pioneer for many firsts in digital banking in the Philippines. Since embarking on its digital transformation in 2016, it has emerged as a leader in embracing digitization in the organization, for which it has gained numerous local and international awards and recognition. Once referred to as ‘banking’s best-kept secret’, it is set to go full-throttle by putting the pedal to the metal in 2020 and beyond.
