As A-People slid into the second week of the enhanced community quarantine, Aboitiz Group President & CEO Sabin Aboitiz (SMA) called on all team members to “infect” one another with a less nefarious but just as contagious strain of positive attitude in order to survive these challenging times.

“Our attitude...should be about infecting everybody with the right attitude to be able to live #OneAboitiz,” he said at the SuperDuperCon that was streamed live on March 25 (Click here to watch.). “As times get harder, it’s our attitude that will see us through. Keep that fighting #OneAboitiz spirit.”

He urged team members to support one another as the COVID-19 pandemic forces the world to embark on a massive remote working experiment. Team members at NAC Tower and ORE Central Building were advised to work from home since March 13 in an effort to limit transmission risk. For critical functions across business units, a skeletal workforce has been deployed with the Group shouldering transportation, food, and water requirements.

Despite drastic changes to their work set-up, A-People promptly rose to the challenge to continue delivering on what was promised, effectively ensuring that operations run as smoothly as possible.

Also Read: Aboitiz Extends Lifeline To Clients and Customers Amid COVID-19

Team members holding down the fort at the power plants and distribution utilities of AboitizPower continue to work on-site — while observing strict quarantine guidelines — to ensure that the country has a stable energy supply. Pilmico Partners have also made the difficult choice of not being able to see their families for two weeks after committing to facility quarantine to safeguard food stability for communities it serves.

In the same vein, team members from the banking and financial services SBU continue to provide banking services at select branches, much like the AboitizLand and Aboitiz Construction team members manning the project sites and reporting to office in support as part of their skeletal workforce. Team members at Lima Water and Apo Agua are also working hard to ensure available water supply and project continuity, respectively.

“As an organization, we need to enable continuous operations as we cater to the needs of our countrymen,” SMA said. “More than providing our clients with our products, we put greater emphasis on living our values in this difficult time — Integrity: to perform and work conscientiously; Teamwork: to collaborate and deliver as one; Innovation: to remotely and creatively work; and Responsibility: to mind the interests of the business, the stakeholders and our peers.”  

A-People working from home are also embodying the Aboitiz core values in the same way as their fellow team members in the skeletal workforce.

“We’re seeing that people are willing to make the sacrifice individually to ensure that everyone ends up better,” SMA said, adding that the Group’s digital mindset has helped the company respond to such an extraordinary circumstance.

As COVID-19 forces the world to adjust to a new normal, the Aboitiz Group responded by releasing end-March salaries as well as 13th or 14th month pay ahead of usual schedule.

Since January, the HR team has been regularly sending out advisories to keep team members across the group informed of the necessary COVID-19 precautions, quarantine instructions, and company protocols, all of which have been consolidated in an easy-to-use microsite.

Also read: Aboitiz Group's COVID-19 Response Puts A-People Front And Center

Additionally, online learning tools offered by Aboitiz Academy have been made available to ensure that team members remain learning while working from home. A-People can choose from a wide array of lessons in LinkedIn Learning, Gartner, on-demand webinars, and podcasts.

“We encourage everybody to learn on the job while working from home,” said Susan Valdez, AEV Chief Corporate Services Officer and Chief Human Resources Officer. “Life continues, learning continues. We’re just using digital channels for learning and development.”

This episode of SuperDuperCon was especially dedicated to addressing COVID-19 related concerns and to check in on team members. It is the first online meeting since the enhanced community quarantine took effect.

Carry Each Other

The best thing to do, SMA said, is for A-People right now to carry on with their tasks and do them well. By fostering an environment that allows for business as usual, the company is able to play its part in keeping the economy moving.

“[W]e want to support [the government]. [We want to communicate the fact] that they can rely on us — that our power plants are operating, that we’re continuing to provide [services].”

The Aboitiz Group has donated about PHP18 million worth of supplies for donation to LGU hospitals and checkpoints all over the country. These include food packs, hygiene and PPE kits, infrared thermometers, alcohol, tents and other essential items and complement efforts by the group’s other business units. The company also donated PHP100 million to raise PHP1.5 billion with other conglomerates to support urban poor families in Metro Manila that have been displaced by the ongoing quarantine.