Fair is fair . . . a praise report

I once wrote that we as a people must be “Encouragers”. When someone does something worthy of praise we must do so, not only in appreciation of their acts, but also to encourage and reaffirm their attitude and actions.

Last Wednesday I “featured” my wife’s email to the customer service department of PLDT with a long shot wish that their Big Boss, Mr. Manny Pangilinan would get to read the email. If Barack Obama believes in democracy, i believe in prayers.

The day after publication, I received a cryptic message from my long time friend and brother in Christ, Anthony Pangilinan saying: “MVP is reading your column right now”.

I honestly did not know how to react. On one hand, it was quite encouraging to know that a man of such stature would take personal interest in customer level concerns. That somehow, word or information still filters through to Mr. Pangilinan is inspiring, given the “corporate obesity” of PLDT. Or maybe he also makes time to read other people’s views.

I later learned that when people say that Manny Pangilinan is a “hands-on type of leader”, the observation is often an understatement. By mid-day MVP had reportedly caused a minor tremor from his office all the way down to the technical providers of PLDT.

As a result, I was so embarrassed to receive a call from another gentleman who I also admire, Mr. “Poly” Nazareno who I discovered was also president of PLDT. I always thought he was exclusive to SMART telecoms. Prior to Mr. Nazareno’s call, I actually received a call from Marco Borlongan who I always associate with MTV as in music television. But when Marc told me he was now the consumer relations head, all I could do was offer my condolences.

Before any of our readers think that this is all about power and privilege, or making amends for my “nasty treat” for PLDT, let me say it is not.

I am recounting the other day’s events if only to recognize the effort by the people directly affected and responsible for the “customer concern” and in a small measure, our appreciation of what took place.

Some might wonder why I did not simply call the officials or bosses of PLDT; in fact this is often the reaction of other officials in other companies such as airlines, malls, hotels or banks.

First, there is a system that applies for ALL of us since we are ALL customers.

To call someone you know, or to go to a “connection” to solve your problem is just as ugly and impolite as to make “singit” or to jump the line. If we bypass the system, we are unfair to those who are supposed to be responsible for our concerns and our satisfaction. We deprive them of the chance to do their work and dishonor them in the process. How would you feel if someone acted like you were not competent enough or good enough to address their needs? That is why we followed the system.   

Another reason why we should avoid calling officials is because they have jobs and they have greater responsibilities. In the civilized world this is what they term: “A bother”. When we impose or disturb their greater responsibility to address ours because we want to jump the line, or can’t be bothered, we in turn have become “a bother”.

Third, being in media, we are all too familiar with the phrase: “one good turn deserves another”. Utang na loob can be such a burden for such a little “bother”.

I heard some of you say: “well, look what it got you? You eventually had to put it in print!”

That may be so, Grasshopper, but consider what we have achieved.

Having exercised the art of patience, we then exercised the art of prayer and warfare. Rather than calling someone and solving our problem, we chose to fight the bigger battle or the war against corporate obesity and inefficiency.

In the Aart of war you must first know who the enemy is.

In our case the enemy had no name and had no face. The enemy was not an official or a person – it was a systems flaw. Customer complaints were not getting the right response in the right manner and in the right time because customer complaints were dying at the floor of call centers or during transmission.

In order to fight the battle you must always know who your allies are and believe in their strength.

I strongly believed in the leadership of PLDT personified by Mr. Manny Pangilinan, he was the solution, not the problem. But how can the solution fix the problem if he does not learn about it? And how could I send the message unless “I shot an arrow into the air”.

Many public relations officers try to solve specific problems so that it no longer reaches the “Boss”, but in turn, they always extend the life of a systems defect, which is why companies continue spending more and more money on consumer and public relations remedies.

I always put things out in the open not to disrespect, attack, or damage an organization. By writing about a persistent or unacceptable flaw, I am actually giving those in power the necessary information and basis to correct an error or if necessary discipline people responsible for the problem.

At the end of the day, I would like to think that all of us involved managed to identify key concerns. PLDT needs to separate customer requirements instead of just channeling them to a call center. Compartmentalize and prioritize. Like many other major companies, PLDT needs to publicize or re-introduce their officials to the media and to the public. With too many VPs, it’s hard to keep track of who is responsible for what. And finally, PLDT needs to revive the culture of the accessible “Supervisor”.