Wazzup Pilipinas News and Events

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Microtel by Wyndham’s Quezon City Hotels Media Familiarization Tour (Part 1)

Wazzup Pilipinas!

"Quezon City is experiencing a renaissance. From historical and cultural sights, to a food scene that has exploded in popularity, Metro Manila’s biggest city is the new alternative hotspot for weekend vacations and lifestyle destinations."

I have to agree as QC has always been a very popular destination in the city for so many reasons. It is a city with attractions that you couldn't possibly finish within a single day.

Your Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas was recently invited to a Microtel by Wyndham’s Quezon City hotels media familiarization tour. The two hotels they have in Quezon City are located at UP Technohub (which is obviously within the UP Technohub complex and just a stone throw's away from the many government agencies surrpounding the Quezon Memorial Circle) and Acropolis (just opposite the Eastwood city commercial complex in Libis).

Microtel by Wyndham is a pioneer in the no-frills, back-to-basics service concept and considered as the fastest growing. With 13 hotels across the Philippines, Microtel by Wyndham strategically positions itself at the center of leisure and business hubs in the country. It is the sole Microtel by Wyndham franchise in Asia belonging to the Wyndham Hotel Group, the world’s largest and most diverse hotel company with over 7,800 properties and 678,000 rooms in 72 countries under 15 hotel brands.

As what Ms. Ali Makabenta, the General Manager of the Microtel by Wyndham Acropolis, reiterated during our interview with her, "Location, location, location" is a prime factor contributing to the hotel chain's success. But we get to meet Ms. Ali on the second day of our media fam tour when we visit their Acropolis branch which has a feature that's very interesting for me, and I'm sure for the rest of the readers, but I would put you in anticipation for the meantime.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The heat is on, summer has come. It's travel season again where most people have already set their travel itineraries and ready to explore different parts of the country, or the world. This is the time when we get to visit the many beaches and resorts, climb or hike the mountains, or go spelunking at new destinations. It's the time when many travel and tour events are offered to leisure travelers or casual backpackers.

This is why the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies Inc. (NAITAS), one of the country's biggest travel and tourism association with more than 400 members and 15 chapters nationwide, has put up once more the "NAITAS Travel and Trade Show (NTTS) 2016."

The 2nd run of NTTS is blistered with more and more exhibitors and stakeholders who participated on April 8, 9 and 10, 2016 at the SM Mall of Asia SMX Convention Center.

NTTS 2016 offered once more the Philippines' liveliest travel, tourism and trade fair promoting outbound and inbound destinations and allied products and services.

NAITAS, in partnership with the Philippine government through the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Promotions Board of the Philippines, put up an even greater event with more exhibitors, more entertainers, more surprises and more fun.

Pintig: A Night of Live Music and Poetry

Wazzup Pilipinas!

In its 57th year, the UP Junior Philippine Institute of Accountants takes its Too Much Information campaign, an advocacy campaign initiated to emphasize the value of transparency, a step further through Pintig: a night of music and lyrics, poetry and verse like no other, which will be held on April 29, 2016 at Balay Kalinaw, University of the Philippines, Diliman.

As the culminating activity of the UP JPIA’s Too Much Information campaign, Pintig features performances from some of Metro Manila’s up-and-coming spoken-word artists and acoustic acts: White Wall Poetry, Risen Collective, Us The Trio, BennyBunnyBand, Joie Munoz and many more!

Through this line-up of performances and by showcasing a selection of pieces from these artists, TMI aims to emphasize the role of transparency that goes deep into our personal lives and out to the social consciousness of the people, and engage people to deal with it as a challenge in our daily lives.

Don’t forget to like us on Facebook facebook.com/UPJPIATMI.

Pintig is also made possible by ClickTheCity, WhenInManila.Com, Indie Manila, Wazzup Pilipinas, Buhay Kolehiyo, Amplify.PH, pye.PH, AktivShow, 1DigiMedia and DZUP 1602.

CEO SUITE Serviced Offices: Premium Office Suites at a Prime Location

Wazzup Pilipinas!

"Start Small, Think "BIG" - a mindset that every Startup Business Owner, SME & Entrepreneur should have.

We all want to look good to everyone because having an impressive portfolio is the key to get noticed by potential clients or partners.

But for newbies in the business who are still striving for attention, we should initially work on a presence that would help build trust and assurance to our companies. This includes establishing an office address that I believe is essential in the foundation of every business.

"One of every business’ successes depends on its location. This is regardless if it’s referring to store locations, office locations, virtual office locations, etc. Being in a strategic business location for your company could conclude the level of your success."

Though there are already so many businesses that made it to an undeniable success, having a conducive meeting place to meet with our clients, other than coffee shops and hotel lobbies, would further catapult us to greater heights. Having a business address at a prime and accessible location may spell a huge difference in the final choice of a client on which company they would decide to work with. Just as how job applicants are somehow gauged based on which college or university they came from, a reputable business address could put us up there among the top choices.

It is time to step-up our business with CEO SUITE's serviced or virtual offices. Achieving greatness goes with having a good business reputation that CEO SUITE office solutions can help us with.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

In the highly competitive world of information technology, being bigger does not mean being better. While size may, to some extent be an advantage, more often, it is the ability to understand what the customers need, the insight to know where the industry is going and the keen sense to spot what trends there are, that sets companies apart into leaders and followers. Third Pillar Business Applications, Inc. despite being a new player, is already proving to be a company that leads rather than follows because it believes that business organizations must have a strong foundation for its business applications to sustain and support its growth. Furthermore, to have a strong foundation, an organization must start by having reliable and accurate business data to work with.

Third Pillar puts utmost priority in good data governance and data quality. It believes that every company must have a robust sales and marketing solution to boost sales output and customer service. It also needs a good procurement application to help reduce cost. In this regard, good data governance and data quality; sales and marketing; and procurement are the areas Third Pillar is focusing on to help transform its customers to being innovative and revenue earning organizations.

Founded only three years ago by a group of business and IT veterans, the company has now grown into a trusted and reliable business solutions provider because of its key strategic partnerships with industry leaders namely, Salesforce – the innovative company behind the world’s #1 Customer Relationship Management Platform that helps organizations sell, service, and market their products smarter. Salesforce enables companies to build meaningful long lasting business relationships with their customers resulting in increased sales revenue. BackOffice Associates - a worldwide leader in information governance and data modernization solutions. Its award-winning products are built on a revolutionary platform and can address the needs of business users that want to unlock the value of their data assets. CPM Consulting, a BackOffice Associates, LLC Company, which provides professional consulting services by aligning, designing and implementing SAP solutions for business planning and financial consolidation. Consus Global Consutling, one of the leading consulting firms in the spend management space, adds positive impact to the bottom-line of its customers by helping them achieve guaranteed savings in their annual spend.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

As part of the Power Task Force Election 2016, the Department of Energy (DOE) remains keen on ensuring that power supply in the country will be adequate, reliable and stable for the entire summer period, especially during the national and local elections.

“Our team is currently assessing the power supply situation by closely coordinating with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines and the power plant owners/operators in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao to make sure that the generating facilities which are currently on maintenance shutdown will be back online ahead of the election period,” Energy Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada said. She emphasized that these planned outages are more on the integrity assessment of the plants to ensure that these are sound and running during the elections period.

Sec. Monsada added that the yellow alert only means that we have a limited or thin reserve power; and based on the outlook for Luzon, yellow alert status will only register in the afternoon of today as reserve power will normalize in the evening.

Moreover, it has been reported to the DOE that the National Grid Corporation of Philippines, as the system operator, has already alerted the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp., the operator of the 600 MW Malaya Plant to run this generating facility in an effort to augment the power supply. The DOE has also coordinated with the Interruptible Load Program participants for provisional power supply of about 826 MW to supplement the available capacities.

Luzon power generating plants undergoing maintenance shutdown are targeted to be back online before April ends. Expected to be back on stream tonight are the 300 MW Calaca Unit 2 which suffers from turbine problem, and TMO Units 5 and 6 totaling to 119 MW which extended its maintenance works. Other plants with scheduled maintenance are the 382 MW Pagbilao Unit 1, 190 MW Magat Hydropower plant, and 145 MW San Roque Unit 3.

Wazzup Pilipinas!
Catch the Philippines Premier Stand-Up Comedian Mike Unson and the Comedy Cartel as they satisfy your comedy curiosity with their funny punchlines and antics at their show at Le Café Curieux on April 22, Friday,9:30 pm! A production of eCircle Entertainment & Management Corp. andSanctum 2.0! Bring everyone you know and let's all laugh 'til we can't take it anymore! See you guys next week!

Scarlet Nights: Live Comedy Series with Mike Unson

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Watch as the Comedy Cartel's live comedy series is back at the Scarlet Wine Lounge
entitled "Scarlet Nights" at the Fort Strip BGC on April 30, Saturday, 8pm!

The event is hosted by one of the rising comic of Comedy Cartel "The Future" himself Joseph Montecillo.,

Featuring Chris Bacula & the Philippines Premier Stand-Up Comedian Mike Unson

Laugh 'til your face turns red w/ laughter and get your much needed comic relief!

Reserve your tickets now! Call or text 09178860706 for reservations!

Participation Deadline for AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search 2016 in the Philippines Extended to 23 April 2016

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search (AARRDS) 2016 will see participants from Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand battle it out to be AirAsia’s Most Promising Designer of 2016.

This regional designer search is part of AirAsia’s continuous effort in developing talents and empowering youth across the region and will be a platform for young aspiring designers to catapult their careers in the fashion industry.

The participation deadline for the Philippines has been extended to 23 April 2016 to accommodate the requests for walk-in participants, and to enable more participants to submit their entries. Interested designers can walk-in on audition day on Saturday, 23 April 2016 to register at 9.00AM (GMT+7) at the Aqua Room, level 5 of Best Western Antel Plus Hotel located in Makati Avenue, Makati City.

Applicants must bring to the audition venue the following judging materials:

a) registration form available at klfashionweek.com

b) one (1) artboard depicting three (3) ready-to-wear womenswear sketches with a theme inspired by any Asean cities

c) one (1) artboard with fabrications,

and d) one (1) artboard with a written description of the design inspiration in English or a mood board.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Power Task Force Election (PTFE) 2016, led by the Department of Energy (DOE), lays down measures to ensure that power supply is sufficient, stable, and reliable before, during, and after the conduct of national and local elections on 09 May.

"Actually, we have two task forces that are looking into the integrity of the power supply chain to secure supply of electricity particularly during the period one week before and one week after the election day, especially within and near the voting precincts," said Energy Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada.

Sec. Monsada further averred that since December last year, the PTFE has started ground works, including coordination meetings with energy stakeholders, and identification of tasks and responsibilities of member agencies in employing strategic and preparatory measures to ensure availability and stability of power supply not only for the elections period, but for the entire summer months.

The PTFE's latest and ongoing initiatives to ensure that all systems nationwide are ready and in place prior to the elections include conduct of tabletop drills and information, education and communication campaigns among stakeholders (i.e., Distribution Utilities, Generation Companies, Transmission Companies, and various government energy agencies) to equip them with best practices during crisis management; directive to DUs to ensure power supply by contracting needed capacities ahead, and making sure that backup power is available should power failure occur; prioritization scheme for the provision of electricity service to voting centers; and advisory to gencos to undertake maintenance either ahead or after the critical period to enable all available plants to run on full capacity during these times.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

What will you do if someone else is controlling your life for you?

Lurking at dimensions we thought did not exist, the god of time Kronus and his apprentice Hana are tasked to manage the time and destiny of the people in this human world.

Are you willing to be bounded by the laws of time and space? Or will you find a way to keep the past and the precious memories?

Artistang Artlets, the Official Theater Guild of the Faculty of Arts and Letters of the University of Santo Tomas, on its 35th Season, proudly presents: “Pendulum” by Rani Mae Aberin, a story about time and destiny– and how these two are important in life, love, and relationships.

Pendulum will be directed by Janus Matthew Martinez and produced by Christine Ann Camille Baria. This will be staged from April 26, 27 & 28, 2016, with the time slots 1pm, 3pm, 5pm and 7pm at the Education Auditorium, Albertus Magnus Building, University of Santo Tomas.

For inquiries please contact Kristianne Coleen Cañamo (09153967730), or visit our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ArtistangArtletsUST. Twitter: @artstngartlts

IPC to Banks: Your Cybersecurity Measures are Not Enough

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Local cloud services pioneer and IT security specialist IPC strongly urges financial institutions to safeguard their systems by deploying up-to-date security measures to ensure data and network protection. IPC called on banks to check on their current data security setup, stating that even the most secure institutions are not exempt from the alarming increase in crimes perpetrated online.

“This is a reality that has caused the loss of significant revenue for many businesses. The global recorded cost of cyber attacks is at $400-500 billion dollars per year― roughly fifty percent of which is from DDoS attacks,” said IPC President Rene Huergas, citing data from DDoS Mitigation partner Nexusguard. Unless executives take stock of this as a serious issue at hand, companies are most likely to lose more.

IPC acknowledges that some institutions may have inadequate system and network security layers to protect them from cyber attacks. “This poses an even greater danger to both the customer as well as the institution. As data and network security is a commodity in this day and age, now is the best time to recognize that the threats are real and can make businesses vulnerable and susceptible to attacks; banks and financial institutions being the most inclined to this kind of attack,” added Huergas.

Just recently, several Iranian hackers have been indicted following a well-orchestrated cyber attack on US banks. The criminals hit the banks with DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks on an almost weekly basis, flooding their servers with illegitimate traffic that slowed websites down and caused millions in lost business.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Artist Playground, Arte Pintura and Talent Factory Incorporated proudly present NURSERY OF CURIOSITIES -- A SOLO EXHIBIT BY NASSER LUBAY.

Arte Pintura Gallery is located at the G/F The Address at Wack Wack, Wack Wack Road, Mandaluyong City, and is al set to open on May 15, 2016.

An interesting highlight of the exhibit is the world premiere of “Nursery of Curiosities – The Theme,” an original music written by award-winning composer Jesse Lucas.

A specially-printed catalogue of "Nursery of Curiosities" will also be launched to accompany the exhibit.

Curated by Philip Almazan Paraan, “Nursery of Curiosities” will run until May 31.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Harte Hanks lauded the Philippines as one of BPO-call center destinations in the world with a good labor market and described the Filipino workforce as “eager, with a strong work ethic and imbibed with a culture of customer service.”

The American firm issued the statement ahead of the opening on Thursday (April 21) of its BPO-call center at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Complex, in Pasay City, a move that would integrate the company’s existing primary and two secondary locations in the country.

A local outfit, Pinnacle Real Estate Consulting Services, had said the Philippines remains the top destination for IT-BPO firms given the educated talent pool, excellent infrastructure, cost competitiveness, and adequate government support for the industry.

In a published report, they projected the BPO sector may soon overtake dollar remittances from overseas Filipinos in terms of revenues given the continued strong demand for office space.

Harte Hanks’ Philippine subsidiary employs over 2,000 BPO-call center agents, majority of whom, are assigned at Harte Hanks’ main office, in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. The company had announced that it would be hiring hundreds of Filipino IT-marketing specialists for its MOA facility.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

2Go Travel, one of the most renowned sea and land transportation companies in the Philippines, was born out of the integration of the 2 major shipping companies in the Philippines in December 2010 when Negros Navigation Inc. bought out the Aboitiz Transport Systems (ATS) group which operated the "SuperFerry" passenger brand. The rebranding of both companies used the ubiquitous "2GO" brand in 2011 across all business units, finally naming the passenger brand "2GO Travel."

2GO Travel is the first shipping-passenger brand in the Philippines that completely changed the sea travel experience. With excellent customer service, upscale hotel passenger suites, comfortable accommodation, entertainment and cruise-like amenities, 2GO Travel provided the traveling public a unique and very affordable way to travel around the Philippines.

2GO Travel also expanded the travel routes not only by sea but also by land as well connected major cities around the Philippines via bus connection, making the travel experience more hassle-free. Moreover, the brand also pioneered the first prepaid travel card that can be purchased as the perfect travel gift to popular tourist destinations around the Philippines. With its commitment to take land and sea travel to the next level , 2Go Travel has clearly helped boost domestic tourism by making travel comfortable and fun and providing cruise packages for families, friends or corporate groups, complete with an all-in cruise, hotel and tour itineraries in one affordable package.

In order to further its growth with more payment options available to its customers, 2Go Travel partnered with Globe Business, the enterprise ICT arm of Globe Telecom, to acquire Globe Charge, an innovative solution that transforms mobile phones into point-of-sale (POS) card terminals that accept debit and credit card payments. Globe Charge harnesses the integration of a smartphone and an innovative mobile card reader into a mobile point-of-sale (POS) unit, empowering enterprise and SME customers with a convenient payment device and eliminating the need for traditional and more expensive card terminals.

With Globe Charge, 2Go Travel can now accept credit card payments from its customers, further growing its customer base, increasing its revenues, and sustaining its position in the market as an innovative company which constantly seeks to provide efficient and hassle-free service.

“Globe Business really is a great partner for us,” Stephen Tagud, Senior Vice President for 2Go Travel said. “We want to make traveling as smooth as possible for our customers and with Globe Charge, this makes payments options much easier and more accessible for a lot of them.”

Mike Frausing, Globe Business’ Senior Advisor for Enterprise and IT Enabled Services Group shared, “We are thankful to 2Go Travel for the trust and confidence they have given us in enabling their sustained growth as they expand their payment capabilities through Globe Charge. As the leading ICT enabler in the Philippines, Globe Business provides customers with the right technology, infrastructure, and know-how to help them focus on their business.”

For more information about Globe Business, get in touch with a Globe Business Account Manager or call the Globe Business Premium Support Center at +63 2.730.1288 toll-free using a Globe mobile and landline. You can also visit www.globe.com.ph/business for more information.