Payoneer, a leading global payment platform, recently held its first ever Pride event. Organized by Payoneer and powered by KMC Solutions, Lead Loud & Proud: Meet LGBTQ+ Members Leading the Philippine Outsourcing Industry featured perspectives on creating a more inclusive and diverse workplace.
“Payoneer makes it easier for the world’s SMBs to grow globally, maximizing their full potential. One of our company’s values is inclusion and diversity,” underscored Jen San Antonio, Marketing Lead for Emerging Markets, APAC of Payoneer. “We believe that everyone, regardless of location, culture, size of business, SOGIE, deserves an equal opportunity to succeed.”
“We look at the world and see only possibilities. In the last ten years, I’ve spoken to so many companies already and asked them where they are in the DEI or diversity, equity and inclusion journey. And I am not one to name and shame – every time we meet a company we ask them: where are you and how can we help you?,” shared Christopher Eugenio, Board Trustee of Philippine Financial & Inter-industry Pride (PFIP).
PFIP is the leading voice and champion of LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion, promoting safe and inclusive workplaces for all talents, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics. in the workplace.
Highlighting insights from PFIP’s LGBTQ+ Workplace Inclusion Survey, Eugenio highlighted that “86% of the survey respondents answered that they have anti-discrimination policies in place for both sexual orientation and gender identity. We are also seeing structures for redress or mechanisms for raising concerns at 88%. The opportunity is to match the written policies with mandated public support with actions on the ground – the challenge is for companies to walk the talk.”
“Our respondents came from 22 industries and you will note that the majority, 47%, are from BPOs and professional services. The other common categories were manufacturing, IT and Food and Beverage,” Eugenio said. “Notably, 90% of the companies surveyed were multinational companies. Our goal is to help improve and update the standards for LGBTQ+ inclusion for Filipino-owned businesses and SMSEs.”
Miss Trans Global 2020 and lead convener of Pride PH Mela Habijan moderated the event. She affirmed the efforts of PFIP, adding that “organizations like PFIP are changing the landscape of how work is done in the Philippines.”
For her part, Cindy Burdette, CEO and Co-founder of ALLCARE.io, discussed how members of the LGBTQ+ community have to work twice as hard to succeed. “There are barriers that we need to manage around. It was always that I needed to fight to survive. Because of my skills and capabilities, gender was secondary, so I can’t express how grateful I am, but I know that’s not the story for most people.”
Burdette was joined by Neil Socorro De Guzman, Assistant Vice President, Service Delivery & Operations at KMC Solutions, and Patricia Francisco, Senior CSM Manager at Payoneer.
“Once an employee knows the value of what they do, you’ll be able to get very good performance from that employee,” related De Guzman. He added that being able to create value for himself and others helped him overcome career challenges.
Echoing De Guzman’s insight on creating value were King Santos, CEO of Jobbden and Lennor Metier and LA Garcia, Director of Sales and Marketing at The VA Hub. Both emphasized how investing in personal relationships can translate to excellence in the workplace.
“As leaders we set the tone for our organization, and we need to have representation in the business. If there is representation then it will not be difficult for young professionals to find mentors who truly understand their challenges and their experiences,” said Santos.
“Make your diversity and inclusion initiatives aligned with your company’s goals and values; because if you don’t align these, they will be pushed aside and be given less priority. You also need to find a way to continuously listen,” states Garcia. “Though annual surveys are trackable and measurable, they are not enough of an avenue for you to get real time insights on how your employees feel and think. You won’t be able to reach your DEI goals (with annual surveys alone) and we want to reach these goals as there’s no shortage of advantages when it comes to reaching these goals such as increased quality of talent and gaining new perspectives for innovation, and of course, more increased profit.”
Rounding up the event was Monique Avila, Payoneer’s Country Manager for the Philippines & Other SEA. Avila spoke about the important role of allies in fostering diversity, equity and inclusion. “Payoneer is strongly committed to helping create diverse and inclusive workplaces. As part of this commitment, we are intentional in creating spaces where LGBTQ+ voices can be heard and where our community’s entrepreneurs and leaders can learn and thrive. Allyship is also key for promoting diversity and inclusion. At Payoneer we are proud to be allies in the workplace and beyond.”
For more information about Payoneer, please visit https://www.payoneer.com/ph/.
