You Win Some, You Lose Some

Now it can be told!

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Direct Call Center, of which I am a part of, won the Most Innovative Idea Award in the Functional Group category of the annual DTI System on Performance Rewards and Incentives (SPRints). The idea of putting up a call center that aims to provide DTI clients a "no wrong door" reply to their queries came from the DTI Anti-Red Tape Technical Working Group (ARTTWG) and our office was tasked to manage it.

We have to give credit where credit is due. While the idea was brought up by the DTI ARTTWG, it was really Assistant Secretary Baby Baua who orchestrated everything to have the call center established with the able support of Office of Special Concerns (OSC) Officer-in-Charge Lydia Guevarra, Management Information Service (MIS) Director Lizzie Cabrera, Financial  Management Service (FMS) Director Ireneo "Boy" Vizmonte and the other bureau directors who allowed their staff to man the call center once a week on a rotation basis. Of course, I won't forget the call center agents who have been instrumental in the continued success of the DTI Direct.

Now on its third year of operations, the DTI Direct has proven to be an invaluable mechanism in addressing the concerns of the Department's stakeholders, particularly the consumer and business sectors. Lest this article be accused of being self-serving, I will just let the continued operation of the call center speak for itself.

One of our volunteer agents and an officemate, Ric, was also an awardee for the Best Clerk Functional Group category. Three from our division who were nominated by our OIC Director to the Best Supervisor (that's me), Best Technical Staff - Specialis Level  (Kia), and Best Secretary (Ate Genie) categories did not make it.

Well, that's life. You win some, you lose some. Our defeat will never prevent us from doing our work to the best of our abilities and capabilities.  The fact that our boss recognizes our performance is already something to be proud of. Speaking for myself, I have been an awardee thrice, twice as a specialist and once as a senior specialist. Recognition is an incentive but this is not the be-all and end-all of everything. My time will come when I shall be recognized as an outstanding supervisor and so with Kia nd Ate Genie in their own categories.

In all fairness, the winners in the categories where we were fielded deserved the recognition they got. But this we cannot say in other categories and I'd rather keep my mouth shut than name names. After all, the winners themselves will find it in their hearts if they truly deserved the awards conferred on them. Besides, we still respect the decision of the committee no matter how different it may be from our own preferences.