They took urgency out of Mañana :)

Today we visited Carsten from Excitor who Finn connected us to yesterday. Carsten is the CTO and general manager of the captive outsourced department in Manila. The department is not as big as the other companies we have visited here in Manila. It was exiting to hear what challenges a smaller firm was facing compared to a larger firm. Corruption and acquiring the needed competences was some of the issues mentioned. We also discussed the difference about work attitudes. We learned that the Filipinos are more focused on the individual task and that Danes are more focused on the context of the task. This results in some misunderstandings and not fully completed tasks. We also learned that newly graduated Filipinos from the university lack competences. We were told that they are immature and need more training compared to Danish graduates. But they are also younger when they graduate, around 20 years old is typical. Carsten also mentioned that he faced a lot of corruption although the resources needed to cope with it were affordable. The issue for a smaller company regarding corruption is the time perspective. It is a protracted process to get new initiatives approved when dealing with/paying seven different “subcontractors”. Fiscal corruption is only a big issue for larger manufacturing companies.

(Small talk)
We were amused by an interesting thought, that there might be a cultural difference based on the climate. There is a saying that the Filipinos took the urgency out of Mañana. J The discussion is related to issues regarding whether mentality in different work cultures are affected by the climate. In the north we have a historical awareness that winter is coming and therefore we plan long termed in contrary to cultures in tropical climates.

After visiting Exitor we paid the Manila hub a final visit. We wanted to give some presents as a token for our gratitude and to say goodbye to everyone. Here ends the educational part of our trip to the Philippines.

Goodbye and thanks for reading

Karaoke – not only for singers

The picture shows the systematic construction of electric cables

We wanted to experience some local night life and asked one of our “colleagues” about where to go. We were advised to go to a bar called “Top Grill”. We were very excited to see how the bar looked like. The bar was placed on third floor, and as we entered the bar we were almost run over by eager male waiters dressed like women. It is much more common for boys in the Philippines to dress like women, than it is in Europe, but it was still a bit of a culture clash.

We realized it was a karaoke bar, being met by an ear-splittingly loud Filipino voice. As previously stated in the blog, the Filipinos love to sing. In the karaoke bar that passion really bloomed. We also learned that you do not need to be an experienced singer to sing karaoke. For the Filipinos it is not about the quality but more with a social purpose, which is very different from the way Europeans usually perceive it. After some beers (maybe more) we overcame our fear for singing to great enjoyment for the Filipinos. It got later than planned but it was a really nice evening.

A short glimpse of the traffic in Makati City

Golfing in the city

After various attempts to get some exercise we decided to do something radical. From our workplace on the 32th floor we observed a big green net and we got curious. We soon learned that this was a golf driving range build on top of a car park. This seemed to be a funny concept which we had to experience for ourselves. After a quick walk to our hotel we changed to “sports gear” or the best we could manageJ. A short notice; none of us can write golf experience on our resumes and that became apparent after a while. After the first fifty shots, some of us became adjusted and managed to achieve a hit rate of 50%, others didn’t. Suddenly golf became life threatening as one member of the group managed to throw his club smashing into the sealing and landing right in front of another group member who saw his life passing before his eyes J. Luckily nothing happened and we agreed to stop before someone got seriously hurt. On top of that rather interesting experience we decided to get some food before exploring the local Philippine night life.

The last interview with Finn Lund Poulsen

Today we set out to collect the last data from the Hub in Manila. Finn was kind to take his time for us once again so that we were able to cover data for both the papers. The interview concerned areas like Finn’s competencies, his role and what function he maintains in Vestas’s offshored IT department. Furthermore we got a chance to learn about his relations towards Denmark and the frequency of communication between Manila and Denmark.

After the interview we all concluded that that we now had more than enough data for further processing. Finn was able to set up a fast meeting with another Danish expatriate, who is the general manager of a systems development function, who specializes in developing software for smartphones. This meeting was due on Friday morning which will be elaborated further in the blog.

On this occasion we would specially like to thank Finn for his effort regarding the establishment of relations to different expatriates in Manila. Furthermore a “thanks” goes out to the employees in the Hub and specially the managers who toke their time to share their knowledge with us.

Knuck, knuck, knuckles on heaven's door

From Greenhills we grabbed a taxi to get the last measurements done by the tailor. After saying no thanks to beautiful girls, beautiful boys and drugs the taxi driver drove us to a place called “Market! Market!” which is the district in which the tailor has his shop. After the tailor visit we went to get some late dining in a restaurant with a traditional Philippine cuisine. The main dish was knock out knockles, which is one of the few traditional Philippine dishes we have tried. It is pork in some way roasted and made crispy but still juicy. It is quite tasty.

We have not seen many traditional Philippine restaurants. We have been explained that since both the Spanish and the Americans have colonized the Philippines, their culture and cooking has been integrated. 

Temporary paranoia

After the last interview of the day we decided to go take a look at Greenhills market and leave the office a little earlier than the other days. We took a taxi to our hotel, changed to some other clothing, got rid of our laptops and found another taxi for Greenhills. The driver didn’t really understand what we were saying and replied “greenfield?” a couple of times before he nodded and started to drive. By second thought it could’ve been a little risky since we aren’t familiar with that side of town (well… I don’t know if we’re familiar with any part of town), and he could drive in the complete opposite direction without we would notice. Since the traffic was rather heavy we sat in the taxi for some time. Some were more or less asleep when one (no need to mention any names…) suddenly started: “what if he’s driving us to his 20 friends and they’ll all beat us up”. The feeling in the taxi became a bit tenser and another one replied: “That’s some sick shit to say!” (translated from: “Det er sygt sagt det der!”). A few minutes later the doubts were gone as we saw a large Greenhills sign rise next to the road. We would later realize that doubt and questions of people’s motives had just begun.

When we arrived at Greenhills we didn’t really know what to expect. We’d heard about the market and how you should bargain about the price and watch your walletJ. The mall was a mix of actual shops and small stands. The center is a weird combination of electronics, clothing and jewelry. We used quite a bit of time figuring out, which stands were actual selling the genuine brands and which were trying to sell copies as real ones.

What made Greenhills interesting from our point of view was the special atmosphere, which is tense, because people are constantly approaching you. Furthermore they are using more radical selling technics than the common Danish ones. “Hello mister, you are so handsome.” and while one of us was buying a soccer jersey one of the shop assistants said: “you are so sexy”. J Which of course boosted our self-esteem? But even with our enhanced confidence we didn’t manage to make a good bargain.

Taking measurements at the tailor. Tue was actually offered a position as a model.

Food variation - a succes

After the interviews with the managers we invited one of our local colleagues to dine with us and she suggested a Mexican restaurant. It was nice to sit down and have an informal chat about everyday stuff.

Regarding the food perspective we perceived the concept of food variation a huge success. Unlike the Danish food culture where everyone orders their own dish, the Philippine food culture is more about sharing a variety of different dishes, while enjoying the social relations. Therefore the Filipinos cherish the lunch break a lot.  One could argue that the lunch break is more holy to the Filipinos than the Danish who usually just rush through their meal and get back to work. We very much enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and the variation of different meals and stuffed we went back to work on our blog J  

Successful breakfast

Wednesday started off with a rather successful attempt to get our breakfast in time. Our preorder worked and we were not delayed due to misunderstandings, which was really good cause that meant decreased stress for us. 

We arrived at the office at 09.00 ready for an exciting day filled with interviews, socialization and a rather funny visit to GreenHills Mall which is a huge shopping center in the northeast direction from the hotel.

The 3 interviews which were scheduled for the day involved a variety of department managers. Giving the four of us a more broad perspective of the perceptions the Filipinos have regarding work, life, culture and personal ambitions.  

First of all the primary impression we got from the managers we interviewed was that they were competent employees with a very professional approach to their work. They all had several years of experience in different industries which definitely has been beneficial to Vestas.

We emphasized on the Filipinos perspective regarding management styles. We learned that the Danish management style (macro-management) fits the Filipinos after some adjustment. One said that the Danish management style empowers the employee which is both challenging and motivating at the same time. In relation to this we learned that the Japanese management-style was more micro based and doesn’t leave initiative to the individual employees which can be comforting but not very challenging.

In the interviews the employees elaborated further on how they perceived the cultural differences between the different nationalities management style.  They found the hierarchal flat structure in the Danish way of management a bit odd :-) but in some way admirable.  

Even though some are more or less trying to adapt to the flat hierarchal structure their way of perceiving things is still influenced by the cultural aspects of gender and age. In the Philippine culture respect tends to come with age and gender. We have not experienced that ourselves but then again we are nothing but ignorant foreigners trying to get some impressions.  J   

The life of an expatriate

Finn and his wife Jane invited us to dinner Tuesday evening. We went to a lovely French restaurant, which was located in the nearby area. The conversation was informal but it still gave us an impression of what it actually takes for a Danish expatriate and his or her family to go abroad. We’ve faced/heard about some of the challenges regarding the adjustments to a radical new environment.

We were amazed by the amount of social events and close relationships they had managed to establish in such a short period of time. As Jane said: ”I have never been so busy before, even though I’m not working”. Of course over interpreted but giving you an understanding that it is not necessarily lonesome to go abroad. If one actively takes contact and involves in the many different social activities for expatriates, the social network will increase and you will not feel on your own in no man’s land. A fine example of this is that suddenly the live music starts at the restaurant. After a while our hosts realize that the pianist is a close friend of theirs. The pianist is an expatriate from Australia working in the oil industry and at the same time a skilled pianist who, once in a while, is playing for fun at the French restaurant.

After the main dish we were ready for dessert and just as the waiter came to fill up our glasses, we told him we would like to order some desserts. This is where you, as a Dane, would expect him to bring the menu or take the orders right away. What happened was that he went away without doing anything but waiting. Apparently he wasn’t the one to take orders, just to fill up glasses etc. He didn’t even inform the waiter who was allowed to take orders – he just waited in the corner. It took us a couple of minutes before we got to speak with the appropriate waiter, and ordered our desserts (or at least the ones which was actually available). Even with the minor misunderstandings it was a great dinner with tasty food.

Small talking with the pianist we comprehended how strong the bond is among the expatriates, which is also emphasized by their (the different expatriates we have talked to) eager to help and inform foreigners and other firms trying to establish themselves in the Philippines about societal problems and challenges.

In relation to the societal problems it can be mentioned that the boundary between rich and poor is enormous. Of course Manila and the Philippines in general is not a unique case in that matter. But what makes Manila a bit special is the segregation. Makati, which is the business area where we stay, can be considered more or less a huge island in the city wiped for poverty, dirt and beggars. There is security everywhere so you can walk around on your own everywhere anytime a day. This is a total different story when it comes to the squatters outside the business areas, where gangs and criminals are fostered by the dozens because of poverty and lack of jobs.

We ended the dinner at our hosts place on the 23^rd floor enjoying a drink on their balcony where you could, which we did, sit for hours and enjoy the magnificent view of the skyscrapers and the city.

A most sincerely thanks from the four of us to Finn and Jane (if they read this) for an incredible evening, which we really appreciate.

Who's the bigger issue?

The traffic always jams when it's raining, because everyone grabs a taxi home.

Working at the office with a view of Manila in the background

We spent the afternoon interviewing two of the managers at Vestas. What we learned from today’s interviews was that even though the hub was established rather short time ago, its employees are experienced, passionate and hardworking. From what we’ve learned from courses, and literature in general concerning establishment of departments in Asia, it is challenging to hire competent employees without a prestigious brand as employer. Here at Vestas it seems like it’s been a great success.

We have experienced some strategic awareness, also conflicting with some of the western prejudices. We see potential for not only outsourcing operations and development, but also strategic functions. It is also interesting to see how the managers in Manila had adopted the corporate visions and used them in understanding their work. One could think that the Manila hub would be an isolated “island”, but due to the matrix organization the Filipinos still have strong connections to rest of the organization.

The attrition rate is a common issue when outsourcing because money typically is the primary concern in the countries where outsourcing usually occur. The Manila hub has managed to keep down the attrition rate at a surprisingly low level. This might be because of the competition to attract competent employees still isn’t that bad in Manila.

In our courses in project management we have learned about three important parameters of concern when outsourcing: communication, time zones and culture. By interviewing managers in Manila we have learned that the greatest challenges are communication and time zone differences. The cultural difficulties have not been subjects for concern for the managers to the same degree as we have experienced in Denmark. They believe cultural issues are overcome by professionalism, and is therefore not a big issue in their everyday work life. Maybe our culture, or lack of understanding of the Asian culture, is the bigger challenge of the two. Here in the Philippines the employees have had courses in the western culture, how to interact and how the stereotypical Dane differs from the corresponding Filipino. Just some food for thought…

If you send me crap, I'll give you crap!

Finally it looks like we have come to an agreement about the breakfastJ. There seems to be some communication issues between the reception and the restaurant.   The Filipinos are very service minded and always smiling. One thing you have to bear in mind though, is that when talking to Filipinos, not aware of western culture, they tend to say yes even though they should have said no, because of their service mindset – they prefer not to disappoint you.

Today we visited NNIT’s hub here in Manila. NNIT is a separate IT division of Novo Nordisk and their main focus is the development of software. The head of the NNIT hub, the general manager actually started his own development company in Manila, which was later bought by NNIT. We got an interview with the general manager and a project manager. From visiting NNIT we learned that the competences of the developers in Manila are equal to developers in DK. The main difference is that it can be harder for the Filipinos to understand the business due to the distance. From the various companies we have been visiting in Denmark, we have heard that some of the main issues for outsourcing are a lack of competences in Denmark. As in it isn’t possible to find people with e.g. specialized SAP knowledge. But as the general manager said: why make a full scale outsourcing project, if you only need specific competences? It would be easier just to get the competences to Denmark.

A typical issue in outsourcing is managing contracts, such as requirements specifications. In software development a requirements specification is the contract that states how a given system should be used and which functions it should consist of. In Denmark, and western countries there have been a lot of issues concerning these specifications both internally (just think of failed IT-projects at governmental level, such as “tinglysning”) and externally (outsourcing). The project manager in NNITs comment to requirements specifications was “if you send me crap, I will give you crap!” - And that might just be the issue about Danish requirement specifications or requirements specifications in general?

The hub in Manila

Today we got a hands-on experience of the Philippine perception of being on time. We preordered breakfast Sunday afternoon to be sure that it would be ready the next morning at 7:45. Of course that did not work… 7:15 we received a phone call about some details regarding our breakfast, which was fine, but around 8:20 we decided to go back to our rooms since we would be picked up at 8:30 and still had not seen the breakfast.

View from the office - notice the amount of cranes

Vestas office was on 32th floor with a very beautiful view of the city. We spent the entire day interviewing our Finn Poulsen, who is the general manager of the office. We were at the office from 9 to 17, but the day felt longer because of our jetlag and lack of sleep (someone kept singing during the night outside our hotel). It was inspiring and very educational to interview Finn. We learned about what it takes to establish an offshore hub and what competencies are needed. We heard about how his work in Manila has changed his role in Vestas's IT-organization. We were given an impression of the experience of being a Danish expatriate in Manila. We heard about the decisions behind making a hub in manila, instead of e.g. China and India and which culture, communication and time issues there are between the Danish and the Philippines.

We were recommended to go to a little restaurant called “the old spaghetti house” to get decent food in a reasonable amount of time. We got some pizza and somehow we managed to avoid getting the spaghetti dishes which was our original intention and supposedly the core capability of the restaurant. Even though there were shared opinions on the food we were full and ready to recharge ourselves and our computers.

First day in Manila

We were picked up at the airport and taken to the hotel

In the lobby of our hotel - christmas is coming!

Makati City rising in the horizon

Last night Finn invited us to come and watch the national hero of the Philippines Manny "Pacman" Pacquaio defend his title as world champion in light middleweight. We joined Finn, his wife and some friends of theirs, from the danish expatriate network in Manila. We went together to a restaurant displaying the fight inside one of Manilas enormous casinos. We experienced how proud the Philippines are of Pacman who's also a member of the congress. It was great fun to experience the atmosphere in the casino where everyone was following the match, even if it meant they had to watch it in the mirrors from outside the restaurant (The match was displayed on a Pay-Per-View channel so one should by tickets at the casino to watch it).

We spent the afternoon on a trip to Intramuros (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intramuros) a historical part of Manila from the Spanish colonial period. We were taken there by one of the Danish expatriates’ driver, who showed us some of the more poor districts of Manila on the way there - It sure is a city of great contrasts. Makati City, the business district, where we stay is merely nothing but skyscrapers, but few hundreds of meters away poverty and lack of basic needs reveal itself everywhere.

On the way back to the hotel from Intramuros we had great fun experiencing the traffic in a local Taxi. The driver was overtaking the other cars on the inside until he suddenly stopped, realizing that the next car to overtake was a police car J. Furthermore we learned that traffic lights and control in general are considered more like guiding lines than actual rules and that pedestrians are not really taking into consideration in the traffic – which is not nice.

We ate dinner at the hotel and spent the evening working on our projects and resting.

We are still somewhat struck by jetlag which is more challenging to overcome, than first expected.

Tomorrow morning we will face the first day at the office and an exciting week scheduled with interviews and meetings with many different Danish and Philippine employees in the IT business.

Departure from Denmark

Finally the day of departure has come! It was time to harvest the fruits of our fundraising. We met at Tues place 11:30; a cold and windy friday november morning looking forward to feel the tropical weather on the other side of the planet, although a 19 hour long journey was ahead of us.

Tues girlfriend drove us to the Airport where we arrived ahead of schedule and was able to check in, in an almost empty airport. We decided to play some table soccer as one suddenly realized he had forgotten his purse (no names mentioned…) which gave the schedule a little twist of excitement. Despite of that we did catch the plane and landed safely in Copenhagen, where we were in a bit of a rush to get the next airplane to Doha, since we had to run from terminal 1 to 2 in 40 minutes. The flight to Doha was nice, with good service and a fine meal although some of the flight time was also spent making some work and sleeping. In Doha we recharged the computers and worked some more on our transcriptions. From Doha to Manila the boing 777-300ER (a very big airplane) smoothly carried us to Manila Airport. We tried to take a picture of the plane but the Qatar officer didn’t share the passion of photography…

In Manila we were struck by the warmth and the high humidity which instantly made us sweat. The driver from the Picasso hotel was waiting to pick us up and drove us safely through the, apparently, chaotic and anarchistic traffic. We saw the contrasts between Makati city which is the business district with impressive skyscrapers rising everywhere and the poor ghettoes where the houses is made of iron sheets.

The hotel is very nice. We got two studio rooms, which matched and maybe even exceeded our expectations, with wifi, balcony, good toilets, nice beds and a minibar. At the hotel we met our Danish contact Finn Lund Poulsen, who is general manager at Vestas, Manila, whom we, after a quick check in and a bath, went to a local place to get a beer and a brief introduction to Manila.