BusinessWorld B-Side

Filipino consumers are seen to be 'cautiously optimistic' this year as they face persistently high inflation and a looming global recession, but are also banking on higher incomes due to eased mobility restrictions. In this B-Side episode, Amrita Mitra, chief operating officer of TransUnion Philippines, talks to BusinessWorld reporter Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson about consumer sentiment ...

Many digital platforms today lack inclusive features, such as live captioning, screen reader access, and contrast themes, which would benefit persons with disabilities (PWDs). In this B-Side episode, Pauline B. Malabanan and Hazel Joy Borja from the Leonard Cheshire Disability Philippines Foundation, Inc., who respectively serve as an administration and human resources officer and executive direct...

Mark M. Ocampo, Auro Chocolate’s managing director and one of its co-founders, tells BusinessWorld reporter Brontë H. Lacsamana that craft chocolate lets the inherent flavor characteristics of directly sourced cacao come through in the final product. This allows local chocolates to reflect the Filipino identity. “The whole point of craft is having a more responsible and direct relationship with th...

Jennifer Lee-Bonto, executive director of Artists’ Welfare Project Inc. (AWPI), speaks to BusinessWorld reporter Beatriz Marie D. Cruz about pursuing your passion while paying attention to the practicalities of life. AWPI was founded in 2007 as a help desk for artists who, prior to the founding of AWPI, had to pass the hat every time the aches and pains of performing would catch up with them.&nbsp...

Hailed by the Duterte and Marcos administrations as the country’s new heroes— mga bagong bayani —nurses bore the brunt of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic along with doctors and other frontliners.  In this B-Side episode, Monina A. Hernandez, a clinical nurse specialist who left the Philippines, talks to BusinessWorld reporter Patricia B. Mirasol about why Filipino nurses leave and what...

The current version of House Bill (HB) No. 6608, or the bill seeking to establish the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), still raises red flags, says Enrico P. Villanueva, a chief risk consultant and a senior lecturer of economics at the University of the Philippines Los Baños. In this B-Side episode, he tells BusinessWorld reporter Keisha B. Ta-asan that the MIF will weaken the Bangko Sentral ng Pi...

Nancy Siy, founder of Manila Vegans, explains to BusinessWorld reporter Ashley Erika O. Jose that veganism is not a plant-based lifestyle but a social justice movement grounded in morality and ethics. In this B-Side episode, she talks about the philosophy behind veganism: "We are beginning to acknowledge that animals are not machines or property. They are sentient beings."  Recorded remotely...

The Maharlika Investment Fund is plagued by problems including bad timing, unfulfilled requirements, and governance red flags, according to economist and Action for Economic Reform convener Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III. “Right now, there’s a lot of volatility, so even if we have some level of comfort with our foreign exchange reserves, we must still build our reserves,” he tells Busines...

Persons with disabilities (PWDs) benefited from the rise of remote work over the pandemic, according to ATRIEV (Adaptive Technology for Rehabilitation, Integration and Empowerment of the Visually Impaired), an organization that helps PWDs find tech-oriented jobs. In this B-Side episode, BusinessWorld reporter Justine Irish D. Tabile talks to ATRIEV executive director Antonio D. Llanes, Jr., and AT...

Businesses regardless of size have to beef up their cybersecurity, says Angel T. Redoble, founder and chairman of the Philippine Institute of Cybersecurity Professionals (PICSPros) and first vice-president and group chief information security officer of the PLDT Group. “Everyone is a probable target. We all have something cyberattackers want," Mr. Redoble tells BusinessWorld reporter Patricia B. M...

This B-Side episode on cybersecurity was recorded on Oct. 6, 2022, four days before the SIM Card Registration Act was signed into law by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., on Oct. 10. Francisco Ashley L. Acedillo, president of Philippine Institute of Cybersecurity Professionals, talks to BusinessWorld reporter Patricia B. Mirasol about data privacy, data protection, and data breaches.  Recor...

Money Talks is a series on personal finance sponsored by Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank).  Ruben L. Zamora, head of the Institutional Investors Coverage Division at Metrobank, explains how high-net worth individuals (HNWIs) can protect and perhaps grow their assets in the face of rising inflation, a weak peso, and a dimming global outlook.  Previous crises have taught us th...

Designed by National Artist for Architecture Leandro V. Locsin, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) will be rehabilitated after 53 years. Opened on Sept. 8, 1969, the CCP, a brainchild of former first lady Imelda Marcos, in its first year mounted 195 performances, 35 of which were foreign. Long due for an overhaul, the brutalist building will embark on a rehabilitation that is expected to...

Digital transformation is a long, complex process. It’s like a marriage: you have to find the right partner because there’s no easy way back once you start and, as you’ll hear, you have to make it work. This sponsored B-Side episode, a collaboration between BusinessWorld and information technology company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), features Ulysses Naguit, chief information officer of telco...

Privatizing the EDSA Carousel busway will help address the sorry state of public transportation as well as overcome the fiscal and procurement constraints faced by the government in building the required infrastructure, according to the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP). “Commuters are suffering,” said MAP Infrastructure Committee Chair Eduardo H. Yap in this B-Side episode. “We beli...

Kylie Jenner has a face that launched a thousand luscious lips and her sister Kim Kardashian has a behind that launched a thousand Brazilian butt lifts. In this B-Side episode, Dr. Patrick Hsu, the plastic surgeon responsible for Filipino actress Michelle Madrigal’s breast implant removal, talks to BusinessWorld reporter Patricia B. Mirasol about the evolving standards of beauty in the age of Inst...

In this B-Side episode, Gordon Gn, an award-winning architect and the office director of architecture firm HKS Singapore, explains what computational design is, and how it can benefit all stakeholders before, during, and after the construction of a building. “To put it simply, computational design is really the workflow that enables us to enhance project design outcomes and performance through the...

In the future, esports players with handles like “Eric Eruption” and “Hypebits” could be as big as sports stars like Steph Curry, Rafael Nadal, or  Lionel Messi. And esports itself, an empire that touches fashion, music, and lifestyle. In this B-Side episode, Ferdinand M. Gutierrez, chief executive officer of esports company Ampverse, talks about mobile gaming and how it has democratized espo...

How do we build the bank of the future? In this B-Side episode, Raghav Gupta, managing director of Coursera India and Asia Pacific, talks about the increased demand for digitalization in the banking sector and compares deep-skilling with “learning in the flow of work.”  "We've seen a general focus on skills around digitalization, skills around data, and skills around working remotely,” Mr. Gu...

Nuclear energy has a bad reputation in the Philippines. That the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant is unfit and unsafe is what Carlo A. Arcilla, director of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI), calls "the greatest piece of fake news in the history of the Philippines." In this B-Side episode, Dr. Arcilla tells BusinessWorld reporter Brontë H. Lacsamana that nuclear technology is a "mature and...

Antonio G. M. La Viña, a constitutional law professor at the University of the Philippines, thinks that the Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986 made a mistake in giving Congress the power to decide on the prohibition of political dynasties instead of imposing limitations right then and there. “Congress cannot be trusted to change the Constitution," he said. “We have all of these husbands...

How do you know when it’s time to change careers and quit the rat race?  In this B-Side episode , BusinessWorld reporter John Victor D. Ordonez speaks with Lance S. Cham and Matthew R. Yu, the founders and hosts of the Project Offbeat podcast, where two corporate 9-to-5 professionals interview non-corporate guests with unique careers.  Included in this episode is an excerpt of Project Of...

In this B-Side episode, former presidential candidate Norberto B. Gonzales talks to Businessworld reporter Patricia B. Mirasol about charter change, federalism, and social democracy. “Every region [must be able to] economically survive ... Let’s go with regional autonomy first, and then, later on, let the people decide if they want to become a state,” said Mr. Gonzales, a former defense secretary...

In this B-Side episode, playwright, historian, and educator Dr. Paul A. Dumol talks about the birth of the Filipino nation, a relatively new concept that emerged at the beginning of the 20th century. In this conversation with BusinessWorld reporter Diego C. Robles, Dr. Dumol touches on the writing of National Hero Jose P. Rizal, author Nicomedes "Nick" M. Joaquin, and historian Teodoro A. Agoncill...

Teleperformance Philippines (TP) received its fifth consecutive “Great Place to Work” certification this year, based on responses from a 2022 trust index survey conducted by Great Place to Work, an international institute that does research on company culture. In this B-Side episode, TP senior vice president for human capital resource management Jeffrey Johnson tells BusinessWorld reporter Brontë...