How long have you been working with RareJob Philippines, Inc?

I’ve been with RareJob for 5 years now, and life has been a breeze the entire time that I’ve been here. Coming from the academe as an English teacher, I found a home in RareJob.

What made you choose RareJob as your company?

The company culture was very unique compared to all the other schools I’ve worked with. It was very youthful and I easily made a lot of friends.

As an Onboarding Coach, how has the experience been so far?

Being an onboarding coach is almost similar to teaching. It is my passion and have been very happy to be able to share this with other ESL Tutors. I get to talk to other tutors about their experiences in handling students and share the most effective practices.

Being in the Onboarding Team, what effects does the work from home setup have on your tasks and responsibilities?

It was a huge challenge to transition from an office setup to a home-based one. Two years prior to the pandemic, I was already living away from my family and staying at the company dorm. My life was focused on work and doing the things I love. As I moved in again with my family, I was faced with the challenge of conducting calls in a very small room, on my bed, without the comfort that I had in the office. It was very difficult, but back then, there wasn’t much choice but to continue moving forward.

Share with us what a typical day is like in the Onboarding Team.

In the Onboarding Team, our days are mainly devoted to communicating with tutors and facilitating Practice Sessions to get them ready for the real lessons with our students. I have to ensure that tutors are ready to teach our students by helping them learn and develop the skills needed to conduct the lessons.

What do you think are the highlights of your job, as well as the most important aspects?

I always start my day by checking our schedule and confirm each tutor’s attendance so I can go smoothly from one session to another. At the end of the day, I do tasks to check the quality of each session. For me, the key is to keep the routine as steady as possible. It is difficult to concentrate on each session, but it is possible if distractions are avoided. It is critical to give each session your undivided attention so that you do not miss anything important to discuss with the tutor.

What techniques do you implement in your day-to-day work to ensure that you meet your deadlines and provide quality service?

In our team, we have bi-monthly meetings which aims to ensure that we are calibrated in conducting these Practice Lessons. We also share our experiences with handling tutors, and exchange best practices to apply in our own sessions.

How did you and your team/department maintain good working relationships in spite of the work from home set up?

Prior to the pandemic, the team always loved having eat outs and after-shift night outs over a snack or watching movies. While everything has been done virtually for the past two years, we made sure to resume the eat-outs once the pandemic restrictions eased. It has been very helpful to keep in touch even with the technology, but nothing beats a fun-filled lunch with the best colleagues ever. We’ve already gone out for our team lunch twice this year, it’s been a delight to see them.

While working remotely, what are some things that you do to keep yourself from being burnt out?

To help myself move forward, I have decided to move out again and live in Siargao. I’ve been here since the last quarter of 2021 and I can say this is the best decision I have made so far. I am so glad for the work-from-home setup and allowance that we get from RareJob. I am able to keep the work-life balance that I have always enjoyed since joining the company in 2017. Of course, I have to stay in my room for my calls, but for my other tasks like quality checks, schedule updates, and sending emails, I am able to look at this awesome view of the beach, and eat healthy and delicious snacks while at it. I may have stopped traveling for a while, but my love for food will never change.

With the increasing interest in the ESL field, specifically in being an Onboarding Coach, what tips can you give those who are currently in this career path, or those who are considering opportunities in this field?

For me, the best Onboarding Coach is also an ESL Tutor. Take all the things that you can learn while starting out. Form good habits as early as possible: reviewing the material, giving simple, yet effective explanations, and using the chat box during the lesson. Multitasking is a skill that must be developed, even more so as an Onboarding Coach. The transition from classroom teaching to online teaching was my biggest challenge 5 years ago, but I am thankful for the support of my team and supervisors, my mentors, for the ESL Tutor and Onboarding Coach that I am today.