When did you start working in RareJob Philippines, Inc.?

I started at RareJob way back in January 2018. It was unexpected and very surprising because at that time, I was already looking for a job that was related to analysis in software development. It was a big leap for me, shifting from being a Software Developer to a Business Analyst.

What made you choose RareJob as your company?

Fun story. My IG feed reminded me about RareJob. It was an ad for tutor recruitment, but I got curious if they also had a job opening for a Software Developer. Luckily, there was an opening, but for a Business Analyst position. I took the chance to apply even if at that time, I was only qualified for having work experience in software development. I was accepted, and the rest is history.

Share with us what a typical day is like in Business Analysis.

Since RareJob has implemented the work-from-home setup, no day ends without a meeting. This is expected from us business analysts since we are the “middlemen” in every project that we handle. Through meetings, as well as through other forms of communication like chats and emails, we coordinate with the project’s stakeholders and subject matter experts for the requirements, and we also collaborate with the product teams who will develop the system based on the requirements.

What were the pros and cons of working from home, especially when you started managing your own team?

Managing a team remotely is just one of the challenges for me, as this is my first time being a supervisor. I think the work-from-home setup significantly helped my team and I improve our management skills, as we handle not just tasks for work but also tasks at home. There will be times when one of them will somehow be compromised, but I know that it’s part of the learning process and I can apply those learnings in everything that needs to be managed.

Being promoted recently as the Business Analysis Supervisor, how has the experience been so far?

I’ve been with the company for half a decade, and it has been almost a year since I became the person-in-charge as the team lead, and then the team’s supervisor. I can compare it to hiking a mountain. There are trails that I need to follow and along the way, there will be a lot of unexpected challenges. Some trails are flat, wide and easy, and some are rough, narrow, and very stiff. But as I go along, I know that those challenges will teach me things that will help me reach more summits.

What initiatives and activities does your team implement to ensure day-to-day productivity?

We have daily stand-ups which we adopted from SCRUM methodology. It’s a 15-minute meeting every morning before the core time starts. During that meeting, we don’t just share the things that we’ve done the previous day and the things that we would do for the day; in the meeting’s spare time, we check on each other’s welfare as well.

Can you share with us how your team maintained a good and supportive environment even when working remotely?

I think we do the same as others: keeping communication lines open and always being responsive to each other, especially when our team members need assistance with their project tasks. That’s why I preferred to have the regular touch-base meeting as a team.

You were awarded with RareJob PH’s Professional Development Excellence Award during this year’s Year-End Party. Congratulations! How did you feel prior to and upon receiving this award? 

Very, very surprised. Haha. I think it was because of the timing. My mind was quite full of work-related thoughts before receiving the award. There were upcoming project releases and other tasks that needed to be delivered before the holiday season. Also, during this year’s Year-End Party, I was already a service awardee for 5 years, so I thought that receiving another award might be too much.

But, like what I’ve said in my speech, it’s not just knowing how I have won this PDE Award. More importantly, it’s about understanding the reason why it was given to me at this time.

How do you motivate yourself to continue doing your best, and what personal techniques do you do to ensure that you will be able to meet your targets? 

So far, what motivates me to continue to do my best is to keep reminding myself to improve. Never stop learning new things and understanding every experience, whether good or bad.

And to remind me about this, I’ve used this quotation from Sonny Franco as my company laptop’s wallpaper: “The best project you’ll ever work on is you.”

As a business analyst and product owner, I can effectively manage my projects if I can also manage myself effectively.

What hobbies and activities do you do to relax and destress from work? 

I started again this year (after the pandemic) and went back to activities that “detach” me from work. I was able to travel back to nature. I went to beaches and hiked a mountain.

Next year, I plan to join fun runs again and also to discover/rediscover other things like visiting museums or parks more often than malls.

What advice can you give to those who are aspiring to further improve their professional excellence? 

My advice is to love what you’re doing. Because when you love your work, you will feel like you’re not working at all. Haha.

I mean, when you love something, you always give your best, and still, you give a little more without thinking about how it will be returned to you.

You just have to trust the universe to surprise you by giving back what you deserve, at the right time.