How long have you been working for RareJob Philippines, Inc.?

I have been working in RareJob since April 2015. In my six years here, I have been a part of different departments. I started out in the department handling quality assurance, and then moved to tutor relations, where we managed initiatives that cater to the needs of our tutors. Currently, I’m working under the Operations Department, handling tutor compliance.

What made you choose RareJob as your company?

The combination of travel and work has always been something I wanted to have in my dream job. At first, I got interested in the job opening when I saw “traveling opportunities” in the job description. Although I didn’t have any idea or background about the work at the time, I never had any regrets pursuing it because RareJob offered better career opportunities for me.

As one of the more tenured members of your team, how has the experience been so far?

My six years of working in various departments gave me a deeper understanding of our responsibility in providing quality service to our clients, as well as setting higher standards for the company’s continuous growth and competitive outlook in the market.

Recalling our work-from-office setup, what were the pros and cons compared to our current work-from-home setup, in terms of your tasks?

The presence of physical human interaction in the office allowed a warm support system among members. Also, our company has a youthful environment and a dynamic group of employees so we tend to lighten the serious atmosphere at work from time to time.

On the other hand, working from home taught me to be more disciplined in managing my time. These changes made me more productive with my tasks as I can limit distractions around me. In addition, since I save time from not needing to commute to work, I am able to conduct a few lessons with my Japanese students after my shift.

Share with us what a typical day is like in Policy Compliance.

I usually start my day early. First on my list is to check emails, and then accomplish routine tasks. I’m also on standby for any inquiries regarding tutor compliance.

We also try to have constant communication within the team, and do creative tasks such as improvements in our current initiatives.

As someone working in Policy Compliance, what are the most important things to remember to ensure that you accomplish your role effectively?

Understanding our end goal is our starting point in making initiatives, strategies, and plans. It is easier to negotiate expectations with other teams and clients if we have a goal in mind. It is also necessary to be resourceful in using tools, programs, platforms, and other data sources in accomplishing our task loads efficiently.

While we are working remotely, how does your team encourage collaboration and teamwork?

It surprises me how natural teamwork is among my co-workers. We give support to our team members through shared tasks, and claim ownership of our assigned initiatives. We make sure that we create a friendly environment for everyone to easily open up, share ideas, or raise questions since open communication is challenging in our current setup.

Did working from home affect your mindset when working with tutors, who have been working from home from the beginning?

Having firsthand experience of a work from home setup is an eye-opener to the real challenges that our tutors face every lesson. It was really difficult for me to shift collaborations and communications virtually, not to mention the internet disconnections we sometimes experience. However, having the provisions of flexible work hours in a safe and comfortable working environment at home outweigh those disadvantages. Giving room for adjustment to both tutors and RareJob staff is necessary, as long as the quality of service is maintained.

With many candidates out there who are interested in becoming part of the ESL industry, what advise can you give them as someone who is already set in that career path?

With the growing demand for ESL service providers, our country served as one of the frontrunners in supplying competitive English language educators globally. With the tight competition in the coming years, I think candidates interested in entering this industry have to invest in improving and mastering their English language skills through training or further studies. In addition, having computer skills would be to their advantage because with the help of technology, we are able to reach out to more non-English speaking countries.