Dabawenyos at ABS CBN's SUPAHDANZ

Three young dancers from Davao City are making waves not just in Manila but all over the country! If you’re a regular Sunday viewer of ASAP at ABS CBN then you have probably seen them for several weeks already, making their moves and winning the hearts of dance enthusiasts including celebrities like Billy Crawford and KC Concepcion who are among the judges of ABS CBN’s SUPAHDANZ Competition.

The dance competition is a nationwide search for new dancers who can best show the Supahdanz moves. They started with 10 groups and after several thrilling Sundays, we only now have 4 crews who will compete for the finals.

Davao’s P.O.D. Dance Crew is composed of Ayana QUIROS Merquita and Jabs and Pen under the guidance of Jhoey Zulueta. The fight is getting too close as it nears the end but as of last Sunday, the P.O.D. remains at the top of the voting.

Dabawenyos and P.O.D. fans are urged to vote for the crew anytime through http://asap.abs-cbn.com/. Look for the ASAP SUPAHDANZ OFF POLL at the middle right side of the page and VOTE FOR POD. You can vote as many times as you want by just copying the link to your browser and following the same steps.

Mayor Duterte Ranks 3rd In Pulse Asia's Top Local Chief Exec Survey

Dabawenyos may be critical of some of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte's policies and governing methods but no one would surely doubt the veracity of a Pulse Asia survey where Duterte ranked No. 3 among the country's top local chief executives, performance wise.

Despite his ala-Clint Eastwood stance, Duterte has indeed made a difference in Davao. Compared to equally growing cities in Mindanao like General Santos City, Davao is clearly a standout. Under his management, Davao has been cited as one of the most livable cities in Asia. The number of national and international seminars and events held in the city last year is evident of the city's peace and order and attractiveness to visitors.

Duterte's no nonsense and iron-hand ruling in the City has made wonders for Davao, making it one of the top performing cities in the whole country. Now, if only those under the mayor can replicate his achievements in making the city a better place to live in.

RRD photo courtesy of Davao Today.

70% of JIB call center grads now employed

The JIB e-Academy has achieved a 70 percent employment batting average for those who graduated from the 100 hours Call Center Finishing Course offered by the e-Academy in Davao and in General Santos City.

JIB e-Academy’s, which is accredited by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, opened in the city last May 2006 and in General Santos City last October 2006.

“The 100 hours Call Center Finishing Course develops the necessary skills, confidence and abilities needed by an individual to work in a call center,” JIB e-Academy President Joji Ilagan Bian said.

Bian said they have produced a total of 485 graduates, 70 percent of whom have been absorbed and now gainfully employed by call centers in Davao City and in Manila. “We have successfully placed our latest graduates in good paying jobs with international call centers based in Manila,” she added.

“The General Santos Branch has produced 70 graduates and 73% of them or 53 graduates passed the first series of interviews done through teleconferencing,” she said.

About 45 percent of those pre-screened passed the final interview and were given job offers in Davao and Manila call centers while the rest were placed in the manpower pool for future accounts.

Bian said their partner call centers in Manila and Davao were very much impressed with the level of communication skills of the JIB e-Academy graduates. “Our Gen San graduates are hard working, committed and possess positive work values, which is one of the more important metrics that the BPO industry is requiring from their workers,” she said.

The employment statistics of the first batch of graduates from the GSC branch is already a good bench mark for a start. With this performance, she added, there is no doubt that Gen San is already prepared to accept investors in the Call Center Sector.

JIB e-Academy is the first in Mindanao to offer seminars and customized programs in English proficiency and training in the contact center industry. It is equipped with the most modern facilities and state of the art technology for effective learning.

Bian said it is also the only school in Mindanao that has for its partner, its own sister company, the Six Eleven Global Services, a 100% Filipino owned international call center operating in Davao City. Through Six Eleven Global Services, graduates are given access to employment provided they pass the standards.(lovely a. carillo)

Davao’s bid for 2007 ad congress foiled

Davao’s dream to host the well-attended bi-annual Philippine Advertising Congress may just remain an unreachable star unless the city invests in bigger facilities.

“We have been bidding for the Ad Congress for eight years now and we made it to the top this time,” Davao Tourism Association president Art Boncato said during the Club 888 Forum held at the Marco Polo Hotel yesterday.

Boncato said it was a toss up between Subic and Davao but the former won because “we do not have enough facilities to accommodate at least four thousand participants.”

Davao’s tourism sector has been bugging the local government and the private sector to capitalize on bigger facilities for future big conventions like the Ad Congress.

However, no one has yet taken on the challenge to build a bigger venue in the city so the honor of hosting the 2007 Philippine Ad Congress went to Subic.

“We hope an investor can invest in a facility that can fit at least five thousand people at any given time,” he said.

The Philippine Ad Congress is known for gathering a great number of participants. There were at least six thousand participants during the 2001 Ad Congress in Cebu and the number is growing every year.(lovely a. carillo)