How to keep kids in the workplace

For some people born in the iPod generation, a typical nine-to-five work in an office instantly conjures images of piles of paperwork, hours of perpetual boredom, and grumpy old men for bosses.

Some find it hard to keep a job, or much more stay in the same company, for even a year. And yet others who excel professionally demand faster promotion and higher pay after warming their seat in the company.

But at Filipino Internet lifestyle portal Yehey!, kids rise above the stereotype and even find themselves in the boardroom.

"Everyday at Yehey! is unforgettable," Jonas R. De Los Reyes, eCommerce Manager, says of his regular work hours. Jonas and the rest of the ‘Magnificent Seven’ form the young management team of Yehey.com which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary as a company that provides Internet marketing solutions.

While in their mid-20s and single, many of Yehey!’s department heads have already been with the Internet company since its inception in 1996 when the office only had three personal computers and cardboard boxes doubled as chairs. Business Development Officer Ignatius Donato "Iggy" Javellana described that time as the ‘dark ages’ of Yehey!

Marketing Manager Elaine E. Uy recalled how Yehey! started with zero marketing budget and wallowed in obscurity for several years. The company has since evolved into an industry leader, offering Filipino Internet users world-class web experience by being a one-stop shop for anything and everything Filipino – from news to personal finance to entertainment.

With over 30 million page views a month and nearly 300,000 registered users, Yehey! now ranks among the top three most-viewed websites in the Philippines. Last September, the company posted net profits for the first time in a decade – a dramatic turnaround story for a dotcom company and a boost to parent firm iVantage Corp.’s plan to take Yehey! public this year.

Members of Team Yehey! could only cry vindication that they have stuck it out with the company they considered as their ‘first job.’ "If we were in the dark ages before, now is the Renaissance era," says Iggy. "We now work harder than we had ever done before, and there’s a lot of pressure for us to perform."

Behind Yehey!’s newfound reputation as the Madonna of the Cyberworld for successfully reinventing itself is Team Yehey!, which constantly spins a fresh web of innovations like gaming, online chat, and other sexy features that give users the extra oomph. "We always have Pinoy taste in mind while brainstorming," says Jay Arellano, Chief Creative Officer.

Yehey! users are also getting younger, more dynamic and having a diverse taste in content. There is also a sudden resurgence of Pinoy pride and patronage of Pinoy brands among young users, which explains why Yehey!’s tagline Pinoy ‘To P’re! has become hip.

"There is greater demand now for information about different things like gadgets and food. Because of this, we have evolved into an online magazine," says Elaine.

Work at Yehey! doesn’t end when the clock strikes five. Staff makes it a point to attend parties – EB’s or "eyeballs" in Net parlance – organized by their loyal users.

At Team Yehey!, everyone’s encouraged to mix work and pleasure, while learning the tricks of multitasking. "The challenge is in being both fun and cool, while bringing out the inner geek in you to manage work," says Laszlo A. Lim, Channels Manager, who’s hooked on music and poker.

But the best part of being in Team Yehey!, says Jonas, is "the fulfillment of making history" instead of just watching it unfold. After all, it’s not everyday that one sees a Pinoy portal battling it out against the lords of the cyberworld like Yahoo and Google.

"This year will be a more magical year for Yehey! as we launch more new features that will be sure to catapult Yehey! into a virtual country where the Philippine flag waves proudly," says chief information officer Eugene Valencia, Jr.