For richer and for better

Focus, good planning, organizational skills, innovation, consistency, fortitude and the ability to provide great service — successful businessmen tell us that these are essential factors in building a profitable business. They remind us that while luck can affect the growth of a business to some degree, a flourishing enterprise is largely dependent on the attitude and work ethic of an entrepreneur himself. They also tell us that a key trick is to recognize existing business tools and services, and use these to the best advantage.

It should be of interest to businessmen that the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has launched a facility to make cash management even easier. The new service is called Expresslink Mobile, and it allows businessmen to use technology to monitor financial transactions on their accounts at any time of day, thereby saving them time and man-hours spent on reconciliation.

“Expresslink Mobile is the first mobile platform in the country designed for the business user,” says Nieves Basa, vice president and head of BPI Cash Management. “The system allows customers to check account balances and approve transactions while they are on the go.”

She explains that the Internet financial services will enable corporate clients to check multi-currency current account balances, current and the previous day’s beginning balances and all transactions; company transaction history up to two months; loan transaction summary and history; as well as import and export transactions. Simply put, it is a fully integrated financial management system that allows clients to monitor their accounts by allowing them to view and download transactions using their mobile gadgets (Android phones, BlackBerry, Nokia, iPhones, iPads, and mobile phones models 2005 and newer.)

To ensure confidentiality, the system uses 128-bit encryption technology to make sure that information is secure when transmitted on the Internet. Expresslink Mobile also implements two-factor authentication through the use of log-on IDs and passwords and the mini-key.  The ExpressLink User ID will be locked after three consecutive incorrect login attempts or after 10 cumulative incorrect login attempts. Moreover, users are automatically logged out after 10 minutes of inactivity.  Should the clients lose their mobile devices, they need to contact their BPI relationship officers to deactivate the phones.

“This is one way of extending the bank’s community,” continues Basa. EnrolIment in Expresslink Mobile is free and clients just need to maintain an average daily balance of P20,000 in their accounts.

“Our mandate is to partner with corporate clients to expand their businesses,” confirms Alfonso L. Salcedo Jr., executive vice president and head, BPI Corporate Banking Group. “We always try to enhance our services to allow our clients to focus on their businesses.”

Eugenio “Jin” Gonzales, president of Quick Delivery

But what exactly does enrolling in Expresslink Mobile mean for the businessman? “It cuts about four hours from my work week,” says Eugenio “Jin” Gonzales, president of Quick Delivery, a multi-establishment delivery, pickup and catering service offering end-to-end solutions to best-of-class restaurants, wine merchants and retailers. “The bank that gives you the best relationship is the one that sits down with you and asks you exactly what you need. (The service) is a manifestation of wanting to provide the best business by investing in technology that cuts down costs and supports customers.” He shares that while in the United States, he was able to test the system and monitor his accounts.  

“This product goes hand-in-hand with our quest to make dealing with BPI easier,” says Gil A. Buenaventura, senior executive vice president and chief operating officer. “The intention is to make it efficient on both BPI and the customer’s side.”

Anthony J. Baisa, CEO of Bodega Site IT Solutions, appreciates that BPI has this service. “We partnered with BPI because they take the lead in innovation,” he concurs.  But the advantages of enrolling in BPI Expresslink Mobile became clearer to him with the recent hospitalization of his child. “I appreciate that I was able to be with my daughter while taking care of the business,” says Baisa. “Time is the most expensive investment for a businessman.”

For entrepreneurs like him who are also family men, Expresslink Mobile frees up more time to focus on other matters that are just as (or perhaps, even more) important.