Back for good and home for Christmas

MANILA, Philippines -  Three Convergys employees share why they returned to the Philippines after working overseas, savoring a hope-filled season with family and friends, and realizing their dreams in their own country.

Marc Josef Dionisio: ‘Money can’t buy happiness’

Dionisio helped his parents put his three siblings to college and live a comfortable life by working for six years in Qatar.

Those years abroad did not start out the way he envisioned, though. When he arrived in Doha, the construction company offered him a contract that was different from what he initially signed up for. Out of frustration, he turned it down and decided to head back home.

“While at the ticketing office, a man dressed in white spoke to me. He must have sensed my distress. I told him about my problem. Like a genie, he turned my luck around and offered me a job as a ‘muhasib’ or accountant at one of Doha’s top hotels,” he shared.

As a night-based auditor, he had no fixed schedule or regular days off. Dionisio interacted with people constantly at his job, so he took Arabic classes to improve his communication skills. He was earning well but missed his family.

“Money definitely could not buy happiness,” he recalled.

During a brief vacation home, he met his future wife. It proved to be a turning point as he decided to return to Qatar to finish his contract, come home for good, get married, and start a family.

In Manila, he applied at Convergys, knowing the competitive compensation, benefits and world-class training that the business process outsourcing company had to offer.

He soon discovered tremendous career growth. Even with zero experience starting as a technical support representative, he became a consistent top agent, and also participated in a development program. One of the rewards he received was a trip to Hong Kong.

Three years into his call center career, Dionisio is now a team leader and remains a top performer at the Convergys UP Technohub 1 site in Quezon City.

“It’s great to be in a people-centric environment, where we are well-informed and actually involved. Convergys has also become my family, along with my wife and my son,” he shared.

Mon Calixtro: ‘My daughter is my home’

Ramoncito “Mon” Calixtro worked in Taiwan for two and a half years as an engineer for a computer company. His daughter was barely a year old when he left the country. His contract ended with the company relocating outside Taiwan, upon which he decided to return to the Philippines.

“Going abroad meant being out of my comfort zone. But more than the weather and the cultural differences, it meant being away from my daughter,” Calixtro shared.

“I was grateful for a supportive Filipino community, which helped ease the homesickness, but one nagging question kept me up at night – ‘what am I doing here?’ So when I had to choose between remaining abroad which meant continued separation from my child or coming home, the decision was easy,” he continued.

“After hearing and reading so much about the BPO industry, I decided to apply,” he said. He has been a successful agent of the Convergys Libis site for almost eight years now.

“I enjoy being here because the company cares and everyone has a voice. My work helps me provide well for my daughter,” he proudly added.

Portia Peralta: ‘My dream is to build a house for my parents’

Portia Peralta left the country in 2009 to work as an emergency nurse in Qatar. As an only child, she fends for her retired parents.

“My dream was to build a house for my parents so they can transfer from Zamboanga to my father’s hometown in Pangasinan,” she said.

“Being a nurse in Qatar meant earning a good enough salary to fill up balikbayan boxes for relatives back home, and explore places with friends while abroad. But being away was the biggest challenge. I spent about P100,000 worth of overseas calls because I was homesick,” she recalled.

When her mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, she flew home. “I stayed to take care of my mother for a year. There were times she wouldn’t recognize who I was. It broke my heart,” she recalls.

Peralta found herself running out of funds to support her ill parents. Her father suffered hypertension himself.

Through a friend’s referral about a job opening at Convergys in Makati, she flew from Zamboanga to Manila for the job interview and was hired that very day.

“I had to adjust quickly. With the support of my teammates, I gained confidence and honed my skills in customer service. I was amazed at the employee development and engagement programs that Convergys provided for us to grow and also have fun,” she said.

Two years of being with the country’s largest private employer, she has now renewed her dream to build a home for her parents in Pangasinan, where it will be even easier to visit them from Manila.

Breaching one million in workforce headcount in 2014, the Philippine BPO industry continues to grow.With the talent and openness to build new skills, returning OFWs can find not just suitable jobs but career growth opportunities, enabling our countrymen to build better lives while staying with their loved ones.