Network Labs Visit

Last March 15, 2013 we visited Network Labs Inc. (A Joint Venture of Nokia Siemens Network) for another company visit for the IT-EXPO class. Among all the other visits or seminars we attended this is the most IT-related so it was really fun and interesting.  Network Labs is a one of its kind research and development (R&D) center in Asia that is internationally recognized in the telecommunications industry. NetworkLabs is directly involved in research work and software development for 3G and 4G radio communication networks for NSN and even LTE.

The main speaker Mr. Vanson So is a DLSU alumni an IST graduate of Catch2T6. Besides his talk about the company, it was also interesting hearing his experiences in DLSU like his interaction with Doc Lloyd and Ms. Kiran. I felt comfortable to his talk because I can relate with a lot of things especially about gox experiences. As a fellow Lasallian, I felt proud that he is one of the leaders in Network Labs and I think he is a really good human resources employee trainer.

In the talk of Mr. Vanson he mentioned that they have a unique organizational structure. It is not the usual hierarchical structure wherein there are only a few people on top, but so many at the bottom. In Network Labs, they kind of have a flat structure wherein anyone can voice out his/ her concerns, but there is still a manager to supervise the overall work. Looking at the environment, I noticed that all cubicles look the same which promotes equality and the employees look very comfortable in their workstations. I think this kind of organizational structure is important in companies geared towards technological innovation. This is because a comfortable and less pressured environment promotes confidence to share innovative ideas. This is why, their office has so many leisure places like karaoke bars, pods and relaxing pantries. 

The speaker, Mr. Vanson So

The Network Labs Workstations

Main Pantry

Meeting Pods

Boracay Lounge

         

Karaoke Room

Meeting Room

Brady Corporation Visit

Nowadays, call centers have been increasingly popular as outsourcing also increases. With outsourcing, a firm contracts out some of their jobs to be handled by other companies. Since it can be costly to maintain and keep track of call center equipment and staff, some companies therefore choose to outsource their telephone functions to an external call center. In this case, call center staff from the external company can be trained to answer phone calls from a number of different companies. Over the years, Philippines has become a significant outsourcing destination. BPO in the Philippines has been one of the fastest growing sectors; this is due to its supply of English-speaking professionals, low labor costs and availability of a good telecommunications infrastructure.

An example of this is Brady Corporation which we visited last March 5, 2013. Brady uses various technologies to help them ameliorate their performance and customer experience. The company of course first identify their business strategy to the IT strategy and then to the Infrastructure Technology.

Based on our visit I believe the operations process is the most vital, for controls and manages most of the important business functions. It is the heart of the company because it is handled by the leaders or officers with their agents who directly interacts with the customers. This is why, it should be carefully managed especially with the use of technology. The speaker, Mr. Alan emphasized this very well. IT has a huge role in BPO because it gives the company competitive advantage. It aims to lower total costs, improve efficiency and productivity and increase integration and flexibility. This is why, it should be carefully planned and implemented throughout the organization. To do this, the IT head must be excellent in his/her soft skills. One should always have a positive attitude and must be able to adapt in any environment.  

The speaker, Mr. Alan 

The inside

A closer look