An organization’s culture and values are crucial in motivating and retaining employees and at a time when working conditions are fluid and business demands are changing, culture often spells the difference between satisfaction and disengagement.
Identifying with a clear sense of shared purpose and values is beneficial to keeping and growing talent, more than an employee’s compensation package.
Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc. believes meaningful engagement and clear communication are key to ensuring that its employees (which it calls Bravehearts) are well looked after at work.
Guided by its ICARE Values — which stands for Integrity and Innovation, Care and Respect, and Empowerment and Excellence — PCPPI places a premium on fostering a culture of care, compassion, and cooperation.
This can be seen in the dedication, hard work, and productivity manifested by the company’s over 3,000 employees in its daily operations.
Strength amidst adversity
Prioritizing company culture has also helped PCPPI attract top talents and drive employee retention even during challenging times.
PCPPI’s human resources department payroll officer Jocelyn Amado is among the company’s longest-serving Bravehearts.
Amado has been with the organization for 37 years and has seen the company through some of the peaks and valleys of its history.
“I am proud to be among those who have grown with PCPPI through the decades. We Bravehearts treat each other like family. Whatever happens, we are always together,” she said, as she relished how management demonstrates care and compassion or malasakit towards employees, especially during the challenging business landscape in the 1990s.
“I joined Pepsi when I was 19 years old. This is where I developed as a professional, and this is where I learned the skills I know now.”
A clear focus coupled with a strong resolve allowed Gemma Espeleta to develop her career in PCPPI.
Heading towards her 34th year with the organization, Espeleta joined as an intern in its Pasay Sales Office and is now part of the accounting team.
She has seen PCPPI through shifts in management, as well as changes in her roles as part of the company, and she remains focused on improving her skills and establishing roots regardless of assignment.
“I love Pepsi since this is my first job. Even with a different academic background, the Finance team accepted me,” she explained.
Espeleta said being passionate about one’s work and maintaining loyalty are important elements of professional growth, especially for aspiring PCPPI employees.
Bonds beyond the workplace
The strong interpersonal relationships within PCPPI also adds to how the employees remain committed to excellence and passionate at work.
Marni Diaz, fondly known as “Ninang ng Bayan” in the office for always being warm and approachable, shares that a genuine concern for others’ well-being in the office allows her to strengthen her relationship with colleagues beyond the workplace.
“I practice active listening and always try to empathize with them, which is why others may feel very comfortable in sharing their time and stories with me,” she said.
“Future Bravehearts should learn how to listen and serve others,” Diaz said.
Having joined PCPPI in January 1987, Diaz is currently an administrative assistant in the organization’s Bacolod office.
While she looks forward to her retirement in the next few years, Diaz remains keen on exploring more ways for her to contribute to the team.
”At this point in my career, I hope to retire happily and with contentment after my years of service in PCPPI. I am also optimistic that I still get to help my co-workers as they grow in their professions,” she said.
Ma. Lourdes Gonora also attests to the strong sense of community and teamwork in PCPPI. A route settlement analyst and employee since 1986, Gonora recounts how her colleagues quickly stepped in to support her when she fell ill in 2020.
“It is a testament to our strong bond at work. As part of one team, we understand each other’s circumstances and become flexible enough to accommodate the needs of others,” she said.
Learning how to work effectively with other people is an essential tool in PCPPI, employees should know how to communicate and work with different people because it will affect their work dynamics and output,” she said.
Guided by its ICARE Values, PCPPI encourages its employees to continue expanding their knowledge and deepening their relationships.
The organization hopes to inspire more generations of employees in developing their careers in a positive, healthy environment.
PCPPI is the exclusive manufacturer of PepsiCo beverages in the country. It distributes well-loved brands such as Pepsi, Mountain Dew, 7-Up, Mirinda, Mug, Gatorade, Sting, Tropicana, Lipton Iced Tea, Milkis, Chum Churum Soonhari, and Premier Purified Water.
