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A selection of news articles and photo releases we post to the media in Cebu and key cities in the Visayas and Mindanao for PR clients, organizations we belong to and friends.

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Location: Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines

I'm a PR/communications specialist serving corporate clients in central and southern Philippines; now managing a 50-man IT globally operating IT firm; and a proud JCI leader and trainer.

Friday, July 07, 2006

Confessions of an I.T. programmer

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'Green Grass' is at home

QUITE many choose to become nurses, therapists, care givers, computer technicians and IT programmers hoping they could grab the opportunity someday to fly abroad, earn a good living and live a very comfortable life.


But Virgil Quilario Jr. had a different view as he took a course in Bachelor of Science in Information and Computer Science and finished it in the early 1990s at the University of Cebu (UC).


He had always believed that green pasture can just be home. He even has a strong feeling deep in him that the country needs him, and that he would want to give his share in bringing the nation to progress.

Yet, the young man from Kinasang-an, Pardo knew he needed to equip himself more than just graduating from college. He studied more, practiced his craft well and underwent several trainings. With his extensive skills in programming, he had every chance to go abroad and rake in lots of dollars for himself and his family.


Many opportunities came after but he chose to stay in the country.

“I had a very sound career as an IBM COBOL programmer and I had a 100 percent chance of working abroad as the company offered me the opportunity," Virgil confesses. "But I found it less challenging.”


Maybe his being single then was a factor why he found not much drive to get a high-paying job abroad. Today, he is married to a very loving wife with whom he has two young sons. Asked if he had regrets for the decisions he mad then, he simply flashes an impish smile.

Develop solutions


Virgil evolved over the decade into an advanced programmer with more than considerable skills. The computer languages that he uses include COBOL, C, C++, VB, Clipper, PERL, PHP, and Javascript.


But he considers himself more of a systems analyst and a designer. In fact, he's a solutions troubleshooter, as those who know him would say. He loves to develop solutions and to give flesh to ideas applicable on the Internet. With the extent of his experience and the solutions and programs he developed, he has become confident to go big time.


As the ICT sector in Cebu grows in leaps and bounds, where the number of programmers has grown exponentially while IT companies have only started to emerge, Virgil now knows where he stands and he's not worried he might be left behind.


“Respect (for programmers) is directly proportional to experience and certifications earned,” he says of the ICT industry.


However, he is concerned with the reality that most ICT companies prefer to hire only experienced programmers, even going to the extent of "pirating" them and jacking up their salaries, yet take for granted the emerging troops of programmers who need guidance.


He fears that the "experts" will just jump from one company to another based on the highest bidder and Cebu will end up with not much skilled programmers to supply that would only frustrate investors who come thinking Cebu has enough pool of good programmers.


"Technology today, especially when you talk of using the information superhighway, has expanded in geometric proportions," he noted. "It's a reality that the schools no matter how they try to upgrade their facilities and curriculum could not catch up with the developments," he pointed out.


Virgil believes that only when programmers are prepared well, given the right guidance and provided with enough training can Cebu truly emerge to become an IT hub next to Silicon Valley. While Cebu is still at the dawn of becoming the country's ICT heart, preparations today are very essential.


Thus, at 34, as he continues to develop his skills and talents as a programmer, Virgil wants to coach younger programmers. "Together, as a team, we can unlock further the potentials of the internet and develop new and better programs."

Social responsibility


Virgil is thankful that he has found his dream job in FOCUS Interactive Outsourcing – an internet marketing company that makes good use of his skills in PHP and pays him well for it with bonuses on top of his base pay. More importantly, he's training the next generation of programmers.


He runs a team who make sure that online sales of FOCUS clients and sister companies accelerate everyday. They closely monitor the behavior and movement of online users and interject approaches to make sure their clients' cash registers ring all the time.


Virgil likes it very much that he only goes to work Mondays to Fridays, 8AM to 5PM, because he gets to spend more time with his wife Eden with their five year-old son Jose Angelo Virgil and five month-old Jose Angelo Manuel.


Other than spending quality time with his family and training programmers, he would also want to help other people, especially those who are badly in need. He is glad that FOCUS is a company with a high sense of social responsibility, involving its personnel in reaching out to the community.


Virgil hopes his sons will grow up helping other people. "That way I can focus with my job and training programmers, while my kids and their mom would help others."


Meanwhile, FOCUS president and CEO Andrie A. Udal acknowledges that Virgil is a valued asset to the company and that he is so pleased of his selflessness in training the programmers manning the operations of their key division and his foresight for Cebu's future as an IT hub.


He said the company welcomes programmers with good potentials and possess the "right attitude" to learn and grow in their craft. "And you'll have Virgil to guide you through," he said, adding that: "Virgil does not even mind if you'd become better than him."


Those interested to join Virgil's team, he said, may join the company through their website at http://www.focusoutsourcing.com. He adds: "As Virgil had said, green pasture is just here at home."
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posted by Cerwin T. Eviota | 7/07/2006 12:48:00 PM

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