The day after our quick yet meaningful plant tour at Coca-cola's Laguna Plant, a one-day conference followed. This conference was the culmination of a month-long series of events to commemorate Philippine's supply chain powerhouse, PISM. I was the only representative from our company.
Gladly, when it comes to events such as this, the 10% extrovert in me naturally takes over. I was dressed in all black to look sleek just as how I presumed others will be dressed. I was still the President of Philippine Institute for Supply Management (PISM) Cebu Chapter during this conference so I knew a few people from the national and mother chapter of PISM. I was early at the venue so I had enough time to roam around and check out booths; they had a mini fair going outside the main conference room. It was the perfect opportunity to look for partners and suppliers in various industries such as 3PL transportation/logistics, warehousing, construction, etc. I was able to get a few leads for my company.
Right before the conference started, I witnessed a historic cutting of the ribbon. It's something I haven't seen in any conference. Maybe I missed the explanation or the symbolism behind this act but I'm sure there's something to it! The conference was focused on the discussion of sustainable supply chains; there was about 4-5 speakers for both morning and afternoon sesssions. I remember Gcash talking about their GForest where "GCash users can earn Green Energy Points by using the app for transactions and other eco-friendly activities. These points can then be used to plant virtual trees, and GCash and its partners will plant actual trees in the Philippines. " . I have doubts about GCash's GForest initiative but I do hope they're walking the talk. Another thing that stood out was Coca-cola's PETValue, a PET recycling facility in Cavite that aims to rework used PET bottles and other plastics back into the chain.
After the whole day discussion, photos were taken. I was introduced by PISM National Former President to the new set of officers. They were undeniably happy to meet me in person; they extended their invitation for a quick dinner to celebrate the sucessfull event. I was happy to oblige; glad I didn't overthink and just went with the flow. Not a dull moment with this bunch of professionals; I instantly felt at home and truly cared for. After the dinner, Ma'am Charmaine, the current president offered to drop me at my hotel. I was too shy to say yes but she kept insisting that she'd feel better to know I'm home safe. How can this top executives at the Philippines biggest companies be this kind, right? I'm lucky to have met them indeed!