If you’re the owner of a micro, small, or medium enterprise (MSME), you may find the prospect of bidding for a government contract quite intimidating. Aside from having concerns about possible strict bidding requirements, you might think that the process entails a lot of stress in submitting paperwork and a lot of back-and-forth between yourself and the government agency involved. At the back of your mind, you might also be thinking about whether your cash flow can handle a project of such scale. Indeed, there are a number of things to worry about when entering a business-to-government (B2G) contract for the first time. But partnering with the Philippine government may be one of the best long-term decisions you could ever make for your business. Plus, securing that B2G partnership may no longer be as difficult, confusing, or risky as you’d originally thought.

Thanks to an online portal called the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS), it’s easier for even smaller businesses to bid for contracts with the government. In the past, procurement and bidding processes tended to be circuitous and unclear—and sometimes even downright anomalous.

Thankfully, this culture of inefficiency and corruption was largely upended by passage of Republic Act No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act (GPRA) in 2003. Among the stipulations in the GPRA was the requirement that all government agencies use PhilGEPS for their procurement processes. Over the years, users of PhilGEPS—comprising both the government and the private sector—have seen the difference for themselves. PhilGEPS is proof of how digital technology can make procurement and bidding more efficient, accessible, and transparent.

In this short guide, we’ll provide some information on how you yourself can use PhilGEPS and what advantages you can expect when you use the platform to conduct a B2G contract bidding. This should help you prepare before finally extending an offer to provide your products and services to the Philippine government.

What Will Registering to PhilGEPS entail? 

MSMEs have the option of registering for either a Free Membership or a Platinum Membership on PhilGEPS. For the Free Membership, you will need to submit your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) as well as your Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) license or your Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) certification. For the Platinum Membership, additional requirements like your Business Permit, an audited financial statement, tax clearance documents, and a membership fee of PHP 5000 are needed. The Platinum Membership will come with a special PhilGEPS certificate that most government procurement contracts require. Though a Platinum Membership entails an additional expense, this type of membership will make it much easier for you to do business with government units, agencies, and offices.

As soon as you make your first bid on PhilGEPS, you should be ready for the possibility that it will be accepted. That, in turn, may require you to have all your resources on hand to fulfill the project. If you don’t have adequate funds to cover the project costs just yet, you may consider getting business financing from First Circle, a private financing firm. A partner like First Circle, which offers accessible credit facilities like invoice financing and purchase order financing—can help you meet your obligations for your first big government contract on PhilGEPS.

The Benefits of Taking on Contracts with PhilGEPS 

There are several key advantages to bidding for contracts on PhilGEPS. Here are four that stand out.

A Learning Opportunity for What Clients in the Philippine Government Need

A first-time user of PhilGEPS will be surprised to see how diverse the opportunities are on the platform. One important feature of the site is its catalogue of available bidding opportunities. These can be for supplying automation equipment, beverages, book publications, government vehicles, and a whole host of other things. The site will list down the exact number of opportunities available per category and which agency, regional office, or local government unit needs it. As a user, you will be able to browse through all these opportunities and explore the ones that are applicable to your business.

A Streamlined Bidding Process

With PhilGEPS, there are few ambiguities as to what each B2G contract will entail. Each opening will list the exact budget of the project, the documents required from each bidder, and the contact details of the government officer in charge. There will be no back-and-forth about basic project details, and there will be transparency in accounting for every peso to be spent on the project. All you need to do is view the opening, submit the documents, wait for the bidding results, and—if everything is in your favor—fulfill the contract.

Gateway to Lucrative Business with the Philippine Government

Government contracts are among the most lucrative contracts a small business owner can secure. Unlike many private businesses, the government has a consistent budget allowance for the services it needs. If the contract pulls through and your partner agency is pleased with your services, you might be able to bid again based on a cross-referral. Taking on additional contracts from other departments, bureaus, and attached offices in the government agency will definitely help you upscale your company’s professional abilities. 

Credibility for Your Brand

By virtue of registering to PhilGEPS, you’ll be showcasing yourself to clients of high value. This communicates your confidence that you can fulfill important projects under strict requirements. Even before they accept your bid, your government clients will have a positive view of your company. And for every completed contract, you’ll gain a standout credential in your company’s portfolio. Thus, registering to PhilGEPS is one of the best ways that you can accumulate credibility and prestige for your company or brand.

Summary

Procurement and bidding are vital processes to the Philippine government since they are essential to the fulfillment of each agency’s regular public duties. Indeed, a B2G contract may be a profitable opportunity for your company; however, it is also a chance for you to work with people who, in turn, work for the betterment of the country.

When it comes to convenience, online shopping is the best way to get your desired products at your doorstep. The Philippines has been growing rapidly in the e-commerce sector due to which the sales from online stores are also increasing simultaneously. One of the biggest reasons for this is that the latest fashion trends are inspiring individuals including men and women to express themselves more openly in society. Experiencing high growth, Philippines has a digital population of more than 67 million that attracts local and regional companies who compete against a leading company in the whole market. However, in the upcoming years, the e-commerce market is expected to grow with higher double digits. Excessive usage of smartphones, exposure to latest fashion trends, and easy internet access have played a very important role in emerging sector of online shopping.

With the facts stated above, we are sure that you would also want to explore this new world of exposed digital marketing. Consider starting to shop from the best online shopping websites for a wholesome shopping experience from these 5 online stores in the Philippines.

1. Zalora

The international-based shopping website, Zalora is one of the topmost leading websites in Asia, South America, and Russia. With over 30,000 products available and hundreds of new products being added every week, Zalora is an ambitious and constantly evolving shopping website for fashion lovers. You are provided ample choices and latest trends to keep up with the ongoing styles. Not only quality and options are available on Zalora but great prices and deals are regularly updated for the customers to shop. Apply Zalora promo code when you shop so that you can, you can avail maximum discounts on your online orders and shop with satisfaction.

2. Lazada

From auto-motives, fashion, home necessities to appliances, you can find it all on Lazada. With best services for the customers in the Philippines, it is making a dynamic change in the shopping habits of the people in the country. The store has over 1 million authentic sellers and 3k trusted brands serving millions of customers in the country through its marketplace online platform. You can flexibly shop, sell, and clear all your queries related to the online retailing system of the website. Lazada aims to reach every individual’s contentment via providing fine quality goods and services at budget-friendly prices.

3. Shopee

Another trusted shopping website in the Philippines is Shopee. The store is one of the top 5 online stores in the Philippines. It offers the same services as of other stores but the unique feature of this store includes monthly sales that people end-up staying awake all night just to catch their exclusive deals and offers. You can also apply Shopee voucher code to get discounts on products even without special deal days.

4. Metro Deal

Metro deal is an ideal platform to discover best deals for mostly searched services like restaurant buffets, entertainment deals, and many other activities. Purchase vouchers of your favorite and desired deals from the website to enjoy the day at amazing prices. The simple payment methods, user-friendly experience, and variety of options make this website a one-destination savior for all the services and facilities. The deals are regulated and updated daily so you can’t afford to miss out on what the website has to offer.

5. Carousell Philippines

This market place is best for selling and buying new and pre-owned items at great prices. Now merged with the previously known website OLX, many Filipinos choose this website to shop and sell pre-owned items. Categories like cars, home & furniture, fashion and much more are available on Carousell Philippines. Choose this website for a trading platform or hunting jobs and services and you will not be disappointed by the convenient online services it stores for your shopping and selling comfort.

 As much as the world loves shopping, the easiest way of shopping is to shop online. As the evolution of shopping practices has started from bazaars, markets, to malls and now online, we can get literally anything at the tap of our fingertip. Avoid the monotonous and tiring process of shopping by standing in queues and walking crowd and opt online shopping for super comfort and relaxation.

If you’ve been shopping around for an ERP (enterprise resource planning) or accounting system in the Philippines, you’ve probably encountered arguments for and against newer cloud-based systems that have become standard during the past decade. Not everyone is quite on board with the idea, though.

ERP and accounting systems can be tough to upgrade due to the potential cost of migrating data and the downtime that may happen when the organization readjusts to the new system. This can make many businesses resistant to the idea of upgrading. But upgrading to a newer cloud-based system is still recommended for most users for a number of reasons.

Here are some of the proven benefits of switching to a cloud-based ERP or accounting system.

1. Resilience to natural disasters

The Philippines is no stranger to earthquakes, floods, and typhoons. While these events are mercifully rare, when they do happen, data loss due to catastrophic hardware damage isn’t too uncommon. More common than losing hardware directly to these events however, is losing them due to power fluctuations caused by these disasters. In either case, having your data on the cloud ensures that it’s safe from any single catastrophe.

2. Reduced risk of cyberattacks

Counterintuitively, cloud-based accounting systems are safer from cyberattacks compared to traditional local area networks. Granted, if all your data is on one single offline computer, that would make it theoretically immune from cyberattacks. On the other hand, most organizations recognize the impracticality of still using physical media to transport data to a separate device in the 2020s.

Local area networks aren’t much safer either, as it’s known that the majority of cyberattacks tend to perpetuated by people within the organization. Outside attackers also tend to find older systems much easier to access compared to newer ones as well. With a modern cloud-based system, cybersecurity is a top priority, and the developer will likely be creating regular updates, which means outside hackers will find it harder to breach compared to an older system.

3. Scalability

An accounting system should be able to easily expand along with your company. Many older systems are limited in their ability to do this, being unable to offer the right kind of functionality to keep up with a growing organization’s needs. Cloud-based systems, on the other hand, are almost always conceptually designed from the ground up to be as scalable as you need them to be.

4. Flexibility

The main advertised benefit of cloud-based systems is their flexibility. Users can access the systems at home or on vacation, which allows the organization more options when it comes to employee arrangements. It can also save time as employees no longer need to be tied to any one physical location to be able to use or access the system.

5. Lower IT costs

The cost of maintaining local servers can be quite high. In the Philippine setting where IT teams usually have multiple responsibilities, maintaining these servers is often an unwelcome responsibility on top of everything else the team is meant to perform. This means necessary updates may not always be implemented on time and that system maintenance may cause disruptive downtime.

With a cloud-based system, it is the system developer’s team that is responsible for system maintenance. This usually creates far less downtime time as the developer will have more resources to dedicate to upkeep due to their higher specialization. This means the organization no longer has to dedicate any time or resources to server upgrades and maintenance and its IT team can focus on other more important tasks.

If you’re interested in upgrading to a cloud-based accounting system in the Philippines or learning more about the benefits of switching over to different kinds of ERP systems, the team at ANSI is ready to help with your questions.

Skype interviews are now a standard part of many companies’ interview processes, especially within the startup world. While commonly used for initial and second interviews, it’s no longer unusual to hire someone solely based on how well they perform on Skype. 

Here are a few tips for maximizing your chances of at your next video chat interview.

1. Dress like you would for a face-to-face job interview

One might think that this would be obvious because the interviewer could actually see the applicant, but many HR professionals report that they often see applicants wear ultracasual attire or even house clothes on Skype interviews. This can look unprofessional and cause interviewers to see you as unprepared. Be sure to wear interview-appropriate tops as well as bottoms, in case you need to stand up to get something.

2. Make sure your surroundings are not distracting

Try to take the call in a quiet room at home. Secure any noisy or extra-affectionate pets and make sure that family members or housemates won’t be a problem. Try to make sure that there is nothing behind you that can reflect negatively on you in the interview.

3. Try to look at the camera, not the screen

Skype isn’t always as intimate as face-to-face conversations for a few reasons. One reason is most people stare at the screen, which removes eye contact. Usually, everyone tends to look like they’re looking at something behind their conversation partner, rather than at them — even if they are actually doing that from their perspective. Looking directly at the camera will help give the illusion of eye-contact with the interviewer and help humanize you, which can give you an edge in the interview.

4. Prepare a cheat sheet

Based on your prior research, you’ll want to have a list of questions you think will be asked as well what you feel will be the best responses. You may also want to list down a few questions of your own. While this could be on your computer, you may want to have it all on a separate notebook for easier access.

5. Close all distracting apps

Interviewers will sometimes be able to notice if you are browsing Facebook or playing games during the interview. Let’s just say you don’t want most of them finding out if you are. Make sure that you are committed to the interview by closing down all distracting and unimportant applications. 

6. Use a good pair of headphones, if possible

Headphones will allow you to listen to the interviewer more closely and help give you a little bit more privacy during the interview as well. A microphone would also be handy if you already have one lying around.

7. Use a professional username and profile picture

Your Skype profile pic and username are the first things the interviewer will notice about you. If you have a potentially embarrassing username or profile pic, try to update this before you even start sending out job applications.

8. Send a thank-you email

Stand out from all the other applicants by sending a short email thanking the interviewer for the opportunity. It only takes a few minutes to write but it can go a long way into helping your application be a lot more memorable.

Conclusion

While they certainly are more convenient, we shouldn’t necessarily think of video chat interviews as being less formal or important than their traditional face-to-face equivalents. Make sure to do your homework and follow out tips to get the best possible chance at landing that position you’re gunning for.

Ready to look for a new job? Philippines job search website, like Mynimo.com. Mynimo’s powerful but easy-to-understand localization features make it simple to find your next career in locations close to where you already live.

Established fifty years ago in 1969 by Italian student-turned-entrepreneur Paolo Vitelli, Azimut began as a humble sailing boat charter service before evolving into one of the world’s most renowned boat builders. In 1984, Vitelli acquired the illustrious Benetti brand, which was originally founded in 1873. Thus Azimut-Benetti, as it is known today, was born.

The Azimut-Benetti group strives to do one thing: to build beautiful, reliable, and innovative boats. Powerboat Philippines distributor Europa Yachts, the exclusive dealer of Azimut yachts in the country, believes it is high time for Filipino boaters to get to know this brand better.

To that end, here are four reasons that account for Azimut-Benetti’s supremacy in the yachting world, and why it is worth paying attention to its mega-sized ambitions.

They are a multi-awarded boat builder whose reputation continues to grow internationally

Azimut-Benetti possesses many plum distinctions in the yachting world; one need only to drop the company’s name, and it is likely to elicit approbation from yachtsmen who are in the know. One such distinction is Azimut-Benetti’s top ranking as a mega yacht builder in Boat International magazine’s Global Order Book—a position they have held for almost two decades.

At the recently concluded Cannes Yachting Festival of 2019, Azimut-Benetti also clinched the following awards: “Best Interior Design” for the Atlantis 45 (in the category of boats measuring between 45 and 64 feet); “Best Evolution Product” for the Azimut S8; and the enviable “Yacht of the Year” award for a 107-meter giga yacht, the Benetti FB277.

They are the yachting world’s specialists with regard to mega-sized yachts

To Azimut-Benetti, size matters—after all, size gives way to optimum passenger comfort, room to move around, stability at sea, and a sense of luxury that’s akin to staying in a holiday villa or driving one’s own supercar.

In December of 2018, Azimut-Benetti declared their involvement on 97 mega yacht projects, totaling 3,536 meters (or the length of thirty football fields combined). The company’s headquarters alone measures 100,000 square meters in size and can fit as many as 300 68-foot boats.

Like other Italian brands that are known for their craftsmanship, they invest in their art

Italy is a country already famous for its world-renowned companies that produce sought-after sports cars and fashionable clothing. That same brand of Italian artistry can be seen in the design and construction of Azimut-Benetti’s yachts. The company’s men and women place a high value on quality, attention to detail, and commitment to specialization—knowing that all of these are key ingredients in creating vessels of exceptionally high caliber.

They are the yachting industry’s chief innovators for specialty materials like carbon fiber

Lastly, one of Azimut-Benetti’s greatest strengths is its ability to capitalize on new boatbuilding technologies faster than everyone else. The company is now very much ahead of its competitors in working with carbon fiber, a lightweight but valuable material that’s improved the speed, weight distribution, and stability on their large powerboats.

Azimut-Benetti outdoes other boat builders in leveraging carbon fiber for spacious deck design, speedy boat travel, and above all, pleasurable riding. In fact, ten of Azimut-Benetti’s yachts measuring between 66 feet and 114 feet now incorporate honeycomb-patterned carbon fiber in their flybridges, hardtops, transoms, and other parts.

After earning numerous distinctions and earning worldwide revenues of upwards of USD 700 million, Azimut-Benetti is far from slowing down. Boating enthusiasts everywhere can expect the company to keep making waves on the world stage and to deliver that same award-winning experience to any new powerboat owner!

In the market for a car and looking to get the most value out of your hard-earned money? Most people tend to think that buying new is the best option, but you can save a good amount of cash by looking at pre-owned cars. If you do the research diligently and aren’t afraid of asking the seller some tough questions, you could get a relatively good deal on something perfectly respectable. Another way of saving on a car purchase is by looking at bank-repossessed cars—these are vehicles that have been taken back by banks because their owners can no longer afford the monthly payments, or cars that have been used as collateral for a different loan that a debtor is no longer able to repay. In any case, buying a repossessed car can be one of the smartest financial choices you’ll ever make. Let’s break down the reasons why:

Repossessed Cars Are Cheaper

Banks typically aren’t looking to turn a profit when they sell cars that have been repossessed. They still have to pay for storage and maintenance costs, and cars sitting idle in a lot are not only useless to them, they also tend to cost the bank extra for keeping them around. As a result of this, you can get a car in like-new or even practically brand-new condition at a discount of 20 to 40%: that can be up to 200,000 pesos or more in savings. The down payment for repossessed units is also much lower than when buying new; a car’s value begins to depreciate almost as soon as it leaves the dealership and will only go lower over time. You’ll still have to pay a down payment of 20 to 30%, but since the car is already cheaper, you won’t have to shell out as much.

Hassle-Free Payment Options

One of the most frustrating things about buying a new car is the sheer amount of paperwork involved before you can drive away with it. Banks know that they lose more money the longer it takes for a repossessed unit to sell, so they cut through the complications and typically offer you the choice of paying for one with cash up front, or enrolling it into an auto loan program. Going with cash means that you won’t have to pay interest over time, but it can be a huge chunk of money to put down all in one go. Auto loans take the pressure off by allowing you to make incremental monthly payments on the car instead, which can be easier on you. Whichever option fits your budget best, it’s nice to be able to take the vehicle home without having to read through too many documents. 

Safe and Secure Transactions

When buying a repossessed unit from a bank, you can rest easy knowing that the vehicle was not acquired illegally, and all of its papers and certifications are in good order. You’ll never have to worry about being defrauded, and you can be assured that your payments will always be safe.

Used but Not Abused

When a car seller puts his vehicle on the market, it’s usually because he’s already gotten himself a new one. Most vehicle owners tend to hold off on replacing their cars if they can continue to put up with its issues; the bottom line is that you never really know what condition the car is actually in until you’ve driven it for a while and discovered its problems, and by then it’s usually too late. On the other hand, repossessed cars go to the banks because their previous owners are no longer able to keep them, which means that most of them haven’t been ridden to death or neglected for too long. Of course, you should be a conscientious buyer and check for signs of flooding, accidental damage, or anything that might give you cause to believe that the vehicle is in poorer shape than advertised. Banks typically auction out newer models and have proof of the car’s mileage though, so you could get a car that’s in excellent shape and was released fairly recently for a fraction of the cost of buying from a dealer.

Summary

Buying a repossessed car isn’t without its risks, but if you know what to look for and are willing to put in the legwork, you could drive home with one that you can be proud of. Keep an open mind but arm yourself with as much information as possible, and don’t be afraid to ask questions before reaching for your wallet. Before long, you’ll be driving the car of your dreams.