Adventures of a Diva Princess: technology

Industry-leading enabler of digital solutions ePLDT Inc. introduces its newest ICT offering, Managed IT Services, to help mitigate potential sources of system downtime in the modern business world and allow enterprises to shift their time and focus on core operations and critical business imperatives.

In the PLDT Enterprise’s Connected Survey Report, it was ascertained that almost 90% of companies in the Philippines had experienced incidents of system downtime within the last 18 months. About 43% of hardware failures stemmed from mechanical or internal failure, while 36% were due to lack of IT infrastructure maintenance.

The sophistication of today’s enterprise IT infrastructure can intrinsically subject itself to potential system failure over time, which could significantly impair day-to-day business operations. Moreover, these downtime incidents belabor enterprises to spend more time in maintaining and managing its IT equipment and systems that hinder them to pursue critical business innovations and derive higher customer value and satisfaction.

“There is factual basis that no enterprise is exempt from risks of potential system downtime. This is what compelled us to establish our own Managed IT Services portfolio, which is hardened by the most advanced platforms and on-ground expertise as well as the group’s experience in critical infrastructure operations,” said Nerisse Ramos, ePLDT Group’s Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

Comprised of three core service categories—Managed Operations Center-as-a-Service (MOCaaS), Professional Services, and Managed IT Platforms—ePLDT’s holistic Managed IT Services aim to simplify and solve the complex challenges of enterprises in managing and operating their IT infrastructure.

“ePLDT’s holistic Managed IT Services seek to help mitigate downtime and ensure business continuity for all organizations in the country through an all-inclusive ecosystem complemented by the input of our highly skilled subject matter experts,” said ePLDT Group Head of Business Services, Solutions Consulting & Bid Management Ronald De Guzman.

The group offers Managed Operations Center-as-a-Service (MOCaaS) wherein ePLDT provides enterprises with state-of-the-art technologies and skilled resources to deliver critical IT support on a subscription basis. Offered under this category are Proactive Monitoring and Managed Infrastructure services that cover the upkeep of the overall health and performance of enterprise IT infrastructure to avert system downtime, ePLDT renders assistance to enterprises in adopting the latest available IT platforms and technologies which can provide greater support to their core businesses. Through this key capability, ePLDT makes the adoption of technology easier as these IT platforms are available through an outright purchase or lease model.

ePLDT also provides a wide range of IT Professional Services namely, IT Infrastructure Consulting, Data Privacy Consulting, Data Science Consulting, Systems Integration, and Application Development, to assist enterprises in the various life stages and the different levels of management, maintenance, development, and support of their network systems.

All these services are powered by ePLDT’s Managed Operations Center (MOC), the group’s command center which utilizes the latest tools and global standard processes in IT Service Management, used for monitoring utilization, capacity, and performance of all enrolled IT elements of their clients.

“We at ePLDT and PLDT Enterprise recognize the impact downtime has on the operations of our customers. Through our Managed IT Services portfolio, it is our aim to provide enterprises with the resources that will allow them to focus on their core business,” said Jovy Hernandez, ePLDT Group President & CEO and SVP & Head of PLDT and Smart Enterprise Business Groups.

Managed IT Services is the newest addition to ePLDT’s existing suite of ICT solutions that are up to par with global standards which include purpose-built Data Centers, Cloud, and Cyber Security.

To learn more about ePLDT’s Managed IT Services, visit https://www.epldt.com. Leave IT to us. Let IT Be ePLDT.

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The local travel industry has grown more competitive in securing bookings with the continuous rise in the number of tourist arrivals in the country. Last year, the Department of Tourism posted a record-breaking 7.1 million international tourist arrivals, surpassing the 6.6 million arrivals in 2017 by 7.68 percent despite the six-month closure of Boracay. An influx of this magnitude and the amount of personal information it comes with call for industry players to strengthen cybersecurity measures even more.

The Philippines is an attractive destination not only for tourists but also for hackers. In fact, cybersecurity experts predict that the Philippines will be among this year’s most targeted countries in the ASEAN region for malware designed to avoid detection and possibly be a launch pad for other cyberattacks. ePLDT is thereby urging airlines, cruise lines, car rentals, hotels, and tour operators to be extra cautious when handling their customers’ information.

“It’s easy to get caught up in the overwhelming demand for travel services especially during peak seasons like summer but strengthening cybersecurity measures must always be a priority. Clients are entrusting confidential information. Hence, it is the service providers’ responsibility to handle it well,” said Angel Redoble, First Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer of ePLDT Group, PLDT Group, and SMART.

Cybercriminals infiltrate systems in various ways, one of which is by pretending to be customers and then luring salespersons into believing they have lost their reservation details. When the fake customers are asked to give personal information for checking, they propose to send it via email and do so with an attachment of data-stealing malware, which automatically downloads once clicked. The malware then breaks into payment systems where it collects loads of personal data such as credit card information.

Another thing to be wary of is a “rogue hotspot” or a Wi-Fi access point set up by an attacker that mimics a legitimate hotspot provided by airports, hotels, coffeeshops, etc. Victims that connect to such rogue hotspots usually have no idea about the dangers awaiting them because the attacks use familiar network names. An attacker can collect sensitive user details and credentials like account names, passwords, credit card details, and the like just by eavesdropping on the network traffic. In some cases, attackers may push out malware to a victims’ device or redirect victims to malicious sites or servers that will infect them with malware.

Having the right cybersecurity solutions in place, coupled with sufficient user awareness campaigns, can curb such incidents. It is essential to invest on people, processes, learning and awareness, and of course, technology. In the event there’s an absence of these, working with a trusted partner like ePLDT can address this concern. ePLDT’s class-on-its-own cybersecurity portfolio includes an end-to-end SOCaaS (Security Operations Center as a Service) offering, which companies can subscribe to for monitoring, alerting, incident analysis, response, and threat intelligence.

“With digital transformation comes a number of challenges in security compliance and data protection. ePLDT is extending its expertise to organizations to help them set up reliable and resilient systems that promote the safety of customer data, which is vital to business resilience,” said Nerissa Ramos, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of ePLDT.

To get ahead of these cybercriminals, the best way is to implement cybersecurity measures and solutions that will predict and prevent attacks from infecting systems in the first place. By employing available technology, businesses will be able to ensure the security and privacy of data entrusted to them, inasmuch as they ensure the physical safety of their establishments. ePLDT’s Managed Security Platforms, on the other hand, provide deep inspection capabilities and multi-level protection through technology partnerships combined with best practices and local security expertise.

“We are working hard to deliver effective, end-to-end cybersecurity services for businesses—regardless of their industry—so they can protect themselves against emerging cyberattacks,” said SVP and Head of PLDT and Smart Enterprise Business Groups Jovy Hernandez.

Apart from Cyber Security services, ePLDT delivers best-in-class digital business solutions up to par with global standards which include Data Center services, Cloud, and Managed IT Services. To know more about ePLDT, visit www.epldt.com. Leave IT to us. Let IT Be ePLDT.

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Lenovo announced last January 8, 2019 a new group of intelligent devices from across its portfolio at the CES 2019. They are products designed to transform and improve the way people live, work, and play. By harnessing the power of smart technology, via Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), Lenovo’s newest innovations unlock human potential, empower users to break boundaries and enhance connectedness.

Lenovo’s new innovations are built for Intelligent Transformation, the idea of people improving their lives through the use of transformative technology – for play, work, or in the home, and the Lenovo products announced today at CES 2019 do just that.

Transforming the Way We Live

Lenovo Smart Clock with the Google Assistant^TM

Lenovo has teamed up with Google® again - this time to unveil the Lenovo Smart Clock with the Google Assistant, the latest addition to Lenovo’s innovative smart living product line. Purpose-made for your bedroom, the Lenovo Smart Clock helps you unwind in the evening, kickstart your day, control your smart home and listen to your favorite music with multi-room audio grouping. As the latest device in Lenovo’s smart home family, the Lenovo Smart Clock adds to an ever-growing line-up that now includes the Lenovo Smart Display and the Lenovo Smart Home Essentials, bolstering Lenovo’s continued commitment to making families’ lives easier and more productive. Read the Lenovo Smart Clock blog for more details.

Lenovo Smart Tabs powered by Amazon® Alexa®

Collaborating with Amazon, Lenovo created Lenovo Smart Tabs, a new category of 2-in-1 tablets which turn into full-function smart screens with Amazon Alexa. They’re a must-have for households and is remarkably simple to set up. Just place the Lenovo Smart Tab into the complimentary Lenovo Smart Dock, and the tablet transforms into a “Show Mode” smart screen device, with full-screen visuals and crisp, room-filling sound that complements Alexa’s responses from nearly anywhere in the room. With Lenovo Smart Tabs, households now have access to a fully-featured Android^TM tablet that doubles as a hub for smart home devices. That capability makes this new 2-in-1 tablet plus smart dock much more than the sum of its parts, opening up new and exciting ways to make households easier to manage. Read the Lenovo Smart Tabs blog for more details.

Transforming the Way We Play

The Smartest Consumer Yoga™ Computers Yet

AI coupled with advanced audio and display technologies is making Lenovo’s next-gen Yoga computers their smartest yet. Whether you’re a digital nomad, business professional, digital content creator, or designer, the technologies in the new Yoga S940, Yoga A940, Yoga C730 with AMOLED and Yoga Mouse with Laser Presenter can help you get things done faster and make life easier.

The Slim and Smarter Yoga S940

The Yoga S940 ultra-slim Windows® 10 laptop delivers security and privacy without sacrificing productivity and convenience thanks to an entire suite of Lenovo Smart Assist AI-enabled features.¹Leveraging AI, this includes the option to automatically filter out most ambient noise and blur out distracting backgrounds during video calls. The minute you turn your head away from your laptop screen, the Yoga S940’s AI-powered sensors¹ can detect your absence and auto-lock the display to protect your data from others seeing it.It can also detect and alert you when a nosey neighbor is shoulder surfing from your screen, or help increase productivity by shifting open windows and content contextually to a connected external monitor, based on your attention, intent and focus. The new Yoga S940 is also the world’s first laptop with Contour Glass that wraps around its bezels – reducing the look of its already razor-thin bezels for a streamlined design.²Read the Yoga blog for more details.

Get Creative on the Powerful Yoga A940

For artists and designers, nothing is better than sketching with a pencil on paper, right? The new Yoga A940 all-in-one desktop is here to challenge that notion. Built for digital content creators, the Windows 10 Yoga A940 is a powerful creative canvas with a large 27-inch optional 4K IPS touchscreen display with Dolby Vision®, which brings entertainment to life through ultra-vivid picture quality. It features a rotating hinge that enables the display to tilt to a comfortable 25-degree drafting mode, for remarkable flexibility and stability when drawing, sketching or annotating with a digital pen. It also features the Lenovo Precision Dial, a controller that’s tailor made for designers, photographers and videographers to make more precise selections and adjustments to their content. With Lenovo Smart Assist AI-enabled features,¹ a Dolby Vision-enabled 4K wide angle display with stunning brightness, contrast, color and detail, and boosted by Dolby Atmos® Speaker System for rich, moving audio, the Yoga A940 is the ideal centerpiece in any content creator’s home or workspace. Read the Yoga blog for more details.

See the Difference on the Yoga C730 with AMOLED

Equipped with JBL® speakers and Dolby Atmos which delivers immersive audio over any pair of compatible headphones, the 15-inch Yoga C730 2-in-1 convertible laptop gets an upgrade with up to a 4K AMOLED display. AMOLED brings a noticeably more vivid viewing experience with an incredible degree of color clarity and contrast for higher-quality resolution. It also emits less harmful blue light – making it easier on the eyes while providing amazing video picture quality. Portable and powerful, the Yoga C730 features 8th Gen Intel® Core^TM i7 processors, Windows Ink™ for digital pen input, Windows Hello™ for instant log-in, and the smart convenience of Cortana® and Alexa.³Read the Yoga blog for more details.

Just Twist and Point with the Yoga Mouse with Laser Presenter

Today’s professionals have more than enough to carry with them when running from one meeting to the next – from their laptops to phones, chargers and more. With this user pain point in mind, we streamlined two accessories into one and designed the latest generation Yoga Mouse with Laser Presenter. With just one twist, it converts from an ergonomic mouse with up to 1,600 DPI for high-precision tracking on nearly any surface into a flat, fully functional laser presenter (and vice versa). No more fumbling with a handful of devices at your next presentation with the latest Yoga Mouse in hand. Read the Yoga blog for more details.

Lenovo Legion™ Gets More Savage with Performance Boost

The latest Lenovo Legion gaming line-up is more powerful than ever -- with a new range of high-performance PCs and an entire family of re-designed gaming accessories and monitors. The latest gaming additions to the Lenovo Legion line-up include:

● Savage new Lenovo Legion Y740 and Y540 Laptops

● Sleek Lenovo Legion K500 RGB Mechanical Keyboard and M500 RGB Gaming Mouse

● Ergonomic Lenovo Legion H500 Pro 7.1 Surround Sound Gaming Headset and H300 Stereo Gaming Headset

● Stylish Lenovo Legion Y27gq Monitor and Y44w Monitor for ultra-fast, smooth and immersive gaming

● Upgraded Lenovo Legion T730 and T530 towers and C730 and C530 cubes to the latest NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 2060 GPUs

Each of these products are designed to deliver the speed and performance gamers need to succeed at the highest level, whether at home or on the go. We know that gamers come from diverse backgrounds as students or working professionals, which is why we designed the new Lenovo Legion portfolio to look just as great in a living room as it would in a conference room. This gaming line-up is engineered to handle the toughest technical challenges while retaining a clean aesthetic that won’t feel out of place in any environment. Read the Lenovo Legion blog for more details.

The Way We Work

Perfecting the ThinkPad X1

In 2019, we’ve refined the ThinkPad X1 Carbon and X1 Yoga laptops and made broad improvements the most discerning users will appreciate. What’s more, we have listened to our customers and evolved the laptops’ look and feel to represent a contemporary and dynamic workforce.

Rounding off the PC announcements is a selection of accessories to complete the office, home or travelling users’ digital ecosystem:

● ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7^th Gen and X1 Yoga 4^th Gen are both thinner and lighter than ever

● X1 Yoga 4^th Gen now available in an all-aluminum chassis

● New display options, including a 400 nit FHD display with ThinkPad Privacy Guard

● New Dolby Atmos Speaker System with four far-field mics

● Latest 8^th Gen Intel Core processors

● New Cat16 LTE-A option and enhanced WLAN and WWAN antenna design

● ThinkShutter now available on both HD and IR cameras

● New ThinkVision 43.3-inch P44w monitor offers dual-display capability without bezels

● A selection of accessories including the ThinkPad Thunderbolt 3 Dock Gen 2, a Lenovo Pro Stereo USB Headset, the Lenovo VOIP 360 Camera Speaker, the Lenovo Powered USB-C Hub, the Lenovo 700 Ultraportable Bluetooth Speaker and a Lenovo Commuter Backpack.

New design options will be the most noticeable feature of the latest generation ThinkPad X1 Carbon and X1 Yoga. The former can include a visible carbon fiber weave top cover and the latter has been redesigned and re-engineered from the ground up. The ThinkPad X1 Yoga is now a precision-machined all-aluminum laptop in a beautiful iron grey color.

Improvements are more than skin-deep. Enhanced security features such as ThinkPad PrivacyGuard and a faster Match-on-Chip fingerprint reader will keep end-users protected. Device experience has been enhanced with more display options, Dolby Atmos audio, four inbuilt microphones and improved wireless capabilities for the best possible collaboration and productivity experience. Read the ThinkPad announcement for more details.

Further product blogs, specs, images and more are available in the StoryHub press kit. Learn more at www.lenovo.com/CES.

US Pricing and Availability⁴

● The Lenovo Smart Clock is available at $79.99 starting spring 2019.⁴

● Lenovo Smart Tab with Tab P10 is $299.99 with pre-orders starting January 2019 on www.amazon.comandwww.lenovo.com.⁴

● Lenovo Smart Tab with Tab M10 is $199.99 with pre-orders starting January 2019 on www.amazon.com and www.lenovo.com.⁴

● The Lenovo Yoga S940 will start at $1,499.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and Micro Center starting May 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Yoga A940 will start at $2,349.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and Best Buy starting April 2019.⁴

● The 15-inch Lenovo Yoga C730 with AMOLED is expected to be available in select markets starting March 2019.⁴

● The 17-inch Lenovo Legion Y740 Laptop will start at $1,979.99 and the 15-inch model will start at $1,749.99, both are expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and select retailers starting February 2019.⁴

● The 15-inch Lenovo Legion Y540 Laptop will start at $929.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and select retailers starting May 2019.⁴

● Pricing and availability of the Lenovo Legion T730, T530, C730 and C530 desktops with upgraded NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 GPUs will be shared later.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion M500 RGB Gaming Mouse will start at $59.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion K500 RGB Mechanical Keyboard will start at $99.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion H300 Stereo Gaming Headset will start at $59.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion H500 Pro 7.1 Surround Sound Gaming Headset will start at $99.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion Y27gq Monitor will start at $999.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Legion Y44w Monitor will start at $1,199.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting April 2019.⁴

● The Lenovo Yoga Mouse with Laser Presenter will start at $69.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com starting June 2019.⁴

● ThinkPad X1 Carbon will start from $1709 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and business partners from June 2019.⁴

● ThinkPad X1 Yoga will start from $1929 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and business partners from June 2019.⁴

● ThinkVision P44w will start from $1299 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com and business partners from April 2019.⁴

● ThinkPad Thunderbolt 3 Dock Gen 2 is available now on www.lenovo.com at $319.99.

● Lenovo Pro Stereo USB Headset will start from $249.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com from March 2019.⁴

● Lenovo VOIP 360 Camera Speaker will start from $249.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com from March 2019.⁴

● Lenovo 700 Ultraportable Bluetooth Speaker will start from $149.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com from April 2019.⁴

● Lenovo Powered USB-C Hub will start from $79.99 and is expected to be available on www.lenovo.com from January 2019.⁴.

● Lenovo Commuter Backpack is expected to be available from January 2019. Check www.lenovo.com for pricing.⁴

Watch the product tour videos for more information:

● ThinkPad X1 Carbon and ThinkPad X1 Yoga

● ThinkVision P44w

● Yoga S940

● Yoga A940

● Lenovo Legion Y740 and Y540

● Lenovo Legion Y27gq Monitor

● Lenovo Legion Y44w Monitor

● Lenovo Smart Tab P10 with Amazon Alexa

● Lenovo Smart Tab M10 with Amazon Alexa

● Lenovo 700 Ultraportable Bluetooth Speaker

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Emerson, the leading engineering and technology company providing innovative solutions in the industrial, commercial, and residential markets is known for its passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education. Last November 20, 2018 this passion is put into spotlight as they announced the winners of their local program, the Emerson Innovation Challenge 2018 in the Philippines.

The Emerson Innovation Challenge is one of its program that reinforces its global initiative to inspire and empower the next generation of STEM-related professionals. The Emerson Innovation Challenge is designed to be socially relevant and tests young minds on solving both the simplest and most complex community issues today.

Emerson invited colleges and universities from all over Metro Manila to create Internet of Things (IoT) applications for today and tomorrow. The diverse design submissions included a traffic light control system that adapts to vehicle volumes and road conditions, a home monitoring and care embedded system that allows pet owners to watch after their pets remotely, and other creative approaches to everyday problems.

“The Internet of Things is the wave of the future discussed everywhere – this vision of everyday objects having network connectivity has long been happening, at rates faster and more wide-ranging than what the world has expected,” said Ed Boone, president of Emerson Asia-Pacific and general manager of Emerson Philippines:“The Emerson Innovation Challenge 2018 empowers young Filipino innovators as catalysts to further drive social progress through innovation.”

“This challenge is the latest in a series of Emerson’s award-winning STEM initiatives in the Philippines designed to support the development of our young talent,” Boone said: “These efforts include an ongoing scholarship program, technical instrumentation trainings, research project collaborations, faculty immersion programs, and partnerships with key academic institutions, special interest groups and government units – all to inspire young students to enter science, technology, engineering and math-related fields.”

The Challenge’s big winner, bagging the first-place trophy and the PHP 70,000 grand prize, is the Technological Institution of the Philippines (TIP). The University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) came in second place and took home the PHP 30,000 prize.

The top two entries both aimed to solve health-related problems. TIP’s winning entry, Project Amihan,focused on air quality monitoring and conditioning, andproposed an IoT-powered air filtration system. Their innovation was founded on the study by the World Health Organization, which shows that air pollution has been one of the main causes of health concerns in the Philippines. On the other hand, UPD’s entry, Sudsidy, proposed an incentivized handwashing IoT systemthat grants redeemable BEEP card points for commuters who use the system.

The Challenge’s other top 10 schools who advanced to the final round were the following: Adamson University, Asia Pacific College, Bulacan State University, De La Salle University, FEU Institute of Technology, Mapua University, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, and Technological University of the Philippines.

More information about Emerson’s global STEM program is available at Emerson.com/WeLoveSTEM.

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The world of learning has been transformed by technology. In this age, technology has become a natural tool for learning that many in this generation has the privilege of using. While traditional methods equip students with the knowledge they need, the use of technology enables students to apply what they’ve learned in a real-world setting. The bigger concern is in the part of the educator, whom we must admit are less tech-savvy than their students, with most of them coming from another generation. How can they maximize the potential of technology in the classroom?

This is the very challenge that Acer strives to overcome for education in the Philippines. Over 100 schools and universities have partnered with one of the top ICT companies in the world through Acer Academy. The program provides educational institutions around the country access to quality hardware, software and services that can improve the learning system of future professionals.

“Aside from accessing our products and services, our partner schools can also maximize our expertise and knowledge about the industry. As a leader in IT, we believe it is important to help bridge the gap of using technology in teaching by training educators how to maximize available tools that capture students’ interests,” said Managing Director of Acer Philippines, Manuel Wong.

Acer Academy provides innovative delivery of education by digitizing teaching tools such as online syllabi, web-based worksheets and modules and electronically programmed learning activities. With the help of these tools, educators adapt effective teaching methods. At the same time, students are provided the opportunity to learn skills that can be relevant to their future professions.

This complements the Department of Education’s (DepEd) drive for the use of technology in improving the country’s education system. The DepEd’s ICT roadmap aims to transform the education landscape in the Philippines through technology, including the introduction of gamification or the use of gaming in giving instructions to students. More public schools can soon learn coding and robotics programs that are fundamental to students as they enter the information age. For this to happen, educators need to be adequately trained and well-adapted to the new learning environment that technology has created.

“For the Philippines to keep up with the demands of the global workforce and the changing times, it’s important for both private and public organizations to work together in providing access to technology to improve the country’s education system. With the innovations we can share, we are proud partners of the academe in future-proofing the next generation’s careers and it starts with Acer Academy,” said Wong in support for the developments in the education system.

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Recently, Canvas held its first community user group in the Philippines at the De La Salle University Henry Sy, Sr. Hall. The meeting connected the first Canvas customers in the Philippines to discuss their use of education technology to transform education provision in their institutions. Principals and senior leadership from Baliuag University, University of the East, Jose Rizal University, De La Salle Lipa, Centro Escolar University and other schools were present, such as the host College of Computer Studies department at De La Salle University and EdTech leadership from Far Eastern University.

The Instructure team. (L-R) Troy Martin, Colt Kwong, Debbie Thompson, Barrett Doran, Julian Yballe, Faith Chaza

Technology has allowed other industries to compete globally and education is no different, with each institution sharing their strategic visions of how they can and will use education technology to enhance teaching and learning as well as compete for students in the region. Through their use of the Learning Management System Canvas, each of these Philippine institutions are deepening their adoption of the latest innovations in teaching and learning, such as blended and flipped classrooms, which allows for greater focus on student engagement and personalized learning.

Roselle Basa, Program Coordinator for ICT at UE, was among the attendees who were new to Canvas. UE faculty have been training with the LMS since March, and the system will be deployed in full this year. “Canvas allows us to develop courses that are geared to student-centered strategies. It pushes the envelope of teaching strategies development and helps us avoid being confined to the classroom in a very enjoyable and engaging manner,” Basa said.

Canvas from Instructure was created in response to poor user experience of legacy LMS software by its founders as graduate students. They wanted a more flexible and personalized learning experience, one that was mobile and easy to use and extend with a wide variety of learning resources.

As an open, mobile and native cloud-based platform, Canvas allows students to easily access learning materials, take online tests, collaborate on the move, and drive their own learning journey. Teachers are able to deliver more personalized learning, choose from a wealth of learning resources to deliver a richer learning experience, grade tests more quickly, as well as use data in real time to give feedback on student progress. This approach puts teachers and students at the center of the learning environment rather than the technology.

Regional Director Julian Yballe also took to the podium to explain Canvas’ view on openness and equity of experience. Instructure envisioned Canvas as endlessly extendable open APIs and the ability to add apps via the LTI standard. This allows teachers to use the vast global resources that exist, exposing students to a huge variety of learning materials in a simple and easy way.

Regional Director Julian L. Yballe talks about the open nature of Canvas

Along with this growing partner ecosystem, the Canvas community of global institutions, helps educators from around the world share ideas and experiences both online and at community events such as this user group session. These leading institutions in the Philippines are now contributing to the community with their founding of the first user group in South East Asia.

Representatives from De La Salle Lipa at the conference

Yballe underlined this specific focus on student-centeredness. “The feedback for Canvas from every stakeholder in this teacher and learning environment has been positive. And a lot of it is a combination of timing and how student-centered learning is becoming more of a focus due to two reasons, workforce preparedness, so graduates can contribute immediately, and a more competitive environment for a limited number of students, both locally and globally,” Yballe said.

What’s next on the roadmap for Canvas? APAC VP Troy Martin spoke of the company’s expansion plans in a post-conference interview. “We’re excited with the customers that have emerged over the last two years in the Philippines, particularly here in Manila, but we are excited to welcome some new institutions from Cebu City and we look forward to hearing from new institutions contacting Instructure about working with Canvas.”

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ePLDT, Inc., together with PLDT Enterprise, recently penned a partnership agreement with the PLDT Telephone Employees’ Service Cooperative (TELESCOOP) to fully integrate Office 365 into the company’s daily business operations.

Microsoft Office 365 is a suite of productivity tools, which allows users to work anytime, anywhere and on any device. It boasts of communication solutions built for effective team collaboration—from e-mail and instant messaging (IM) to social networking and video conferencing.

(L-R) Jovy Hernandez, Senior Vice President and Head of PLDT Enterprise; Marcos De Leon, Chairperson of TELESCOOP; Hector Profeta, Vice Chairperson of TELESCOOP; and Nerisse Ramos, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of ePLDT Group, recently engaged in a strategic partnership for PLDT Telephone Employees’ Service Cooperative (TELESCOOP)’s adoption of and migration to Microsoft Office 365.

“One way to professionalize us as a company is to upgrade the tools that we use to serve the members of TELESCOOP,” said Marcos De Leon, TELESCOOP Chairperson. “Adopting Office 365 is just the start of our meaningful engagement. We’re glad that both ePLDT and PLDT Enterprise are with us for this cause.”

TELESCOOP is a PLDT cooperative that offers financial empowerment to employees and stakeholders of the company and its subsidiaries. It aims to provide prompt, efficient, quality and innovative service that complies with the principles of its cooperatives. Its services include financial loans, business loans and loans for personal purchases such as gadgets, among others.

“ePLDT has been transforming enterprises with best-of-breed platform that are deployed and managed by certified experts,” said Nerisse Ramos, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of ePLDT Group. “This engagement for TELESCOOP’s adoption of Office 365 marks the beginning of their digital transformation, and we look forward to build stronger partnerships with them.”

Jovy Hernandez—Senior Vice President and Head of PLDT Enterprise—said that PLDT Enterprise and ePLDT team up to help customers like TELESCOOP improve their e-mail system with the adoption of a more professional suite of productivity solutions.

“TELESCOOP has been positively transforming the lives of PLDT employees for many years. As they evolve through the adoption of innovative solutions, they will be even more beneficial and critical to PLDT’s workforce. We look forward to how they will continue to create an even more positive and lasting impact on the organization as a whole.”

ePLDT is the industry-leading enabler of digital enterprise solutions in the Philippines. It is the top Cloud Solutions Provider of Microsoft Office 365 in the Philippines and one of the leading in the Asia Pacific region.

The company received an International award from Microsoft as the PH Country Partner of the Year for 2017, and the Microsoft Philippines SME Cloud Service Provider Partner of the Year 2017.

For more information, please visit the website at www.epldt.com.

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