Have you heard of the McLobster? (available in Canada) Check out this video from CNN about the five weirdest menu items from around the world.
Curious to know how Jolibee stacks up against McDonalds in the Philippines?
We hope you enjoy your holidays and use your time for relaxation and family!
Ensure employees are being paid according to DOLE holiday guidelines for anyone that has to work on December 25th. PayrollHero can always help you with the process!
Another one of PayrollHero’s Adventure Engineers has arrived in Canada. Nico Suria, a Philippine native has moved over to our Whistler office as part of his quest for Canadian Residency. I sent Nico a few questions about his experience thus far (he has been there about 1 week) and here is what he had to say:
1. What was the biggest shock when coming to Canada?
A lot of us Asians, especially ones that haven’t been to Canada before, will say the cold. I’ve spent some time in Ontario as a kid so I don’t have the same problem. But.. yup, it was still the cold.
Also being able to drink directly from the tap. Melted glacier water is yummy.
2. How do you like the weather?
You really just have to dress correctly and, once I got used to it, I had a great time walking around and just enjoying the sights. There’s something about walking the streets of a city like Vancouver or the forest paths of Whistler, all bundled up and with your breath fogging that I find really pleasant.
3. What do you think of Vancouver?
Rainy. I didn’t get to really go out a lot outside Yaletown, and it was only sunny for an hour the whole time I was there but when it did, it was lovely. Looked like there were lots of interesting places and people everywhere.
4. What do you think of Whistler?
I’ve never lived in a small town but I can definitely say that I like it. The weather’s cold but the people are warm and friendly. The place itself is quite beautiful. They’ve done a great job of designing the town to complement nature instead of just building on top of it. All of this and I’ve never even visited the mountains themselves – which people spend heaps of money just to be around of.
5. What do you miss about the Philippines?
Mostly my family and friends. The food (and prices) too.
6. What Filipino thing did you find in Canada that shocked you?
Well, Filipino’s themselves! They everywhere. I needed a single envelope for mail but the post office only sold them in 50’s so I went to the UPS store to see if they sold singles. The guy just asked me in Tagalog how many I needed and gave it to me for free.
7. How was the process of getting setup? (SIN number, bank, etc)
Let me just say this: with nobody to show me around much less serve as my ‘fixer‘, I was able to 1) Get a post-paid mobile plan with great data, 2) Get a Social Insurance Number, and 3) Open a bank account – all within 12 hours.
Read more about our Adventure Engineers here.
What is an Adventure Engineer, watch below;
We are always hiring.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gx3YmAGU3l4
We announced at the start of November that we will be expanding our payroll platform into the Singapore market soon. Since that announcement we have held a couple Charter Client Events in Singapore where business owners, HR managers and payroll professionals can learn more about our platform and how it will function for the Singapore market. These events have been a big success and we will be holding one more before our official launch into Singapore. So, if you are interested in learning more about PayrollHero’s Singapore payroll platform, contact us now. Our next event will be early January 2015 and space is very limited.
Here are 15 reasons why you should use PayrollHero’s TeamClock iOS for your time and attendance needs.
Need more reasons? Contact us and we would be pleased to speak with you about your needs and how PayrollHero can help.
Most software as a service (SaaS) companies focus on the US market, or other western countries with little regard for emerging markets. While there are definitely challenges with focusing on emerging markets (internet, power, traffic, corruption, to name a few) there are some big advantages.
For example, the above photo was taken at a department store in the Philippines. In this photo, of one of the many areas of the 3 floor department store has no less than 12 employees. For a company like PayrollHero that charges based on employee count, you can see why we like emerging markets. In Canada or the US, if I took the same photo, you would be lucky to see 1 employee.
But it is not all as easy as it seems. These employees are actually not employees of the department store but rather merchandisers who work directly for the brands they are standing beside. So while you might see 12 employees, they most likely work for 12 different companies. Making selling a product or service to them a bit more of a challenge.
But still, employee counts in restaurants, retail, etc are usually much higher in emerging markets due to the cost of labour.
Would you like to learn more about PayrollHero? Contact us and we would be pleased to speak further or visit our country specific websites; Philippines, Singapore with the rest coming soon.
I had the honour of being invited by the Camarines Sur Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CSCCI) in Naga, Philippines to speak at their 1st Annual Youth Entrepreneurship Congress Conference. It was an amazing event with over 1000 in attendance from all over the region. My talk was on techno-entrepreneurship in which I told the story of how Mike and I started out working together and how we have progressed over the pat 14 years.
My friend and EO forummate Carlo Buenaflor who is the CEO of Bigg’s Diner (check it out, great food) and the Honorary Consul of Spain for Bicol also setup a private event at his residence with a few of the regions top technology startups. It was an intimate event where we got to chat a bit about the region, the challenges of running a startup in a province of the Philippines and how we came to be a payroll platform for emerging markets. All in all an awesome weekend.
What is the Pag-IBIG Fund?
Here is a quick video that explains the Pag-IBIG Fund in the Philippines and how you can use it to purchase a home. (hat tip: ZipMatch.com)
Over in Southeast Asia when we say one of our offices is in Whistler, they are usually quite surprised. Surprised that a technology startup would/could situate some of its team members there and have it work. (see: #AdventureEngineers) But, sometimes, people look at me and simple ask – Where is Whistler?
From Southeast Asia…. it is over there on the top right…
Right here…
But if you are new to Canada, here is how Tom Brokaw explained Canada to Americans during the 2010 Winter Olympics:
Here is how the British Columbia (BC) government markets BC to tourists all over the world:
And here is the biggest city in British Columbia, Vancouver:
Finally, here is Whistler:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdzUWN2ekQk
Remember, we are always hiring #AdventureEngineers in Whistler, Singapore or Manila: