30 July 2021, Manila – Farm Box, a start-up that encourages individual investment to benefit local farmers, emerged the Hack-it-On grand winner at Globe Business’ virtual hackathon competition, the company’s largest initiative in celebration of the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s (DICT) National ICT Month. Globe Business announced the winners at a virtual awards ceremony together with their partners, the Philippine Software Industry Association (PSIA), the Philippine Computer Society (PCS), and Globe’s innovative developer community Globe Labs.
The Farm Box team, composed of John Lester Mendoza, John Christopher Francisco, Anjenette Lopez and Felix Veroya, proposed an innovative business plan around the incorporation of Globe Labs’ Charging API, SMS API, and Rewards API to increase customer engagement and retention. Their project was judged the most outstanding invention for its ease of use, market viability and social impact.
“This competition has definitely helped us unlock a new level of creativity in coming up with solutions to uplift our local economy through Globe Business’ API Solutions. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to have worked with key leaders in the IT industry. These innovative solutions will help us engage more people to help our local farmers and growers,” said John Lester Mendoza, Co-Founder and CEO of Farm Box.
With the theme “Hack-It-On. Own the Power of API Innovation,” Globe Business’ month-long event pitted 50 business start-ups from the IT sector in friendly competition. Through the month-long journey, participants confronted key pain points and critical challenges typically faced by our local MSMEs today as they devised groundbreaking solutions that leveraged Globe Labs APIs.
A trusted partner in digital transformation, Globe’s MSME arm held the hackathon competition to recognize the IT and Business Process Management industry as an enabler of micro, small and medium enterprises.
“We recognize the indispensable role that the IT industry plays in driving the competitiveness and continued digital evolution of our local businesses. Through this event, we hope that we have inspired more businesses by demonstrating what can be achieved by leveraging technological solutions to bring their ideas to life and achieve their business objectives,” said Nicola Ebrada, InfoComm Industry Marketing Lead, Globe Business MSME Group.
The virtual event kicked off on June 18 with enablement workshops for participating teams to give them insights and the know-how for their proposed solutions. The teams were given until June 29 to submit their business plan development.
From the 50 teams that participated in the competition, five teams were selected to demonstrate their solutions during the second leg of the competition on July 23: Team Evocodes, Team Sakap, Team Shop Na Dito, and Team Vioxys.
Finalists were selected based on business feasibility, tech viability, social impact and usage of Globe Labs API.
Farm Box, the grand winner in the virtual competition, brought home P200,000 worth of prizes, including a P100,000 cash prize awarded through GCash, tickets to the PSIA Softcon 2021, and 50% discount on the PCS Information Security certification training. As finalists, they also received GMovies vouchers, Globe myBusiness Prepaid Internet Kits, and gift boxes from Globe Business. All the participants received e-certificates of participation.
Relive the exciting Hack-It-On moments by watching the Kick-Off Event and Awards Ceremony on Globe Business’ Facebook page.
To beef up its support to the IT-BPM industry, Globe Business has also launched special offerings for customers who subscribed to Globe Labs API solutions for a minimum contract value. To know more about Globe Business’ enabling offers for local SMEs, visit https://go.mybusinessacademy.ph/ICTMonthOffers.
The economy has seen the rapid adoption of digital technologies among businesses to survive and thrive through the pandemic. Recognizing the need to fill the gap, the Philippine government has undertaken several initiatives to further strengthen the digital capabilities of local SMEs.
“We at the DICT continuously build strong Filipino start-up communities. We want to uplift the technology and business ecosystem of the country and present an opportunity to highlight the best of what the Philippine start-ups and ecosystem has to offer,” shared Emmy Lou Delfin, Director of the ICT Industry Development Bureau of the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT).
In support of this year’s National ICT Month, spearheaded by the DICT with the theme “Onwards Through ICT: Building a Stronger Philippine Digital Economy,” Globe Business launched several initiatives aimed at helping micro, small and medium enterprises fast-track digital transformation.
“As a staunch supporter of the ICT sector in the Philippines and the ICT Month, Globe Business believes in creating greater awareness on its valuable contribution to the economy and how digital transformation can fuel its growth,” said Nicola Ebrada, Industry Lead for InfoComm, Globe Business MSME Group.
Check out the Hack-it-on Kick-off event held last June 18 here:
Globe Business’ biggest initiative for the ICT Month is a virtual hackathon competition themed “Hack-It-On. Own the Power of API Innovation,” which puts the spotlight on the Information Technology and Business Process Management (IT-BPM) industry as an enabler of MSMEs.
The hackathon brought together talented individuals in information technology and business start-ups to create cutting-edge digital solutions that will empower businesses to thrive today and accelerate the shift towards a connected tomorrow using Globe Labs API solutions.
Participating teams went through enablement workshops to gain insights and techniques useful for their proposed apps or programs. The team with the most innovative digital solution will be awarded P200,000-worth of prizes from Globe, at the awarding ceremony on July 29.
As part of Globe Business’ ICT Month offerings, customers who subscribe to Globe Labs API solutions for a minimum contract value will be able to choose from the following complimentary gifts: an 8th Generation iPad, up to P50,000 worth of GCash Credits, or Paid Training amounting to P30,000.
With Globe Business, MSMEs have five options of API solutions to choose from:
Meanwhile, to help enterprises operate more efficiently despite current restrictions, Globe Business also launched several special offers to make remote working more productive.
Companies can choose from a range of subscriptions such as myBiz Data Plan 999, a 20GB data plan inclusive of a pocket wifi or a Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0; Google Workspace, which includes productivity apps like Gmail, Drive, Docs, and Meet; Cloud Payroll, to automate salary computations, reduce errors, and track employee hours accurately; and many more.
Learn more about the InfoComm ICT month offers and activities at https://go.mybusinessacademy.ph/InfoCommICTMonth.
With the extended lockdown, more businesses realize that going digital is a must to survive and thrive. For entrepreneurs who want to revamp their business but are intimidated by complicated jargon and too many options, Globe myBusiness Academy (GmBA) introduces ‘solu-Shawn’, a go-to digital coach who can guide them on their journey.
Shawn’ is an online guide who can help business owners understand the many technology options open to them, to help them run their operations more smoothly. In his video series “Solutions from Shawn”, he explains different ICT tools and solutions in a simple and straightforward way.
“We want to break the barrier that prevents MSMEs from enhancing their business operations. ‘Solutions from Shawn’ is our way to equip entrepreneurs with the understanding of how they can maximize these tools to support their daily business activities,” said Globe myBusiness Strategy and Marketing Head Maridol Ylanan.
For its debut video, Shawn explains in three minutes the Application Programming Interface (API) solution —or simply put, a software that allows communication between two applications to make businesses run more smoothly.
API’s in fact solve various business day to day operational issues. School administrators who struggle to stay connected with parents, students, and staff or BPO firms that don’t have enough agents to field calls, may find APIs useful in solving various business operational problems. How? Shawn teaches us that APIs will let schools send messages in bulk to families and faculty, and enable BPOs to respond to concerns of multiple customers all at once.
Shawn’s upcoming videos include Cloud Payroll, Cybersecurity, and Cloud Solutions will clearly explain how each solution can be useful across various scenarios in different industries. The video series will be a boon to business owners who want to thrive in an increasingly tech-driven economy.
About Globe myBusiness Academy
Globe myBusiness Academy provides its members access to insights, tips, and exclusive online videos that empower entrepreneurs. It is an online learning site designed to provide business owners and decision makers with easy access to articles and insights from industry experts.
To learn more about Globe myBusiness Academy and ICT Solutions videos from Shawn, visit Solutions from Shawn by Globe myBusiness | Globe myBusiness Academy.
UPDATE YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION:
Exclusive offers, event invites, and freebies await when you update your contact details! Get these and receive real-time notifications on your account when you update now: glbe.co/Get-Updates-GmBA
Get access to all our exclusive member-only content
By clicking the sign-up button, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.