We’ve always believed in the power of people—the Right People—coming together to make a company strong. That sentiment has been at the heart of Eclaro since its inception more than two decades ago, and it has always informed the way we’ve strived to help make ourselves and our clients stronger.
In the coming weeks, months and years, we will return to explore the theme of “the Right People” time and again right here in “Hire Up.” What defines “the Right People,” what makes them who they are, in and out of the workplace? It is no one thing, of course, but rather an endless array of attributes, unique to individuals and situations. Sometimes they are obvious. In other cases, it may take a little digging to bring them to light. And in some instances, well, it may not be what you expected.
We saw many “Right People” traits up close and personal during the recent Eclaro year-end festivities in Manila. The early December trip was the first time that our U.S. management team had been able to visit the Philippines in three years, the first chance to see in person the impact of the challenges wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic—and, in turn, the impact of the people who responded to those challenges. Throughout many team meetings, training sessions, brainstorming gatherings and town halls, in casual hallway conversations in the office and discussions while gazing out car windows while driving the streets of Manila, at small group dinners and at the company-wide holiday gala party, one trait kept coming to the fore again and again.
Bamboo.
Yes, bamboo. Stick with us here for a minute.
The Eclaro year-end party is a beloved annual tradition that had been on pause since December 2019. This year’s gala was once again a night of true celebration, of honoring Eclaro employees, putting their singing and dancing talents onstage, laughing along with celebrity host Tuesday Vargas, enjoying great food and drink and even greater company. The design for many elements of the party, from the elegant invitation to the event program on every table to the raffles drawn throughout the evening table centerpieces to décor on and around the stage from which Eclaro co-founders Paul and Tom Sheridan toasted the crowd, incorporated bamboo.
And with good reason. “Bamboo has symbolized many characteristics for many cultures throughout the centuries,” Paul notes, “but we’ve been particularly moved by the historical and modern-day connection to the Philippines.”
Because of its strength and flexibility, bamboo was used to build houses in ancient times, and today it remains a core material in Philippines construction. It is a source of nutritious food, beautiful crafts and musical instruments. It is a powerful, sustainable, earth-friendly resource for everything from energy and fuel to versatile clothing fibers that soft like silk yet incredibly strong and durable.
“It seems there is nothing it can’t do,” Tom adds. “And it is incredibly resilient.”
And there it is.
We love every one of these aspects of bamboo, and we’d be happy to talk about them all day and all night long. But to capture the full beauty and power of the imagery and symbolism, we share the words of Filipino journalist Marvin Tort:
“Crisis after crisis, natural disasters or otherwise, we have always survived. We were blessed with patience and mild temper, endurance and stamina, good humor and humility, and faith. And thus, we have always endured. We are resilient, just like bamboo. We bend with the strong wind, then we stand up again after it passes. The bamboo is Filipino and the Filipino is bamboo.”
The Right People are bamboo. And, of course, they are the Answer.