BIZ BUZZ: Fresh term for SSS’ Aguilar

Finance veteran Diana Pardo Aguilar has obtained a fresh term as member of the Social Security Commission (SSC), the highest governing body of state-owned pension fund Social Security System. She represents the employers’ group at the commission.

Aguilar first joined the SSC in August 2010 and was reappointed in September 2013 and November 2016, respectively. In other words, President Marcos will be the third President she’ll be working with.

“With her continued presence in the SSC, she is able to provide meaningful and relevant context to various initiatives, especially those that have been initiated in previous administrations,” SSS president and CEO Rolando Ledesma Macasaet said.

As part of the SSC, Aguilar chairs the risk management and investment committee that sets directions in making strategic initiatives and policy reforms that contribute to generating a higher return on investment for the SSS. This includes synchronizing the renewal of accreditations and amending pertinent policy guidelines to enhance transparency in the selection of brokers and governance of investible funds. She is also a member of the audit committee.

Aguilar—the daughter of Philippine Stock Exchange chair Jose Pardo, who was also a former Trade and Finance Secretary—holds concurrent directorships in the fields of banking, investment, and energy, among others. She has been a director and/or senior advisor for Security Bank Corp since 2010 and currently chairs its Trust Committee as well as SB Capital Investment Corp. She is also a director at PXP Energy Corp.

Other members of the SSC are Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno (ex officio chair); SSS president Macasaet (vice-chair); Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma (ex officio member); and Commissioners Anita Bumpus-Quitain, Jose Julio, Manuel Argel Jr., Robert Joseph De Claro and Eva Arcos.

—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla

ShippingCart apology and guarantee

Almost six months after the worst catastrophe in its business began to unfold in slow motion, ShippingCart — the cargo aggregation service that facilitates online shopping overseas and sends them to buyers in the Philippines— issued its most heartfelt apology to date.

In a letter to its clients sent out on Tuesday, the service owned by logistics firm QuadX Inc. virtually fell prostrate and accepted blame for the brouhaha that sent many longtime loyal customers venting their rage on social media.

“We are deeply sorry for the disruptions and delays that you may have experienced as a result of our recent operational challenges,” ShippingCart said. “We understand that these issues caused inconvenience, frustration and even anxiety as you waited for your packages to arrive.”

The trouble began in late November 2022 when the company shifted its warehouse location from California to a new one in Oregon in order to avoid the 11-percent sales tax levied on all online purchases that were being sent to any California address.

Unfortunately, the transition was made close to the so-called Black Friday weekend, which is the busiest online shopping period in North America, thus swamping a new and inexperienced Oregon crew with thousands upon thousands of incoming deliveries.

Yesterday, ShippingCart said its Oregon location was ready to give clients the service they were used to.

“Our team has worked tirelessly to restore the seamless and reliable ShippingCart experience you’ve come to know and love, and we are confident that we have succeeded in doing so,” the firm said.

It added that, as an added enticement, all transactions from May 9 to May 31, 2023, will be covered by a “delivery guarantee.”

“Your shipment is guaranteed to arrive on time, or your shipping fee is on us if it’s delivered beyond 14 days from the date of checkout,” the firm said.

The question now is … can ShippingCart deliver on this promise, literally and figuratively? Abangan!

—Daxim L. Lucas INQ