Manila Water’s HR task has just begun

The most important resource of Ayala-led Manila Water Company Inc. is not water, according to Ruel T. Maranan, group director for corporate resources.

Surely, water is important, being the company’s main product. But to sustainably produce, distribute and promote its own product, Manila Water as a company needs its people, its human resources.

Or more to the point, Maranan says, Manila Water nurtures its human resources and develop them into “humane resources” that are dedicated to giving customers their best.

“Our clients are the poorest of the poor and the richest of the rich. Being well-rounded and flexible, knowing how to deal with different sorts of people and making decisions on the ground, where things can be chaotic and complex, is important,” Maranan says.

Talk about making decisions “on the ground.” Maranan himself recalls being chased by a dog along Agham Road in Quezon City when he was checking a water meter during one of the company’s many “immersion” courses.

He has had to deal as well with informal settlers initially hostile to a uniformed “salary man,” with community leaders, and with individuals who had their own spheres of influence.

On the good side, he has also met people whose lives had changed with having access to water: mothers counting their savings from having to pay water bills instead of buying water at a more expensive price from roving water trucks; young workers not having to wait until midnight to get enough water pressure for a bath; or even children being able to play and study instead of lining up all day to get water at a community well.

“It makes one realize what we mean when we say we are not just selling water, we are improving lives,” he says. “Going on the ground, learning to read water meters, meeting regular customers face to face, these experiences humble us and make us realize the important role our jobs play in delivering safe and reliable water supply to our customers.”

This gives personnel a sense of dignity and self-respect, Maranan says.

Besides community immersions, Maranan says Manila Water also invests in various “interest groups” such as the cycling club, running club and photography club, among others. Employees are also asked what career path they would like to take. Depending on his goal, each employee is given a course list: seminars and workshops, each with a syllabus.

“It’s much like going through college, only with more on-the-job cross-training and field study. We want employees to be aware of how other departments work, and of how they can contribute to other departments as well as their own,” Marananan says.

“For example, even if I’m in HR, I can take tipoffs on illegal connections and report it to the proper department. Friends I’ve made in the districts where I was immersed are texting me who have illegal connections!” he says.

Having an engaged workforce does not come easy.

Back in 1997, he says, Manila Water became one of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System’s (MWSS) water concessionaires for Metro Manila. Former MWSS employees, who still make up the bulk of Manila Water’s employees, had to shift from government to private sector setup under Manila Water.

First, the Ayala-led company invested in improving the physical structures in the workplace and upgraded facilities. Next, it invested in “soft infrastructure,” including values reorientation and skills training programs. Slowly but surely, customers and other stakeholders began to notice improvements in terms of service.

Maranan says that when he joined Manila Water from Globe Telecom in 2004, he had a vision: for Manila Water to win the Employer of the Year Award in 2006. At first the employees were skeptical, but two years later, the company’s faith in its people bore visible fruit, so to speak. Manila Water bagged the award from the People Management Association of the Philippines on the latter’s 50th anniversary.

“The people taking the survey discreetly approached random employees, most of them legacy workers. And they noted that they were surprised at the level of satisfaction and alignment the people had with the company. They even said that since they gave such short notice on the date of the survey, the company management was either very good at brainwashing or the people were really motivated,” Maranan says, chuckling at the memory.

Manila Water as a company, as well as its human resources, has been recognized many times since.

How does a company succeed in ever-changing times the way Manila Water weathered the transition of government employees to private service providers, despite the Asian currency crisis and the El Niño phenomenon? Maranan says a company must develop in its employees on four things: openness, presence of mind, acceptance of diversity and alignment.

“Build up their confidence, reinforce quick wins to build good habits, and welcome initiative. Fight if you want during brainstorming and meetings, but when a decision has been made, you have to speak as one voice when you step out of the meeting room,” Maranan says.

With so many achievements, what else is in store for Manila Water?

“We will need people for international and national expansion. It will be a whole new set of parameters. We are giving them opportunities and we want people who can make decisions whether they are in Manila or in India or in Vietnam,” Maranan says.

With Manila Water aggressively expanding outside Metro Manila and even abroad, it seems the work of the company’s “humane resources” has just begun.