President's Inaugural Speech

I am very honored to take on the presidency of the Philippine Computer Society as well as very frightened by this immense responsibility. A bit like Atlas carrying the world on his shoulders. The good news is that I know I am not alone in this effort - there is the incoming Board to support me - a very able set of officers for the year, as well as the outgoing Board - a group who has proven their competence. Oh yes, the outgoing Board, led by President Vic, is not getting off so easily. We will still need your help and expertise in this coming year. There are also the past Presidents of the PCS, many of whom have promised their support.

And there are the officers and representatives of the various IT organizations. We have a common overarching objective, all relating to the growth and development of ICT, and I hope that we will be working together closely I the coming year.

There is also our PCS membership. I have been circulating a bit these past 2 days and gathering pledges of help and participation for the coming year. If I haven’t come to you yet, do let me have your business card.

For all of us, what lies ahead is the opportunity of achievement, of making a contribution to the IT industry, as well as gaining or honing skills that add value to ourselves.

Hopefully, all of you are now asking yourselves, what can we do in the coming PCS year? What kind of contribution can I make?

The PCS is an association of IT professionals who believe in “Building Excellence in the IT Profession”. We will be building excellence, at the individual association, and industry level, on the theme “Looking Forward . . . Reaching Out”.

Looking forward, on an individual level, we will continue to provide opportunities for the IT professional to be attuned to developments in technology and its possible impact on our lives, developing the IQ side of ourselves, as well as the emotional, physical and spiritual side of ourselves, or what we call the EQ side. These opportunities will be made available through our Monthly Membership Meetings, our monthly Professional Development Programs, and various other events, such as our nationwide outreach program called “Synchronicity”, a PCS Homecoming, various sports events, and of course the IT Congress next year.

Among our relevant development programs this year is an added focus on certification. We would like our IT professionals to know about globally accepted certification programs that are available and help them achieve these standards, making for world-class IT professionals. By the way, I am a founding member of the JITSE-Phil Foundation, offering the Japanese IT Standard Examination in the Philippines.

We will recognize excellence through our newly instituted annual Outstanding CIO Award. The first awarding ceremony was conducted last night, and our Outstanding CIO for the year is Dr. Ronaldo Tan.

We will strengthen the Junior PCS, a group now 3,000 strong, and help new graduates make the transition from student to IT professional.

On the industry level, our work for the coming year has been cut out for us. We are reaching out through a project of national importance that we are legally mandated to participate in - the automated election project based on RA 8436. You may be surprised, as I was, to know that the PCS is actually named in the law. Based on this law, the PCS contributes 2 private-sector representatives to the Advisory Council of the Commission on Elections, headed by Comelec Chairman Abalos, established for the automated election project, to be implemented in the 2004 national elections. Our representatives to the Advisory Council are Mon Ibrahim and Ed Castañeda.

Apart from our legally-mandated participation the Advisory Council, the PCS has also been working hand in hand with the Comelec project management team for automated elections, headed by Commissioner Rex Borra. We have been extending our technical expertise and experience to the Comelec since early this year. Our members who have been extending their time and energy, pro bono to the Comelec are Tony Tinsay, Nelson Celis, Bobby Mauricio, Vic Magdaraog and myself. Bobby has since joined the project proponent and Titus Manuel has so kindly (or so innocently) agreed to take his place.

Automated elections is of national importance as it will touch the lives of all Filipinos of voting age. I believe this includes everyone in this room. Being technology professionals, we can only support this move by our government and are doing all we can to achieve a successful automated election exercise in 2004.

Reaching out once more, we are working and coordinating with other ICT associations and related industry groups whenever there are opportunities for synergy. As mentioned earlier, we all have a very broad common goal, and there are occasions when working together allows us to make a bigger contribution than working individually. As an example, our Synchronicity events are in coordination with COMDDAP, ISSSP and PSITE. Through these events, we are also reaching out nationwide.

As you can see, we have a lot to do in the coming year. Your incoming Board has been meeting and planning since our election last April, and have been working hand-in-hand with the outgoing Board to ensure a smooth transition. But we cannot do everything ourselves. We need the active involvement and participation of our membership, as well as encouragement and support from our colleagues in other ICT associations, our sponsors, and government to see these through.

I can offer anyone who would like to make a difference a lot of work in the coming year, a year of challenges and difficulties and possibly great achievement.

Thank you.