Search Opt Media Inc. conquered Puerto Princesa and El Nido.
It has been a year…
Mostly fun.
And a little bit of work…
Looking forward to our next Team Building/Strategic Plan.
Month: May 2015
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C Level My Way
As I was going through my previous posts (that I have to manually copy to this site), I came across this blog. I decided that instead of re-publishing it as is, I’ll post it here instead;
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Risk-based audit
Written by virayvibe on February 10, 2008 – 8:37 am –
First training I attended this year is ‘Adding Value Using Risk-based Auditing.’ This program is awfully familiar to me as I was already trained by SGV and this has been mentioned frequently during my CIA review. So why did I take it? My boss asked me to, so what can I do?
As expected, I was bored to death as I once again encountered slides about audit standards and practice advisories (give me a break!). But thanks to most trainees who happen to be Chief Audit Executives (CAE), I just had this realization.
Four years ago I applied for an analyst position at PNOC-EDC because my batch mate in college advised me that there was an opening. After I passed the exam, I vividly remember how confused I was when the CAE’s secretary called me up to schedule an interview. At that time, who would have thought that audit department needs an engineer to fill an auditor position? But as I was assigned with diverse audit engagements which required me to meet people with varying positions from different places, observe and review unfamiliar procedures, I did not realize that 3 years of rich experience has passed. Yet questioning my audit competency never left my mind because I pursued an engineering course not accountancy. That insecurity, together with the desire to go abroad, pushed me to take the CIA exam.
A year ago, I left EDC knowing that somehow I contributed to its success of being partners with business owners. Gone are the days that auditors were viewed as policemen or ‘cops on the block.’
Now I am already a Certified Internal Auditor and planning to take the CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) in the near future.
So what is my realization then? Surprisingly (to me and I guess to those who I have worked with), I now know what I would want to end up in the future. I would want to be a Chief Audit Executive myself. Based on standards, CAE should report functionally to the Board of Directors specifically the Audit Committee and administratively to the CEO. Not bad for a position eh? Well, I’m gonna push my luck (I don’t want whammy!)… we’ll see.
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Seven years after, that wanting to be a CAE all came back to me. I was far from being one, but I was on the right track then. But God has bigger plans. Now, I am reporting to the CEO (who happens to be my husband who in reality reports to me joke!) and instead of reporting functionally to the Board of Directors, I am one of them. hehe…
Some realizations.
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Story of Randomness
1. We are still in the process of renovating our office. It’s emotionally and financially draining. I don’t know where to get more supply of patience as we wait for it to finally be over. I can’t wait to see the output and I can’t wait to settle all our dues so that we can move on to our next project.
2. I am undergoing splint therapy because of my TMJ disorder. After 6 months, I’d be wearing braces to make the treatment permanent. TMJ has been causing pain in my facial muscles, neck and shoulders for years.
3. What’s the travel plan for 2015? I HAVE NO IDEA! (Can you feel the frustration? haha!) Kidding aside, we’ve been delaying a lot of things because we wanted to focus our resources on our new office. As I’ve said, renovating a vacant 220 sqm office space is not a walk in the park. I am still hopeful we’ll continue the yearly tradition, but just in case nothing pushed through, I’m ready.
4. We’ve been pitching to local brands about our company Propelrr. We’re meeting brand managers, members of the top management, even entrepreneurs themselves to present our company and what we can provide. Definitely a learning experience for a structured engineer-turned-auditor who’s more into financial and operations rather than sales and marketing – that’s me.
5. I am reading a really good book, the Conspiracy of Fools: A True Story. It is about the Enron scandal that led to the bankruptcy of this American energy company. I knew from the very start that it’s going to be a good book, but it turned out to be MORE than I expected. I am learning a lot about running a business from a C-level perspective while enjoying a mystery novel.
6. Our kids are all big! Marcus just turned 16 (the age I met Gary, can you imagine?), and he’ll be in 10th grade this coming school year. He’s now busy helping the company as an intern (not a requirement from his school but from me for him to earn the bass guitar that he’s been asking since last year.) Zach is turning 10, ready for 5th grade, and finally had his circumcision. Lia turned 6 last May and will be a grade schooler in a few months.
Compared to last year, by this time, we’ve already been to Surigao-Japan-Palawan-Baguio. But well, we didn’t have a real office space then. Those travel put together wouldn’t match the cost of the four ceiling-aircon alone that were recently installed in our new office. So nothing to complain about, really.
Pure thanksgiving.