Flexible workplaces are not something every company is able to offer to its employees. One would think that this kind of working environment would only be available for those in higher ranking positions in the company but Mr. Kris Kristoffer Alejandro, president of Aljay Agro-Industrial Solutions Inc., thought differently. He wanted all his employees at Aljay Agro-Industrial Solutions to move around freely while working. That kind of mobility and freedom is something that you would not normally see in an agricultural company. Switching from a desktop to a laptop was not something thought of on the spot. It was an idea by Mr. Alejandro and Mr. Dreivan Orprecio, manager of the IT Department. It was then that they visualized a workplace where employees are not stuck in a single workstation or environment. Instead, they can work at the office, outside the office, or even at the comforts of their home.
When the pandemic started in 2020, Aljay had to quickly think of how to support employees who can only work at the office as equipment such as a laptop/computer is not available in their homes. In the Managers Committee (ManCom) meeting in the past quarter, Mr. Alejandro and Mr. Orprecio discussed how they could change the working style of the company from the usual office-only setting. Mr. Orprecio then started planning with the IT Department on making the vision a reality.
The project “Desktop-to-Laptop Transitioning” sought to eliminate the hurdles the company might face brought by quarantine regulations and sudden power interruptions. The project will help avoid unwanted loss of data. In addition, the employees will have an agile working environment, and on the off-chance the government announces a lockdown, the employees can continue their work in their homes.
Mr. Harvie Bañares, Aljay’s IT support officer, was appointed to lead on this project. He made sure to look at all the possible suppliers and to get the best possible cost-to-benefit ratio for the laptops. In addition to the unit prices and freebies, he also took into consideration that the units to be acquired will still function and can complete tasks inside or outside the office in the next three or more years. This was a legacy project that the IT Department had planned for 2021
The laptops arrived at the main office on the 23rd of June 2021. A month was used to set up and test all the units to achieve perfect working conditions. Other employees in the department helped make sure that all the units were stocked, organized, and put in the Inventory Asset Management System before releasing them to their custodians. Everything took four months to complete.
The project not only helped all the employees to work outside the office, but also prevented loss or corruption of data from sudden power interruptions. Employees can now work and can even connect to the improved office Wi-Fi which now has a wider range or in their homes should they have one.
From being limited to the front of the office desk to working anywhere. From having to worry about power outages to having a back-up power supply from a battery. With the project, Aljay Agro-Industrial Solutions is slowly moving forward in the direction of a new age, pioneering the future of agriculture.
Written by: Marc Joseph Manuel, IT Support Officer