Not to blow our own horn, but at Truelogic, we work hard. Something we’re equally great at? Knowing how to party. Last December 17, the entire team donned their tie-dye shirts and ironic, thrift-store outfits to take over the Privé Luxury Club at The Fort Strip, BGC for a night of sick beats and groovy dance moves.
The doors opened at 5:30 PM, and with it, access to the beloved party staple: the photoboth. Early birds had a blast showing off their hipster and hippie ensembles while waiting for the other party guests to arrive. After exhausting their poses (or were taking a break in between their photoshoot) employees and guests cooled off at the bar and buffet for pre-drinks and light meal. The diligent staff of Privé made sure to prepare a scrumptious spread for everyone as they waited for the official program to start.
FIND YOUR MATCH — OR DANCE!
To kick off the night, host Chewy Buhion led a game called Find Your Match. The rules were simple: bracelet pairs that were given out to guests during registration should match another person’s. Those who found themselves flying solo had to engage in an epic dance-off that showcased their dance skills. Cesar Jucutan and Leo Lutero pumped up the crowd with their sick moves, earning them both a win.
With everybody’s full attention now on the stage, Truelogic’s General Manager Bernard San Juan III officially welcomed everyone to the party by sharing the two emotions he feels every time he steps into the office: a sense of achievement when things are going well and an even stronger sense of hope for things to go better the next time around.
He wrapped up his speech with the best wishes for the coming year — but, before that, he wished everyone luck on the much awaited event of the night: the series of year-end group performances.
THE MAIN EVENT (WITH A SIDE OF RAFFLE PRIZES)
In an unprecedented move, the Truelogic team was split into five groups: the combined forces of Ops, Workforce, and Training made up the first team; Sales had the honor of being the second group; R&D, Marketing, HRA, IT, and Finance peopled the third; the fourth group consisted of the creatives in Content; and, last but not the least, was the diverse mix of Social Media, PPC, Web Dev, PDQA, and Motion Graphics representing the fifth group. As there were only three spots for the five determined teams to battle over, the competition was understandably tight this year.
To keep things interesting, prizes were raffled off between every performance.
THE GROOVIEST GETUPS OF THE NIGHT
After everyone had their turn at showing how hardcore hip they were as a group, it was time to call on the people who stood out and owned their Hippie or Hipster look as individuals. Anica Alfelor, Maya Guilatco, Natali Maharaban, Issa Bautista, and Angie Duarte were the five peace-loving Hippie finalists, while Reed Gabagat, Edison Pablo, Pauline Feraren, Sam Pingol, and Lester Santiago filled out the beanie-wearing, Starbucks-toting ranks of the Hipsters. To complete the event, each candidate was asked why they were the hippiest-hipster or the most hipster-like hipster of the night. Their answers were both ingenious and true to their character — they really wanted to win this!
THE PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS
What would the year-end party be without looking back at the past year and acknowledging the stars who shone bright for the company? We’ll never know, because the People’s Choice Awards recognized the most dedicated employees of the past year:
For Sales, Pao Durias was awarded the Chillax Award for never getting shocked, pressured, or nervous about anything and somehow always delivering. On the other hand, CJ Masungsong got the Customer Whisperer Award for being the first person on the list to call when irate customers need to be kept calm.
Operations gave Albert Garrigo the YOLO Award for always being willing to take risks, while Sam Enriquez got the Savage Award for being the bad-ass who had the guts to say and do what nobody else would do.
Grisel Garcia was crowned the Pop Culture Pro for always being up-to-date on the latest shows and trends. Meanwhile Andy Carolino got the Bermuda Triangle Award because, somehow, the things on her desk always seemed to get lost and never return. Here’s to hoping that she doesn’t leave her award on her desk.
R&D and Marketing’s Avi Baladad was named the punniest with the Punny Award for her clever wordplay. Rachelle Tan, meanwhile, received the Mama Bear Award for being the much-appreciated caretaker of the bunch.
The Support Groups’ very own Eugene Pidlaoan got “The Man” Award for always making sure that everybody followed the rules and that nobody got into trouble with the boss. Meanwhile, Tin Refuerzo’s Neatest Nook Award is a testament to her desk, which is so clean, you could eat off of it (we neither confirm nor deny trying this out).
There were also general awards which were open to the Truelogic team as a whole:
Andy Carolino won the Groovy Award for her constant, all-around good vibes. CJ Masungsong won the Butterfly Award for literally knowing and being friends with everyone.
The Pen Stealer Award was a tie between Denis Ayeng and Tazeana Tan, who both have a rep for always walking off with other people’s pens.
Rob Rosales won the Forever on Fleek Award because his default outfits always make him look on-point. Meanwhile, Jymyl Bandong won Rookie of the Year for being such a rockstar at his job.
Finally, Tazeana Tan, Ashley Petallano, and Ivan Noche shared the Hip-Star Award. It was a testament to their outstanding attendance record in 2016.
THE GAME CHANGERS OF THE YEAR
Things got serious as, after the awarding of the People’s Choice Awards, CEO Itamar Gero and the department managers stepped on stage to recognize the individuals who had been crucial to the successful operations of the team in the past year. They are as follows:
SEO: Elzer Ramos Ops: Sam Enriquez
Sales: Paolo Durias and CJ Masungsong Content: Mike Dimaano, Tazeana Tan, Andy Carolino
R&D: Bordy Bordeos and Jymyl Bandong Marketing: Imee Roa
Finance: Pam Fernandez Itamar’s Pick: Lydia Rodillo
HRA: Lydia Rodillo
THE MOMENT THAT WE’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR…
By this time, the judges already had results for the Best in Costume and the Best Performance awards.
For the first category, Pauline Feraren and Angie Duarte took home the prizes for being the best-dressed and most in-character of the Hipster and Hippie bunches, respectively. Both hail from the Content Department and their awards are a testimony to the team’s creativity.
The results for the Group Performances made the crowd go wild: In first place and winning Php 20,000 was the Content Department with their intriguing skit about Hippies kidnapping Hipsters in the name of peace. Last year’s grand prize winner, the Sales Department, came up second, bagging a pot of Php 10,000. The merry, meta band of Social Media, PPC, Web Dev, PDQA, and Motion Graphics took home the third place prize with Php 5,000.
Before closing the night, Itamar was invited on stage to draw the winner of the major raffle: an LG43″ LED TV and DVD Player. Since Truelogic has been active for seven years, he stated that the seventh name drawn would be the lucky duck who got to take home the prize. This turned out to be none other than Hipster of the Night, Pauline Feraren.
With the program run through and the grand prizes awarded, the party was officially ending — but the night was just starting. After bidding everybody a happy holidays, Itamar gave the floor over to DJ Therese Garcia, who had everyone busting out their moves in short order. It was the perfect ending to a great night. Truly, nothing could have ended the year better for Truelogic. Until the next!
