In a March 10, 2021 hearing led by Senator Grace Poe, DITO Telecommunity celebrates a committee-level triumph in their bid for a 25-year franchise approval. Although far from its official pronouncement as the country’s third communications provider, it is nonetheless a dial closer to making their ‘hello’ more audible.
An Alike Exclusive
Building Binary Bridges – Atty. Adel Tamano on DITO Telecommunity’s launch, outmaneuvering rivals, and commitment to nation-building.
Communicating Commitment
What a company, especially a start-up, asks of a rank-and-file employee versus a shareholder is that the latter has very real skin in the game. For former host, senatorial aspirant, Atty. Adel Tamano — that investment involves nearly constant effort. “The right word to describe my work is probably dynamic,” says DITO’s suave public relations man, “I put on many hats in the course of the day. The most rewarding aspect for me is the chance I have been given to provide a better quality of life for the people we serve as part of DITO’s management.”
To facilitate his workflow, Adel keeps routines. He wakes early, around 5 am, does yoga online, and engages in light exercise. His physically focused schedule is no joke, in part because his job requires him to be physically present in DITO’s presscons. “The most challenging aspect of being a spokesperson truly is the responsibility of being front and center in taking care of the reputation of the company.” And while Atty. Tamano’s default strategy has always been to tell the truth in the simplest terms, it doesn’t hurt to have a messenger that matches the message. “It is honesty and integrity — and believe me, the people you face — the media, the general public knows.”
Thankfully, Adel Tamano’s visage comes with considerable function. As a lawyer and a legal analyst, and in previous endeavors such as serving as Vice President for Public Affairs and Communications of a multinational company, Adel Tamano’s formal training involves a deep understanding of laws, as well as an education in economic theory. “Aside from it being a great precursor for the practice of law, economics attracted me initially because of its versatility in being applied to any field,” says the economics major from Ateneo, “I’ve always seen the study of economics as a crucial driver in efficient problem-solving and the search for sustainable growth and success in today’s world.”
And in the current telco climate of David-versus-Goliaths, where profits are made off centavos on the peso, and the price of connectivity could cost DITO its franchise, no one can fault Atty. Adel and his team for loading their sling with every rock they can find.
David versus Goliaths
Despite Globe and Smart’s overwhelming duopoly of the local market, in six months, Adel predicts DITO to have surpassed their 2nd-year commitment of providing minimum average speeds of 55mbps and expand coverage to cover 84% of the population within five years. Their rivals disagree. Joachim Horn, Next Generation Technology Solutions Advisor of Smart Communications, Inc., said in a previous interview that SMART is not worried that DITO would easily gain the upper hand in the industry, stressing that DITO will “take a long time to catch up.” In contrast to Smart throwing millions of pesos on its endorsers, Adel and the team have decided to invest in towers and systems, as well as frontliners. “Frontliners are the network’s celebrity endorsers,” he says, “The public is our best endorser. We would rather spend our money to improve our network rollout.”
Indeed, DITO kicked off its commercial launch on March 8, 2021 by giving away 300 SIM cards and mobile phones to frontline health workers in Davao, and 2700 SIM cards to frontliners in other places in Visayas and Mindanao. “But once the fight becomes service versus service, then our target market share will take care of itself,” says Adel, “I’m not really concerned about (current numbers) that’s gonna be good for the consumers.”
With 2021 shaping up to be a year when Adel Tamano’s DITO promises end up becoming true or remain dreams with a deadline, like DITO’s profits — up in the air. What remains to be seen is how the Philippine public reacts to DITO’s services, how that response affects congress’ approval of DITO’s 25-year franchise application, and how Adel and his team manage to link together Filipinos across very lucrative binary bridges.
“2021 is the year we finally begin to reap the fruits of our labor,” says the ever-optimistic Chief Administrative Officer, “with the obvious need for stronger connectivity as our children study from home and a number work from home, we definitely deserve it.” It’s a commitment to nation-building Atty. Adel Tamano stands behind — and certainly a grateful country would gladly say —
‘buti andDITO ka na’ one day.
“2021 is the year we finally begin to reap the fruits of our labor,” says the ever-optimistic Chief Administrative Officer, “with the obvious need for stronger connectivity as our children study from home and a number work from home, we definitely deserve it.” It’s a commitment to nation-building Atty. Adel Tamano stands behind — and certainly a grateful country would gladly say —
‘buti andDITO ka na’ one day.
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