Camp COMCO Cycle 20 apprentices have concluded their mentorship program with an intense House Wars pitch competition in partnership with EXL Service Philippines, Inc.
To cap off Cycle 20 of the Camp COMCO Mentorship Program, apprentices from the four Camp COMCO Houses – Bearcat, Flyingfox, Hawksbill, and Whaleshark – showcased their accumulated learnings and skills through a strategic plan for a client. This year, apprentices presented their ideas to EXL Service Philippines, Inc., a professional services company focusing on business, insurance, technology, health and life sciences, data analytics, digital transformation, and more.
EXL is a multinational company with locations in Manila, Cebu, and Iloilo. Just as the company values its clients, EXL also values its own employees and puts teamwork, collaboration and service to the community first through strong internal communication and relationship-building.
For House Wars Cycle 20, Elaine Gallardo, AVP for Corporate Communications of EXL, gave Camp COMCO apprentices the opportunity to propose their ideas to promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives within the company, specifically targeted towards the company’s LGBTQIA+ community.
After a briefing session with the apprentices, the challenge was set – to develop a five-slide DE&I plan within one week. Apprentices worked and toiled for seven days to come up with plans for EXL’s pride community, which they then pitched to Ms. Gallardo who judged and scored the different presentations.
“I’m thankful and honored to be with young minds just starting out in the industry. I’m amazed and surprised that they’ve all shown very good presentations. With just a little tweak, these proposals can already be compared side-by-side with professional presentations,” shared Ms. Gallardo. “Some apprentices focused on insights, some on platforms of communication, and some banked on visual executions. The plans exceeded my expectations – they have great minds and I’m excited to see what more they can do in the future. In this early stage of their career, they can already make those presentations – when they are honed with proper guidance and mentors, no doubt that they will make it big in this industry.”
At the end of an intense pitching session, House Flyingfox comprised of Louise Gamboa and Brian Roa, and headed by Queenie Resmundo bagged the title of Grand Champion, followed by House Hawksbill as 1st Runner-Up, House Whaleshark as 2nd Runner-Up, and House Bearcat as 3rd Runner-Up.
House Flyingfox is crowned Grand Champion and awarded with the Best in Presentation and Best in Execution Awards
“Leading House Flyingfox, has always been a rewarding experience regardless of the outcome. I always thank COMCO for giving us the opportunity to foster collaboration and mentorship to our camp apprentices. We hope our graduates have learned valuable experiences that they can use in their careers in the near future. I’m proud to have led the champion house this year,” said Queenie Resmundo, House Steward for Flyingfox and Account Operations Manager and Business Unit Administrator Pro Tempore for Public Relations and Communications of COMCO Southeast Asia.
House Hawksbill is crowned 1st runner-up and awarded with the Best in Creativity Award
House Whaleshark is crowned 2nd runner-up and awarded with the Best in Research & Insights and Best in Strategy Awards
House Bearcat is crowned 3rd runner-up and awarded with the Best Use of Media Award
House Flyingfox member and COMCO Southeast Asia Brand Communications Associate Louise Gamboa also shared a short message about her House Wars experience. “I am truly grateful for the invaluable experience that I’ve gained in Camp COMCO. The skills and knowledge I acquired became instrumental during the House Wars. Despite the challenging preparation, we persevered and worked tirelessly on our pitch. However, it was the guidance of our steward, Queenie Resmundo, and the support from House Flyingfox alumna Paula Sison, that truly led us to success. Their guidance and assistance were the pillars that strengthened our journey, enabling us to triumph against the odds,” shared Ms. Gamboa.
House Flyingfox member and Camp COMCO Cycle 20 apprentice Brian Roa thought it was an unforeseen result, saying, “If I were to summarize my House Wars journey into a phrase, it would be ‘unexpected, yet deserved’…I only aspire to do my best with whatever task is given to me, and we indeed delivered our best.”
House Wars continues to serve as an application of the knowledge and skills that Camp COMCO apprentices have learned during their mentorship program. Apprentices are confronted with an experience that allows them to apply their strategic planning, critical thinking and communication skills to come up with feasible insights-driven solutions for clients. Different brands have partnered with COMCO Mundo for House Wars, resulting in different kinds of pitches and presentations per cycle that continue to challenge apprentices and give them a deeper understanding of the field of public relations and communications.
“The House Wars is an enriching experience for our COMCOwans. Along with their immersion in the mentorship program, their experience in this intensive project and with their mentors make each of them winners. I am truly proud of Cycle 20, the biggest one yet, for producing and pitching their well-thought-of and inclusive campaigns highlighting the LGBTQIA+ community. Ultimately, with the conclusion of House Wars as well as their time in the mentorship program, I hope their experiences during Camp COMCO equipped them with the skills they need as they strive to become fully-fledged communications professionals and ignited ideas that will be brought to life once they enter the industry,” said Ferdinand L. Bondoy, Group Chief Executive Director and Lead Strategic Communications Counsel / Partner and Co-Founder of COMCO Mundo League of Enterprises and founder of the Camp COMCO Mentorship Program.
COMCO Mundo League of Enterprises will open Cycle 21 of the Camp COMCO Mentorship Program this coming January 2024 to young creative rebels who are looking to push the boundaries of New PR and Smart Social. Students and fresh graduates from the fields of Communications, Journalism, Marketing, Multimedia Arts, and other related disciplines can send their CVs to headquarters@comcomundo.com.
To know more and stay updated with COMCO Mundo, please visit www.comcomundo.com or follow fb.com/comcomundo on Facebook, linkedin.com/company/comcomundo on LinkedIn and @comcomundo on Instagram. Find out more about the Camp COMCO Mentorship Program at www.comcomundo.com/camp-comco.
About Camp COMCO Mentorship Program
Built by the Agency’s pool of experts, Camp COMCO Mentorship Program is an intensive and comprehensive talent incubation initiative, industry linkage course, and apprenticeship program designed to transform communication, marketing, and multimedia arts students and fresh graduates into revolutionary practitioners of the industry. Camp COMCO House Wars is nominated for Top Award in Communication Training and Education at the prestigious 19th IABC Quill Awards.
About COMCO Mundo League of Enterprises
A trailblazing and global award-winning communications group, COMCO Mundo League of Enterprises is a collective of agencies and programs dedicated to advancing the communications profession and related disciplines such as digital, media, advocacy, training, education, and entrepreneurship, among others; to be a force for social change; to nurturing talent growth and workplace community culture; and to championing borderless collaboration. The COMCO Mundo League of Enterprises is comprised of COMCO Southeast Asia Philippines, COMCO Middle East & Africa, TARO AOX Inc., COMCO Southeast Asia Singapore, SEA Wave & Spice Multimedia Content Studio, Camp COMCO Alumni Society, and Citizen COMCO Advocacy Program.
COMCO has been awarded Medium Consultancy of the Year in Asia Pacific at PRCA APAC Awards, thrice as Agency of the Year 2nd Runner-up at the IABC Quill Awards; Agency of the Year – Silver Award at the ASEAN PR Excellence Awards; Finalist for Boutique PR Consultancy of the Year at Campaign Asia Pacific’s PR Awards Asia, Marketing Interactive’s PR Awards Asia-Pacific, and the global CIPR Excellence Awards; and 150 metals from various local and international award-giving bodies.