ABS-CBN’s Journey to Digital Success

Many organizations are in different stages of digital transformation. Leaders are ahead of the game – upskilling, learning, and innovating. It is a continuous effort of constant iterations and improvements. CDM talked to ABS-CBN Corporation’s Elaine Uy-Casipit, the Head of iWant & OIC-Head Digital Media, and Chase Sinsuan, the Head of Learning and Development, to understand their experiences with their ongoing digital transformation journey.

CDM: How is ABS–CBN transforming as an organization in this age of digital?
Elaine: When we came in, we started with the whole organization from the ground up, trying to build a new team that will transition the company to new products and services. Today, we are doing another round of transformation, which is always a work in progress for the organization.

CDM: As an organization, where do you picture ABS–CBN to be in the future?
Elaine: We don’t have a final destination when it comes to “we need to be this type of organization by when.” ABS–CBN has always embraced an agile and digital transformation attitude wherein we try to transition our skills based on supporting our core business and being able to adapt quickly to the changing landscape of digital – at least in the country, as well as, our ambition to be present abroad.

CDM: What has changed in the goals that your team has for transformation?
Elaine: Five (5) years ago, our hiring has been very different from what it is today. We used to hire your normal account executives to handle the different lines of businesses – for example, having the creatives team to just come up with a website and basic analytics functions. But, today, we need to hire someone who does very intense UI & UX design, search engine optimization (SEO), and a lot of E-Commerce capabilities for our products internally.

Our training has never been more focused to upskill the current people that we have on board. We now blend the fresh hires with the experienced, which we also practice externally as well, to help us in our digital transformation.

CDM: Why did you choose CDM to become your digital transformation partner?
Chase: CDM is an expert in digital marketing training. So, the initial plan was to certify everybody in digital marketing – the 7 Ps of marketing, the CDM certification program – that was the initial plan. However, as the organization grew and evolved into a more digital powerhouse with various lines of business, which ABS–CBN is really unique for, we had to slowly move away from just the initial plan of getting everyone only a digital marketing certificate altogether.

Now, we include more skills and competencies that address the different needs of the company. So, in terms of digital, marketing and advertising is there, but we also talk about experiences – brand experiences, designing experiences, customer experiences, also data analytics – how to use data to develop content, path to advertising, path to product and development; we also talk about transmedia storytelling.

Our training has become a mix of both technical, which CDM is really known for, and also a lot of content creation competencies, which ABS–CBN is really known for as well. We’re a content business so it’s important for us to have specific skill sets, areas of expertise, where we focus on content and how content can achieve our revenue targets.

CDM: As your transformation partner, what was the partnership like with CDM?
Chase: The relationship that we built with CDM is built on trust and collaboration. We trust CDM to provide us with top-notch experts and thought leaders in the fields that we need. It’s a no-brainer that CDM is the best choice for that because either the Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are already with CDM or they’ve never been heard of at all – and that’s the strength of CDM – the wide-ranging network of expertise and SMEs that they have.

CDM does not just deliver off-the-shelf programs; but together, we customized them based on the different needs of the company. The way that we worked with CDM is by partnering with the training experts and also the SMEs to create a program that is holistic. In the end, we came up with a program that not only aligns with the needs of the businesses that attend the program but also help them achieve the different targets.

CDM: What has been the biggest takeaway your digital transformation process?
Chase: In our digital transformation journey, one of our biggest improvements is having the ability to become customer-centric. CDM supported us to build that mindset, that strength in understanding that you need to have adaptability. To become a more digital organization and to transform into an agile team is to have that mindset that allows you to keep on growing and to keep on learning – and I think that’s what CDM really stands for.

If you would like to discover more of what Elaine and Chase have to say, watch their CDM testimonial video below to see more of ABS–CBN’s Journey to Digital Success.

Are you interested in charting your own digital transformation journey? CDM can help. You can browse our Exclusive Corporate Programs and Leadership Corporate Programs and see what off-the-shelf programs will fit your business needs. You can also reach out to us if you are looking for more bespoke solutions.