Be an Entrepreneur, Create Jobs

A core human resource challenge in the country today is job generation and employment. In fact the People Management Association of the Philippines has started to give this advocacy priority. For indeed having a job determines whether one survives and is able to take care of the needs of his family. A job or source of livelihood is  essential to avoid or alleviate poverty. Today  responsible entrepreneurship is one of the answers to job and livelihood generation

BELLA RESORTS

Last week Ancilla my company composed of 28 head office employees headed for  Bella Resorts in Matabungkay, Batangas. We found this simple resort that is clean, with a swimming pool, fronting the beach.  We were met by the manager. But I noticed this elegantly dressed lady cooking in the kitchen. Intuitively I asked if she was Bella and she was.

My writer's curiosity piqued I decided to interview her. She is Bella Dizon, born in Manila, from Filipino-Spanish parents, a former Karilagan model, who migrated with her first husband to Australia, spending 33 years in her adopted country. She raised 3 boys who are all professionals today.

Bella also represents a model Filipina who simply retires and transforms herself depending on the circumstances. She started her carreer as executive secretary, then in Australia studied to become a registered nurse, then later turned restaurant entrepreneur, now she is a resort owner (cum cook).  As we chatted away, I can sense her state of accomplishment and fulfillment. She is proud of his sons who are all professionals or entrepreneurs.

Then in 2006, after vacationing at Matabungkay Hotel she decided to purchase a retirement place fronting the beach. She built a beautiful house spending pristine days admiring the beach, the rolling waves and the lovely sunsets. However as the days passed she started to feel bored and lonely. She also saw the need of the community in the Ligtasan sitio for work . She gathered this through interaction with those who helped around her house. Multi talented she loves cooking, in Australia she worked as a nurse and even set up a rib and chicken place.  One thing she learned from her dementia patients is to always keep busy and make the mind work.

More people are coming to her place convinced mainly by word of mouth from customers.  It is only recently that she developed a web site. Soon the nipa huts gave way to more concrete air-conditioned rooms that mark her resort today. She employs 4 regular staff and 8 contingent staff who help out when the number of guests increase. Her mission today is to generate jobs and be of service to the community. Her resort now accommodates comfortably 60 to 70 guests.

She has  a vision for her resort. She wants to expand its capacity to be able to hire more people. She wants the resort to be a model to the locals of  a functional yet clean place. She recently hosted the wedding of an Australian marrying a Filipina. She entertained 130 visitors showing her the possibilities for tourism in the future, also for a lot of local celebrations such as christenings and anniversary parties. She is also bent on continuous improvement.

When asked how well her resort is doing, she smiles and says she delights in taking a vacation overseas once a year. She believes in hard work as well as in recreation. When asked about the values she instills in her staff she  emphasized fairness and  discipline. She also believes in managing the levels of stress of the staff.

Our wish and dream is for more Filipinos who have worked overseas to come retire and invest in our country and generate jobs. We congratulate Bela for her successful coming home transition to a new role.


Photos from: www.facebook.com/bella.beach.1