Atty. Edwin Lacierda, SM consultant, speaks before a recent forum of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines on the job generation advocacy of SM.
SM is expanding its collaboration with the government and industry groups in pursuit of its advocacy for job generation and job matching.
SM is ready to partner with government agencies and private organizations in hosting jobs fairs in its malls nationwide, and roll out upskilling programs to upgrade the local workforce with relevant skills to future-proof companies.
The conglomerate has launched the Job Opportunities Building Skills (J.O.B.S.) advocacy, which embodies the group鈥檚 strong commitment to invest in people and serve as a catalyst to job generation.
SM continues to work with the Private Sector Advisory Council, Department of Labor and Employment, Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Jobstreet by SEEK, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Philippine Exporters Confederation, and other organizations in providing job opportunities and bridging the gap between employers and potential employees.
SM malls have been an effective platform to match jobseekers with employers, connecting promising talent and available opportunities.
Since January 2024, SM has hosted over 100 weekly job fairs in various malls across the country, bringing together around 70,000 jobseekers and over 4,000 potential employers.
Last month, the job fairs recorded its 10,000th hired-on-the-spot, a milestone that positively impacts at least 10,000 Filipino families, bringing them stronger prospects in the future.
SM also developed its own upskilling program within its ecosystem with digital courses like Cloud Foundation, Business Analytics, Fundamentals of Analytics and NoSQL, and Computer Security to equip employees with digital tools that enable them to be more productive and more competitive professionally.
Employees are given microcredential training and short courses developed by the Asia Pacific College and the National University, which are both Ched-designated Centers of Excellence in Information Technology. This upskilling program is intended to be expanded to other companies and institutions to help their employees stay competitive and keep pace with the changing demands of the workforce.
As a jobs accelerator, the group is open to partnering with other stakeholders in achieving economic empowerment by providing job and training opportunities. Interested government agencies and private organizations may reach SM J.O.B.S through email info@smjobs.ph.