Raffy Lopez delivers his acceptance speech. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla.
ABS-CBN Global Ltd. chief operations officer Raffy L. Lopez won a Communication Excellence in Organizations (CEO EXCEL) award from the prestigious International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Philippines for his strategic leadership and effective use of communication in rebranding the pioneering The Filipino Channel (TFC) that connects Filipinos worlwide and paying tribute to global Filipinos via the “Tayo ang TFC” campaign.
“We undertook massive efforts to understand our customer’s needs in the past years. This understanding of the customer’s evolution and the Overseas Filipinos’ renewed state of being, allowed our company to modernize and update the TFC brand and its meaning. As a result, the messaging and our initiatives are more relevant to the Overseas Filipino,” said Lopez upon accepting the award.
The CEO EXCEL Award is a prestigious award given to top Philippine-based business leaders who use excellent communication as a business strategy to achieve targets, build relationships of trust, and uphold the organization’s reputation.
Lopez, who was cited in the category “Media, Advertising, PR, Entertainment, Special Events and Sports,” deemed the award as a validation of all the hard work of the entire organization, with presence in the Philippines, U.S., Canada, Europe, Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, Asia-Pacific, Japan and Korea.
“With my team being comprised of Overseas Filipinos themselves, our lives are our message. We go through the same journey as the people whom we serve. This is why our communication bears truth and authenticity, which when applied to relationships with our customers, enable, empower and transform,” he added.
The Filipino Channel (TFC) reaches up to 2.5 million Filipinos worldwide. It was rebranded with a key message to remind OFWs that they are a global community whose achievements contribute to the image and status of Filipinos abroad and help the homeland’s economy. They serve as flames whose bright light shine around the world, bringing joy, pride, a sense of Filipino home, family and community.
“Tayo ang TFC,” on the other hand, is music video that pays tribute to OFWs by reflecting their experiences and struggles in a foreign land and how TFC became part of their life overseas.
The theme song with the same title was sung by world champion Jed Madela.
Lopez has been COO of ABS-CBN Global since 2004. He started as the Information Technology Head of ABS-CBN International in North America in 1994. Prior to this, he spent 12 years working as a systems analyst for Bell Atlantic.
He graduated from the San Francisco State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music. He also obtained a degree in Computer Programming from Control Data Institute and completed the Stanford Business Executive Program for Executives in 2002.
In 2010, the IABC Philippines conferred on Lopez Group chairman Oscar M. Lopez its highest award, the Lifetime Achievement Award in the 2010 CEO Excel Awards. In the same year, ABS-CBN president Charo Santos Concio and ABS-CBN Foundation inc. managing director Gina Lopez won CEO excel awards. Santos-Concio was recognized in the field of Media, Advertising, PR, Entertainment, Special Events and Sports category, while Lopez was honored in the Non-Government Organizations, Corporate Foundations, Industry Associations and Civil Society category. Last year, ABS-CBN Manila Radio Division head Peter Musngi was recognized for for his strategic leadership and effective use of communication in steering DZMM’s key projects ranging from a vigilant election coverage to an innovative mobile shower van to help Ondoy victims.
IABC is a global network of more than 14,000 business communication professionals in over 60 countries. The Philippines is the first IABC chapter outside North America.
