TELUS Digital Philippines, a leader in AI-powered customer experience and business process solutions, is setting a new standard for leadership development for its team members. The company believes that thriving next-gen leaders need a unique blend of skills, from strategic leadership and team building to stakeholder management and driving innovation. These competencies are fostered through a multifaceted approach combining targeted training, mentorship opportunities and a collaborative culture that empowers individuals to realize their full potential.

TELUS Digital Philippines takes a unique approach to leadership development by prioritizing diversity and inclusion, ensuring that all team members have access to leadership development opportunities such as inclusive promotion practices, targeted hiring initiatives, and specialized bias and inclusion training. The company’s success in nurturing leadership talent is reflected in its consistently high employee engagement scores (above 89% from 2019-2024) and low attrition rates, significantly outperforming other companies in the IT and BPO industry.

“Our goal is to transform the way people learn at TELUS Digital Philippines by enabling personal and professional growth to deliver exceptional customer experiences,” says Vic Catanghal, General Manager, Learning & Development, TELUS Digital Philippines. “We utilize a competency-based framework to develop targeted learning strategies for team members at all levels.”

The competency-based framework is built upon three pillars. Core competencies provide a foundation for all team members, emphasizing customer focus, strong support skills, technological proficiency, and a commitment to self-development. Building upon this foundation, leadership competencies equip business leaders and those with people management responsibilities to effectively guide their teams. Finally, functional competencies provide the specialized expertise needed for specific roles, often involving technical or process-based knowledge.

Fostering next-gen leaders through coaching and mentoring

These competencies are developed and reinforced through a variety of targeted programs and initiatives. The Learning Multiverse, launched in 2023, represents an innovative approach tailored to support newly promoted team members, emerging talent, and middle managers. It offers a range of development opportunities, including onboarding programs for new hires, upskilling workshops in areas like generative AI, and executive development courses for senior leaders.

Meanwhile, TELUS Digital Philippines’ Explore program supports team members aspiring to step into Team Leader roles by building foundational leadership skills across three areas: self, leadership, and professional development. Through courses, hands-on activities, and assessments, participants learn essential competencies, preparing them to take on leadership responsibilities with confidence and a well-rounded skill set.

For team members already in leadership roles, the Leadership 101 program focuses on enhancing effectiveness, especially in remote environments. The program targets critical skills and success conditions specific to managing remote teams, ensuring that in-role leaders can navigate challenges and deliver strong support for their teams.

Additionally, the Brilliant Coaching program, a cornerstone of TELUS Digital Philippines’ mentorship strategy, provides team leaders and operational managers with the skills and tools required  to effectively coach and mentor team members. Through this program, participants learn coaching preparation techniques, how to conduct effective coaching conversations, and how to leverage AI-powered tools to analyze coaching sessions and provide targeted feedback.  This strategic approach, focusing on key KPIs, sharing best practices, and utilizing skill mappings, ensures impactful coaching and measurable results, further solidifying the importance of mentorship in the company’s leadership development framework.

TELUS Digital Philippines’ commitment to continuous learning goes beyond individual programs. The company cultivates a culture of growth by embracing diverse learning styles and offering a wide range of opportunities, including in-person classes, virtual courses, self-paced modules, and peer-to-peer programs.

The company’s leadership development initiatives are directly aimed at building a pipeline of future leaders. The program integrates cutting-edge innovation and generative AI (GenAI) learning across all levels of the organization, with specific training for existing leaders and emerging talent. This equips them to leverage GenAI for enhanced efficiency, improved team engagement, and exceptional customer experiences. While we create distinctive and lasting experiences for the brands we work with and their customers, we are also committed to making  a positive impact on global citizens, our communities, team members, and partners. In developing and implementing innovative technologies, we are driven by a core set of ethical principles known as humanity-in-the-loop, which ensures that people remain central to every decision and solution we develop.