IAMRAFI: Living In The Cloud

March 1, 2020

IAMRAFI: Living In The Cloud

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The story of Jade Ryan Gadiane, Cloud Engineer, Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. – IT Cloud Operations, RAFI Exemplary Employee Award (REEA) 2019

by Princess Joemineca Dato-on

Cloud? Might be the white fluffy thing we see in the sky. However, the tech industry says otherwise when they say the data is in the “cloud,” – this is where you can access your data anytime through the internet or even install hardware or software online.

For Jade, this is the future of technology. He envisions a RAFI that is operationally ready as we take a step further to embracing the 5th industrial revolution, powered by intelligent technologies. But behind the charisma and jokes, he’s ready to put our heads in the Cloud.

“Sakong first three months in RAFI, nangapa gyud ko. Lahi ang RAFI sakong previous na trabaho – lahi ang leadership, dynamic ba. Kailangan gyud dayon nako iredeem akong self. (In my first three months in RAFI, I crawled my way up. RAFI is different from my previous company. Leadership is different here – dynamic. I needed to redeem myself fast.)”

He was a systems administrator before joining RAFI. He shares how he considers himself a bugoy whose laziness always took a toll on his work, fortunately in a good way. His work meant he had to process account creations and work on weekends or holidays on the site just to make sure that the system servers doesn’t shut down – he even considered it his “baby.” Repetitive as the work sounds, he thought to himself:

“Naa bay pamaagi na mas mapasayon ni tanan? (Is there a way we can make all of this easier?)”

Jade is currently part of RAFI’s IT Cloud Operations as the Cloud Engineer. Bringing the Cloud to RAFI, he started off as a dreamer wanting an answer to his question and to make things easier for all of us.

Truly, success doesn’t happen overnight. It took Jade about a year to fully understand the whole concept of the Cloud. As he received training proficiencies about it, it also meant that he had to present a learning and proposal session towards his mentor and team leader – Edwin Mafil. During those sessions, he provided him feedback to measure how far he has gone and where he can further improve, to better transfer his knowledge to the team with eagerness and compassion. After so many presentations and proposals, he finally came to say: “Let’s try to do it the Cloud way.”

With RAFI fully migrating to the Cloud in 2018, absorption of it to himself and to the organization is where he considered it the hardest and there were challenges along the way. He reminisces the sleepless nights he spent just to see how the project is progressing and when there was a heavy flood in RAFI and power shut down in the whole building, he had to keep the server alive even when he fighting for his own life in the hospital – heroes indeed don’t always wear capes.

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“Huwaton lang ka namo, Jade! (We will wait for you, Jade!)”

Despite his fair share of highs and lows, he felt that the support system he had, kept him going. Those were the lines said by his colleagues when he was working his way out of the dark tunnels. “Na-touch gyud ko ato. Then on, nakahibaw ko na I am going to love this team. A team I can call family. (I was so touched. Then on, I knew I was gonna love this team.)

Jade was very fond as he shared the culture they practiced in the team. For them, it is one of their greatest accomplishment to see their teammates grow in their craft through collaboration and building each other’s way up. He reminisced the time when his team leader Edwin and teammate Wesley always looked after him and pushed him to be the best, who he also considered his mentor and brother. “It’s all thanks to them, I got myself back on track. Thankful kaayo ko nila. Na-change gyud nako akong self. (I am so thankful for them – I really changed myself.)”

RAFI received a lot of praises being one of the business units of the company, able to first migrate in the cloud, first in VisMin to implement Windows Autopilot and soon be the first to fully implement a full-blown Identity and Access Management in the Philippines. The name Jade in the sea of Clouds, was well known to being the aggressive one, including RAFI, in maximizing tech. “If our team doesn’t have that capability yet, maulahi tag samot. Whether we like it or not, padung man gyud ta didto. (If our team doesn’t have that capability yet, we will be left behind. Whether we like it or not, we’re on our way there.)”

Jade has always been the joker one. Surely he will never leave an office he visits without showing his manly shrugs and charisma, and leave somebody with a huge smile. But at home, he is a loving husband, who takes care of wife and two kids where, the youngest, he considers his “replica,” a family he all offers his award being RAFI Exemplary Employee of 2019.

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“Daghan kaayog mas deserving pa nako ato na award. Wala gyud ko nagexpect na makadaog ko. (There were so many people more deserving of the award. I did not expect to win it.)”

Jade was the recipient of the medallion as the RAFI Exemplary Employee Award (REEA) in 2019 – an award given to the employees who have given such valuable contributions to the organization. He was awarded during the 53rd Founder’s Day last November 2019. When he received the award, he even tried to look at the envelope just to make sure it was actually his name. His team knew about the award, and even had him to the drumroll himself, live!

He was too speechless to do a speech but if given the chance to do it again, he shared: I would like to honor and thank my family, the people who did not give up on me Sir Edwin, Wesley and the entire IT team who never doubted on me. I am so grateful for RAFI, especially Ma’am Domi. She’s always been very approachable and we appreciate how we can talk to her about anything and always been supportive of us as well – she continues to see potential in all of us. You don’t get that often in a workplace.”

“Do good, even when no one’s watching.”

Jade might be the charmer but surely, he is a man you can depend on just like how his team depends on him. He has always been driven with these beliefs: when you do something good, never expect anything in return; even if it’s a one-peso coin and no one’s looking, value integrity; when you learn something and succeed, always share your knowledge to others.

RAFI has always instilled to us strong values that we should always accompany every time we do our work – this does not only keep us grounded but this gives us a sense of purpose not only dedicated to ourselves but to our social mission. As we continue to transition, maybe in tech or to further heights, it’s best to be prepared individually and as an organization.

IAMRAFI: Living In The Cloud

The story of Jade Ryan Gadiane, Cloud Engineer, Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. – IT Cloud Operations, RAFI Exemplary Employee Award (REEA) 2019

“Naa bay pamaagi na mas mapasayon ni tanan? (Is there a way we can make all of this easier?)”

“Huwaton lang ka namo, Jade! (We will wait for you, Jade!)”

“Daghan kaayog mas deserving pa nako ato na award. Wala gyud ko nagexpect na makadaog ko. (There were so many people more deserving of the award. I did not expect to win it.)”

“Do good, even when no one’s watching.”

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