My Dream In A Shoebox (MDIAS), the annual advocacy campaign of TeamAsia that seeks to support Filipino children with their educational needs, has exceeded its goal this year of raising P450,000 to build an educational hub (E-hub) and sponsor more than 100 scholars in its partner communities.

Now in its 14th year, the campaign in partnership with the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation has raised a total of P750,000 to establish one E-hub, support 110 scholars, and provide 1,300 dream kits.

The E-hub aims to support students and teachers with access to six laptops, internet connection, and allowance for logistical expenses. The scholars, on the other hand, will be given financial aid for school supplies, transportation, learning modules, hygiene kits, and face masks. Meanwhile, the dream kits, containing school supplies like notebooks, pens, and pencils, among others, have already been distributed to teachers and learners.

“The future of our world is really dependent on future generations to come, and this is why we must help provide them with the opportunities to make their #BiggerDreams come true,” said Bea Lim, Managing Director of TeamAsia and Chief Dream Builder of MDIAS. “MDIAS stayed true to its commitment of making students’ #BiggerDreams come true by adapting to the changing times and providing support that is relevant to the learning setup today.”

She added, “Through MDIAS, we hope that the public and our partners will continue to help us in the coming years in supporting Filipino children to learn, build their futures, and make their #BiggerDreams come true.”

For Dr. Anton Mari Lim, Co-Founder of the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation, the continued partnership with TeamAsia for the MDIAS campaign has made a significant impact on the communities that the foundation supports.

Scholars from Yellow Boat of Hope School Maluso in Basilan, Sulu.

Scholars from Mantatao Elementary School in Calape, Bohol

Scholars from Caohagan Elementary School in Cebu

“More children are encouraged to go to school because of the support they receive from these organizations,” he said. “By providing financial assistance and other forms of aid, these partners have helped to create an environment where young people feel valued and supported. As a result, we have seen many children who were previously struggling to attend school now able to continue their education.”

He added, “Hope is the driving force behind our mission to support Filipino students with their education. It is the foundation of the partnership we share with TeamAsia and My Dream in a Shoebox, and it is what inspires us to keep pushing forward. We are so grateful for your unwavering support and commitment to making #BiggerDreams come true for more children around the Philippines.”

Since 2009, MDIAS has been equipping less fortunate Filipino children with educational assistance. It started with a modest collection of 200 shoeboxes from TeamAsia’s industry partners and friends, containing school supplies to inspire children to go to school. Through the years, it has expanded to sponsoring students from various partner communities across the country and impacted as much as 400,000 lives.

In 2022, MDIAS raised nearly P1 million that funded three E-hubs, sponsored 100 scholars, and provided 1,000 dream kits.

TeamAsia believes in education for all. Through My Dream in a Shoebox, the company hopes to help even more children and help make more #biggerdreams come true for the next school year and the years to come.

The IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP), its six partner associations, and more than 300 member companies, has partnered with My Dream in a Shoebox (MDIAS) to build educational hubs (e-Hub) for two adopted school communities in far-flung areas in Bohol and Capiz.

MDIAS, which is an annual education campaign spearheaded by award-winning integrated marketing experience agency TeamAsia, aims to equip less fortunate Filipino children with tools to help them reach for a brighter future. For its 13th year, the program is working together with the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation to make education more accessible and inclusive even amid the lingering impact of the pandemic.

Present during the turnover ceremony were Jack Madrid, President and CEO of IBPAP; Monette Iturralde-Hamlin, President and Founder of TeamAsia; Dr. Anton Mari H. Lim, Co-Founder of the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation, and Jacquelyn Barrios, Vice President of People Function at Genpact. Representatives from other member companies were also in attendance to lend their support to the project.

The two e-Hubs will provide students and teachers with resources and tools that can help with their distance and modular learning. These include laptops, stable internet connection, printing and school supplies, face masks and alcohol, as well as coverage for some administrative and logistical expenses. The first e-Hub will benefit Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School in Tagbilaran City, which caters to over 8,000 students and over 250 teachers. The second one will be constructed in Roxas City for Dumolog National High School and over 700 students and teachers.

“As an industry that deeply values the Filipino talent, the IT-BPM sector has always made it a priority to develop initiatives that center around enhancing and harnessing their skills,” said Mr. Madrid. “This collaboration with MDIAS is not only representative of the values that IBPAP espouses, but also a great way for us to give back to the community through the generosity and continued allyship of our members.”

The donation was made in lieu of a holiday celebration to ensure that the health and safety of employees are maintained.

Maintaining a company for 29 years is no easy feat. Behind its success throughout the years are challenges that were turned into opportunities for innovation, reimagination, and finding new ways to provide holistic services and experiences. It is almost three decades of hard work, passion, and being hopeful for the future that is to come. It is years of adapting and transforming because of the continuously changing demands of consumers.

The same is true for TeamAsia, a one-stop-shop marketing agency that is celebrating 29 years of delivering next level experiences (NLE) to brands and consumers through their proprietary strategic approach called the Integrated Marketing Experience (IME). Through IME, TeamAsia empowers and builds a more equal relationship between brands and consumers and uses multiple platforms to deliver a brand’s message to the right people at the right time using branding and design, events and activation, content marketing, digital marketing, and video storytelling.

An award-winning Integrated Marketing Experience agency, TeamAsia is the first of its kind in the Philippines as it leads the shift from one-way communication to a more experiential communication between brands and consumers, creating more meaningful connections despite the restrictions. How did this women-led company manage to withstand obstacles and challenges through the years and how did their team become experts in bringing NLE? Here are some of the learnings they have shared:

Don’t be frozen, go for it! TeamAsia was born with only three people working for the company. Despite the lack of manpower, they were able to lead and manage international events like the Asian Management Awards and the Far Eastern Economic Review in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines. Imagine the bravery of its founders Michael and Monette Hamlin!

This “go for it” principle is also passed on to Mike and Monette’s daughter, Bea Lim, who is now the managing director of TeamAsia. “I think I need to attribute TeamAsia’s 29 years to just going for it -- going for the scary, going for the firsts of its kind, and going for the nerve-wracking because we truly believe it was going to make a positive impact on our core, community, and country,” Bea said.

This quality of TeamAsia also paved the way for them to evolve and grow from an events management company to an integrated marketing experience agency. For IT & Web director Jeff Enriquez who has been with them for 17 years, he admires the company and its owners’ brave hearts. “Because of our curiosity for new things and innovation, from just managing events, we unknowingly expanded to different services like digital marketing, content marketing, branding and design, and video production,” said Jeff.

Talent, passion, and teamwork as the ultimate combo

The company is able to thrive through the passion and amazing talents of TeamAsians. “If you want to take something to the next level experience, you need people to make that happen,” said Bea. “People who are passionate, who are driven, who want to make a positive impact, people who are crazy about stories, and people who want to make a difference in the world. This is what TeamAsians have been since day 1.”

Their team of experts’ awesome collaboration and teamwork encourages one another to be fearless in sharing their ideas, enabling everyone to reach their maximum potential. “For each and every person that we meet, that person has so much God-given talent and our objective is to draw that out and give their all to do NLE and while you do NLE together with the people with the same vision, the same desire, you do marvelous things,” shared Monette.

Be dynamic, embrace change, and innovate with tech

Landscapes and trends are constantly evolving and this is why TeamAsia chooses to embrace change. The company and its experts recognize that these shifts also influence the demands of their customers, highlighting the value of adapting and innovating with the times.

“As experience experts, we always look at the developments in the industry, in our customers, and in their audiences and we adapt accordingly. We look into trends and create opportunities for brands to latch on to be able to connect with their audience,” said Monette.

Back in 2000, way before digital became big, TeamAsia was one of the first companies in the Philippines to have a website. It was also ahead of the curve when it came to doing SMS and email marketing, developing websites for international clients, and handling search engine optimization and social media marketing. As it continues to embrace technology, TeamAsia was one of the first companies to fully transition to working remotely during this pandemic.

Strategic ideas supported by data-driven decisions

With teamwork and collaboration at hand comes an influx of ideas. But not all ideas are great ideas. Some can be really cool, too, but in TeamAsia, it’s all about being strategic and having a careful assessment of a brand and its needs.

The agency believes that in every output, it is always important to consider the impact or key takeaway of the consumers and audience. This is how TeamAsia ensures that its projects and events resonate and are meaningful not only to clients, but their respective audiences as well.

Part of being strategic and bringing next level experiences is ensuring all your initiatives are data-driven -- placing research and credible information at the core of projects rather than just mere hearsay. TeamAsia’s campaigns are rooted in heavy insights to help them understand brands and consumers more and provide them with the most impactful plan of action.

It’s all about the experience

And of course, for TeamAsia, it’s all about the experience.

The company and its experts always see to it that their way of marketing is more than just sending and receiving messages, but giving everyone the experience they’ve never had before. This pandemic really magnified the need of consumers to have more meaningful connections and next level experiences from brands since their movements have been limited even up to this day.

“Your customers are always changing, it is not enough to read, write and hear something. You want to be part of it. You can only make them a part of it if you provide an avenue for them to experience it and enjoy it and that’s what we do here in TeamAsia,” said Bea.

People are hungry for experience and the game has changed. Communication is now more than words. Brands should have content and events that leave an impact, that drives action, and last in the hearts and minds of their audience.

“All the 29 years that we have been in existence, what we have offered is an experience that is unparalleled. It is an experience that makes people remember something by touching on all the senses of a human being. It is experiences that stand out and leave people with a lesson that they can ponder on when they go home. This is NLE.” said Monette.

TeamAsia has evolved as an agency because it innovated and catered to the changing needs of brands and consumers in the span of 29 years. And for the years to come, the company and its team of experts will continue to adapt to the progressing landscape of the marketing industry, ensuring that brands and consumers are connected and aligned in meaningful, pivotal, and instrumental ways.

Mastery does not happen overnight. It takes time and TeamAsia’s 29 years of experience has given them the extensive knowledge of understanding brands and consumer needs, making them one of your most trusted partners in the industry.

Learn more about TeamAsia and the services they offer at teamasia.com.