Accenture Philippines Country Managing Director Offers Insights on How to Lead a Company With 80,000 Employees

Every day, Ambe Tierro leads a team to give 80,000 employees a “superb employee experience” in Accenture Philippines. “We’re only as good as our people,” says the global consulting company’s country managing director and Advanced Technology Centers lead in the Philippines and Asia-Pacific. “Every employee has a different motivation. It's really about being hyper-personalized about the experience, recognizing that people are motivated differently, and that they have their own context, their own goals and priorities.” 

When Accenture Philippines was recognized by Great Place to Work, which bills itself as a global authority on workplace culture that  “gives leaders and organizations the recognition and tools to create a consistently and overwhelmingly positive employee experience,” in the country for a third year in a row last March, Tierro  made sure to thank employees on social media for their “contribution in building a workplace we can all be proud of.” The company ranked second in the Large Employer category (those with 1,000 or more employees) among the Best Workplaces in the Philippines in 2024. 

Ambe Tierro is the country managing director of Accenture Philippines

The country lead says the three-peat is important because Accenture is “a talent-led business,” she tells Esquire Philippines in an exclusive interview. “We’re a people business. Receiving the award three years in a row says that we are consistent, hopefully, in our people practices. We just don’t say one thing and do another. We cannot be complacent because whatever we did three years ago may not be true anymore. I would like to believe that every year, people’s priorities will change, so it's important to listen to what they are saying. It's important for them to be heard, and for us to listen to feedback; things that we can improve on or opportunities.”

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Tierro highlights two areas respondents gave the company high marks for: a commitment to inclusion and sincerity in providing resources and equipment. “It’s a safe place,” the executive describes of the firm’s inclusion and diversity (I&D) focus. “I think it's about our sense of belonging—regardless of gender, age, beliefs. It's a safe place where people can thrive. They can see themselves advancing. Then, they have the right resources and equipment in our tools and our support system.”

AI in the Accenture workplace

Accenture Philippines wants to spearhead the domain of artificial intelligence (AI) here, as demonstrated by the opening of its Gen AI (Generative AI) studios in Uptown, Bonifacio Global City last January. Tierro says the venue is an important pillar for the company’s leadership “in terms of how AI can shape the way we deliver our services and how we do our work.   

“Our purpose is delivering on the promise of technology, so we will push technology,” she emphasizes. “We will also be advocates for Responsible AI (an approach that applies ethical considerations) because there’s a lot of concern about how these innovations affect our people. Everyone can look forward to Accenture—not just in the Philippines, but also globally—making sure that we are implementing Gen AI responsibly and sustainably. We will have that commitment.”  

Team Accenture at the 2024 Solaria: IT-BPM Awards

‘My Experience, My Accenture’

Tierro says the company finds ways to ensure a “superb employee experience” every year. In 2023, the company’s commitment was encapsulated in its culture commitment through the tag line, “My Experience, My Accenture.” 

“The promise behind it is that you have connections that work and a career that grows,” she explains. “Those are the two simple promises we’re making. Here, you have the support system: Connections to leaders, to ecosystem partners, to your colleagues that help you in your personal development. And you have a career that will give you opportunities to learn and grow and work with clients that are changing the world. 

“So, those are the two blanket statements for employee experience,” she adds. “And you know, we have a lot of employees. What works for me may not work for you because we're so different. We have more than 80,000 people (in the Philippines) and, again, we are certified ‘Great Place to Work.’ With that scale, this is difficult (to achieve). I don't think we should underestimate it, especially this year because we had more people answering the survey. It's one thing for a few people to say it. With our scale—and a majority of the people responding to the survey and saying this is a great place to work—that's such a source of pride.” 

Tierro says the survey results demonstrate employee trust in her and the company’s leadership. “We're taking this in the right direction. It also shows that our people trust each other. Working here, you have colleagues that you can trust. It's a safe place, and you will deliver for the clients by supporting one another.”

Listening frameworks, such as the Great Place to Work survey and internal company surveys, are important, she says. Employees were also able to identify challenges, such as work-life balance and transitioning to the hybrid work setup, through the survey. Tierro says the company is hyping up its mental awareness initiatives, especially for its executives, to have more “mental health allies” in the firm; those who provide “compassionate support and connects individuals in need to professional help.” 

“Things are changing,” she insists. “There's always external forces. This (survey) gives us a benchmark with other companies like us. It also gives pride to our people and honestly, for our leaders. I think it inspires us also to continue to make this a great place to work.”

Meritocracy system

Tierro’s own experience in the company spans more than 34 years. The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science graduate of De La Salle University in the Philippines says it was the meritocracy system that she learned in a job fair that attracted her to join the company.  

“Your promotion is based on your performance,” she recalls. “We’re not a hierarchical company. We can promote as many executives as long as we’re growing and expanding. And I’m happy to say that until now, this is true. You can get promoted based on performance, not based on connections. You don’t have to wait for someone to leave the company.”

The executive shares how she has personally experienced the meritocracy system that pulled her into joining the company as a fresh graduate. Tierro’s career was fast-tracked as result of her performance, becoming a manager when she was only 25 years old and being promoted to managing director after six years. “I’m sure those records can be beaten,” she says with modesty,” But at that time, it was really a personal milestone for me. 

“And the fun fact is every major promotion (happened during a period) where I also gave birth,” she reveals. “I started when I was single. My eldest son was born when I became a senior manager. My second son was born when I made managing director. And then my youngest was in 2005 when I became a CL3 (Career Level 3, a higher managing director role). After that, there were more promotions but no more babies,” she says, laughing. “I like telling that story, especially to women, because having children—if that's what God wants for you and you want it—should not be a hindrance in building your career. I remember my promotion years because they are the birth years of my sons.” 

Tierro was appointed Philippines country managing director (CMD) in 2022 and has remained lead of Accenture’s Advanced Technology Center in the Philippines. She thinks it’s great that she kept her technology lead hat especially since there's still so much to do in technology. 

Additionally, the company’s reputation then as SGV (SyCip Gorres Velayo) Consulting in the 1980s and as Andersen Worldwide Organization in the 1990s attracted the now senior managing director. The dynamic nature of the company has made Tierro stay for almost four decades, she shares. 

“It has evolved, and continues to evolve until now,” she says. “Our slogan ‘Let There Be Change’ cannot be truer because we’re always adapting to improve. I think that’s partly why I’ve stayed. The company is evolving and I have evolved with it. There were many milestones across the 34 years. I started when we were purely a consulting company. And then we became part of the global delivery network, initially technology only. And then we became Accenture. I saw the firm through all of that.

“And then we also started the BPO (business process outsourcing) practice (in the country) in 2002,” she adds. “When I joined there were only 400 people, maybe. Everybody knew each other. So, it is definitely about growth.”

Accenture’s client list, which includes over 90 percent of Fortune 100 companies being supported out of the Philippines, also keeps Tierro committed to her work. An extensive network of big-ticket clients help inspire employees to do better, she says, because of the opportunities.

Founded in Bermuda in the late 1980s, Accenture is now a Fortune Global 500 Company and one of the world’s leading professional services company. It reported revenues of over $64 billion and had over 733,000 employees globally as of 2023. In the Philippines, the company counts well over 80,000 employees in offices not just in Manila but in Cebu and Ilocos Norte as well. The local office of the global company has received numerous awards over the years, including, most recently, BPM (Business Process Management) Compan of the Year and Innovative Program of the year at the inaugural Solaria: IT-BPM Awards this year. 

Giving Back

But more than the industry accolades and initiatives to support its employees, Accenture Philippines also has programs to give back to the community and the country. Tierro says the company’s Sulong Pinoy (Onward Filipino) initiative demonstrates the kind of impact it wants to make.

“It’s about transforming a community,” she shares. “Our dream is to stay with a barangay for a period; It’s not come and go. It may be for three years then we work with foundations like Save the Children to baseline the metrics, depending on what the community needs. After a few years, we’ll measure how we have transformed the community. Maybe, there are less out-of-school youth or more opportunities, or less malnourished children.” Recently, the company turned over 18 homes that it built for persons with disabilities (PWD) in Napindan, Taguig City, in partnership with the iHOme Foundation. 

Sulong Pinoy has been launched in all of Accenture’s Philippine locations and adds to other corporate citizenship initiatives, such as its Skills to Succeed Program that provides free online training programs for marginalized people and offers support to help them become more employable; and its Nanays (Mothers) in IT program with the Philippine Business Social Progress that trains mothers in technology, some of whom end up joining the company in technology roles.   

Tierro has directed Accenture Philippines Executive Sponsor for Corporate Citizenship Rudy Guiao to focus on the following: women, youth, PWDs, and the environment. “We will be using our resources or volunteering across these segments,” she says. “This is about touching and improving lives. “We do a lot with corporate citizenship. We track our volunteer hours. Our people are also excited to volunteer. The dream with Sulong Pinoy is that there will be three less underprivileged barangays. We're big, so let’s use this scale to be a force for good.”