This week I'll be doing a series of profiles of my staff and partners. I thought it would be appropriate to start with the team that does the bulk of the work for our web design projects. They are the unsung heroes and without them nothing would get done.

The design and development of the sites for our aeiou.com clients as well as for our internal projects are done by the fine people at Open.ph, Inc, a wholly owned entity of ours in the city of Ortigas in the country The Philippines.

Many of you know that I was one of the founders of Offshoring.com and have since sold my shares in that company. Recently we have setup a new entity there and named it Open.ph. So recently, that we don't actually have a site up for it yet so don't bother going to that domain.

Even though there is no site up there yet, it doesn't mean we didn't put a lot of thought into the new name. Think about the implications a name like Open.ph can have on the overall brand. Yes, the company there needs a brand. It's important for recruiting, moral and focus on the mission at hand.

We'll use open source software to keep the cost down.

Management will have an open door policy with the staff at all times.

We will remain open to new ideas and initiatives at all time.

The list goes on and on...

Anyway, back to the staff. The kindness and loyalty in the Filipino culture never ceases to amaze me. I've been doing business there since 2004 and won't lie that it took me years to fully appreciate these traits.

I know now that unlike in the States, you don't hire someone unless you truly intend on being with them for years. Your team will be loyal to you if you are loyal to them. Well, that last part is the same everywhere.

It's really an "open" arms approach to things. We are in it together and I like it that way.

Together, we have built an assembly line system that allows us to build sites quickly and inexpensively without degrading the quality and custom touch the finished product must have for our customers.

I thank them all for their service and pledge my loyalty to them in return. We have many bright years ahead of us.

Salamat sa inyo at magandang araw sa inyong lahat.