Bayer celebrates 60 years in the Philippines with PHP750M integrated office in Manila

 

RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY FOR THE NEW BAYER OFFICE AT SCIENCE HUB TOWER 1, MCKINLEY HILL CYBERPARK, TAGUIG. (L-R) Bayer ASEAN Managing Director and CFO Ernst Coppens; Bayer Philippines Managing Director and Country Division Head of Pharmaceuticals Angel-Michael Evangelista; Her Excellency Anke Reiffenstuel, German Ambassador to the Philippines; Bayer Global Business Services Manila Managing Director Sam Padilla; and Head of Bayer Global Business Services Rob Bullen

In celebration of its 60 years of improving health and nutrition in the Philippines, Bayer unveiled its brand-new PHP 750 million office.

The four-level, hybrid workplace, and forward-looking office, which is situated at Science Hub Tower 1 at McKinley Hill Cyberpark, Taguig City, unifies the central operations of its Crop Science, Pharmaceuticals, 

"To commemorate our 60th year, we invested PHP 750 million in a new office, from which we will continue to provide Filipino farmers, patients, and consumers with our cutting-edge goods, services, and solutions. According to Bayer Philippines Managing Director and Country Division Head for Pharmaceuticals Angel Michael Evangelista, this is in accordance with Bayer's mission of "Health for All, Hunger for None."

In addition to catering to the domestic market, the Philippines serves as the ASEAN hub for the Consumer Health industry. Bayer Global Company Services (GBS), which supports business operations globally, has a significant presence in Manila as well. Out of a network of seven locations throughout the world, GBS Manila employs the most people, increasing the total number of Bayer workers in the Philippines to over 1,800.

This is Bayer's largest office project in ASEAN. The next normal office concept has been adopted by approximately 70 projects at Bayer sites since the company's worldwide transformation effort began in 2021. Five out of six main offices in ASEAN have finished this transformation since the end of the epidemic, according to Ernst Coppens, Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Bayer in ASEAN. 

Flexible, collaborative, and inclusive hybrid working spaces

As a life science company and a global leader in healthcare and nutrition, Bayer is reshaping the conventional office model into a dynamic space enabling hybrid work while prioritizing collaboration and employee wellbeing.

Previously located in three locations in Metro Manila and Laguna, the new Bayer office in the Philippines is designed around Bayer’s Next Normal Office Concept (NNOC).

With spacious, and co-work style space, the office features a variety of formal and informal work areas with sit-to-stand ergonomic desks and chairs, stationary bike desks, stand-alone pods for individual calls or virtual meetings, and huddle spaces for quick group catch-ups. Meeting rooms of various sizes feature state-of-the-art video conferencing equipment to help employees easily collaborate with colleagues globally.

As Bayer fosters an inclusive and diverse workforce and culture, the new office has a multi-faith room, deaf-friendly safety alarms, braille on key signages, a mother’s room for nursing moms situated on two out of four floors, and gender-neutral toilets located on all floors. 

Employees can also enjoy recreational facilities such as chess, air hockey, foosball, and sub-soccer tables located along employee locker hallways or in the Work Cafe, a dedicated game room and nap areas, plus a gym with free fitness classes.

Driving sustainability through its Bayer Kubo program

Bayer is also running sustainability programs in the country that combine the expertise of its Crop Science, Pharmaceuticals, and Consumer Health divisions to help address sustainability challenges around agriculture and health. 

Its flagship Bayer Kubo program focuses on supporting smallholder farming communities in partnership with ASSIST Asia. It includes capacity-building programs around reproductive health and family planning, self-care, nutrition, and agri-oriented financial management and best practices.

“With the growing role of women in Philippine agriculture, who are often challenged to care for both the home and the field, we’re supporting women farmers, farmers’ wives’, their families, and the community through various initiatives around health, wellness, and sustainable agricultural practices,” said Evangelista.

The program aims to empower over 100 women farmers, as community champions that will ensure continued knowledge sharing and capacity building to train additional 1,500 community members on the best practices of family planning, farmer self-care, and smallholder farmer support.