Palawan Group, a Philippine financial services company, was the only organization from the country to receive an award at the SAP Customer Excellence Awards for Southeast Asia 2026, a day after being named among Asia’s Best Employer Brands.
The Palawan Group of Companies is putting its investment in people and technology in the spotlight after securing two international recognitions in Singapore within two days, underscoring its efforts to modernize human resources and build a more future-ready workforce.
The company won the Human Capital Management (HCM) Transformation Award at the SAP Customer Excellence Awards for Southeast Asia 2026 on August 4 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre in Singapore. It was the only Philippine organization to receive an award at the event, according to the company.
The recognition came a day after the Palawan Group was named one of Asia’s Best Employer Brands 2026 by the World HRD Congress during ceremonies at the Pan Pacific Singapore on August 3.
While the two awards recognize different aspects of the company’s human resources strategy, they point to the same challenge facing large financial services organizations: how to equip a growing workforce to keep pace with digital transformation while maintaining the service culture that customers expect.
Turning HR into a digital operation
The Palawan Group receives the HCM Transformation Award, recognizing its commitment to a future-ready workforce. From left: Valerie Santos, Richelle Valdestamon, Korina Castro-Fernando, and Tony Wenceslao.
The SAP award recognized the Palawan Group’s implementation of SAP SuccessFactors, which the company said has modernized its HR operations and strengthened the role of human resources as a strategic business function.
The implementation has produced measurable changes in several areas.
According to the company, 88% of employees have adopted Time Tracking, while employee data updates are now completed 80% faster. Payroll processing has also been shortened by 1.5 days, while six major manual payroll reports have been eliminated.
The company said performance goal completion rates have consistently exceeded 97%.
For the Palawan Group, the value of the transformation goes beyond automating administrative tasks.
By reducing manual work, the company said its HR teams and business leaders can spend more time on employee development, engagement and well-being.
That becomes increasingly important as the group expands its financial services ecosystem, which includes Palawan Pawnshop, Palawan Express Pera Padala, Palawan ProtekTODO, Palawan Credit and PalawanPay.
People remain at the center
Korina Castro-Fernando, Chief Human Resources Officer of the Palawan Group
Korina Castro-Fernando, Chief Human Resources Officer of the Palawan Group, said the company’s workforce remains central to its growth despite the scale of its physical and digital operations. “Our greatest asset is not our vast network. It is our passionate and dedicated employees.”
Castro-Fernando also said employees deal with the everyday realities and challenges faced by Filipinos and continue to serve with competence, integrity and malasakit.
“They are not simply our workforce; they are the heart of our service,” she said.
The comment reflects the company’s broader approach to workforce transformation: technology is being used to improve how employees work rather than replace the human element of the business.
Building a future-ready workforce
Representatives of the Palawan Group in Singapore following the company’s recognition as one of Asia’s Best Employer Brands 2026.
The Asia’s Best Employer Brand Award 2026 recognizes another layer of the group’s people strategy.
The award cited the company’s efforts to align its HR strategy with business objectives, develop talent and create an environment where employees can grow, contribute and take on leadership roles.
For a financial services group serving millions of customers through a combination of physical outlets and digital platforms, developing that workforce is becoming increasingly important.
Palawan Group has continued to expand beyond its traditional pawning and remittance businesses into areas such as digital payments, credit, insurance and other financial services.
Its digital platform, PalawanPay, allows customers to send and receive remittances, pay bills, purchase mobile load and make QR payments, while also providing access to services such as pawn renewal, insurance and international remittance claims.
That expansion means the company’s employees increasingly operate alongside technology-driven financial services, making digital capability and workforce development important components of its growth strategy.
From one pawnshop to a financial services ecosystem
The twin recognitions come as the Palawan Group continues to build on a four-decade history in the Philippines.
The company marked its 40th anniversary in 2025, having grown from a single pawnshop into a financial services group with operations spanning pawning, remittances, microinsurance, credit and digital payments.
Its network now includes more than 70,000 branches, Pera Padala outlets and PalawanPay Money Shops nationwide, according to the company.
The group said its growing footprint has reinforced the need to ensure that its people and systems develop alongside the business.
“Technology will continue to evolve, but our purpose remains the same: to empower our people so they can serve with excellence,” Castro-Fernando said.
She added that investments in employees, systems and financial services ultimately serve the group’s associates, customers and communities.
Technology changes, but service remains human
The back-to-back awards give the Palawan Group an international benchmark for its ongoing HR transformation, but the bigger test will be how those investments translate into the everyday experience of employees and customers.
For a company whose business continues to rely heavily on personal interactions — from pawning and remittances to cash-in and cash-out services — the challenge is not simply to digitize operations.
It is to use technology to make employees more capable, processes more efficient and financial services more accessible without losing the human connection that has helped build the Palawan brand.
That balance will become increasingly important as the group expands its digital offerings while maintaining one of the country’s largest financial services networks.
