The Rockstar Dads of Sprout

This year’s father’s day, we have a weeklong celebration to feature the rockstar dads of Sprout! We sat down with some of the exceptional rockstar dads here in Sprout and asked them a few questions about fatherhood.

• Atty. Jay-Ryan Trinidad
• Bryan Paul Inocencio
• Geoffrey Ogang
• Viscount Villanueva
• Jeriel Escoses
• Master Lance Violan
• Kislay Chandra

Atty. Jay-Ryan Trinidad

The first rockstar dad we wanted to feature is our very own Head of Legal Dept. Atty. Jay-Ryan Trinidad!

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• It’s the fact that you know that someone relies on you and believes in you no matter what. Dads are the coolest and best superhero to a pair of eyes even if the world thinks we’re not.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• It’s challenging to be a dad, especially now — we need to be their quarantine playmates, late-night companions, home entertainers, protective gear when our kids need to go out, etc. — but it’s all worth it.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• For a new dad like me, Sprout is very instrumental to my fatherhood journey. The entire Sprout family encouraged me to spend quality time with my newborn and enjoy every bit of this crazy ride. There are times when I need to cradle my baby while in a meeting and it’s completely okay. This is my new normal now, and for sure to a lot of fathers out there too.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• Sprout Wellness. Fatherhood is an overwhelming experience —- aside from your regular corporate and life tasks, now you’re responsible for other human lives: your wife and your baby —- and this can be a lot to take in. With Sprout Wellness, I get regular access to meditation and online psychologists to ease my mind.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• When we’re physically at work, we get to chat with other fathers and learn together from each other’s experiences. To compensate, we have a regular weekly meeting which we call the “no-work related session” where we can talk about anything, including daddy tips, except work.

Those were great responses Atty. Jay! Keeping a balance between work and life is always healthy! Happy to feature you as one of the rockstar dads of Sprout!

Bryan Paul Inocencio 

Now we have Bryan, our Audit & Compliance Lead here in Sprout!

We sat down with Bryan and asked him a few questions about fatherhood and here’s what transpired:

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• Your kids think you know everything.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• Let us all appreciate the efforts and sacrifices of our partner and let's keep our #dadbod of course.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• Through the implementation of remote work arrangement, I was able to allocate more time on work or more time for my family depending on the circumstances on where I am needed the most.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• Definitely INSTACASH. This helped me purchase another product of life insurance for my family.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• Finding balance, and managing distractions. We've tried blocking schedules with specific home and work activities and it did not work. What has really helped me is to create a set of guiding principles that contain all of our work and family non-negotiables. (For example: Eat as a family)

Inspiring answers Bryan! Cheers!

Geoffrey Ogang

And now we have Geoff, our very own Head of Finance here in Sprout!

We sat down to ask him a few questions about fatherhood, and this is what he had to say:

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• The best part of being a dad is having the chance to nurture an innocent child who looks up to you, and treats you like his SUPERHERO!

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• Because of the pandemic, a lot of businesses have shifted to work from home arrangement, which, in the case of Sprout, is permanent already. With this, we are given a chance to spend more time with our family and children. MAKE SURE TO MAXIMIZE EVERY SECOND OF IT!

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• Sprout has always been very supportive when it comes to family activities. Because the leadership team is family-oriented, they make sure that family is prioritized above everything else.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• Sprout’s Instacash is really an amazing service. Even though I am not using it regularly, it gives me some sort of comfort that I can advance a portion of my salary whenever my family needs it, wherever corner of the planet I am at!

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• Working remotely also has its downside, that is extending work hours. Since you don't feel the stress of having to travel hours and hours going home, you tend to forget that it’s already late. So, you have to make sure that you work SMART, and you observe a limit so that you can make time for you and your family. Remember FAMILY ALWAYS COMES FIRST!

We would definitely reinforce that answer Geoff, Family should always come first! You truly are one of the rockstar dads of sprout!

Viscount Villanueva

Now we have Viscount another one of our Rockstar Dads of Sprout, one of our Product Designers here in Sprout!

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• Orion loves action movies. As a parent, one thing most of us are very excited for is the day we'd finally be able to watch a movie in the cinema with our kids. (When they're young you lose the time to do that--including a lot of other things). When that day arrived for us, man were we ready. Drinks of all types, buckets of all the flavours of popcorn, fries, chips, burgers, the best centre seats we reserved in advance, wet wipes, vomit bags, everything we'd ever need to keep focused on the Marvel of modern-day post-processed entertainment. We find our seats, and the lights go off. The trailers pass. Excitement is in the air. Then that old piracy warning, darkness, and then the characters voices come alive. But something wasn't quite right.. Orion was scared. Halfway through the intro, while our cinema hero was in the heat of battle, Orion suddenly runs out of the cinema! I chase him, scared and confused by what just happened too. Catching up to him, he's huddled by the door and looks at me "I'm scared, daddy. I don't like it. It's scary." It took me a while before it hit me, but I realised that he WAS just a child. Then like a spark in my mind I saw it in his perspective: a dark room, sudden flashing lights, and loud noises, sights of people in pain. It was scary. It was humbling of how ignorant I was of his perspective. I talked to him. I told him I understood what he was feeling, and that it's natural--just like any kid. But I also told him how much I believed in him. He was a brave boy, my brave son, and that he had nothing to be afraid of as it was just on screen. That he could punch those baddies into oblivion! "I'm a brave boy" he chanted as he walked back to his seat and firmly planted himself on the chair. (There were very few other instances of pep talks needed after) We finished the movie laughing, excited for the next of the many sequels and spin-offs in the endless cinematic universe. I think he's forgotten about that moment, or even that day, but I've always looked back at it. It's my life to help him become a stronger person, a braver boy--and I love it.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• Things will get better. No one starts out as a perfect parent, but all you have to do is study, listen, and learn. Also, we're awesome.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• Sprout, for my career, is in a position where it can leverage the exciting developments in design technology. And being up to date with practices and tools has allowed the capability to perform intently on my passion without sacrificing output quality, nor quality time with my kid.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• The Mobile App! It's amazing. As soon as clock-out at the end of the day, I can put my phone in a drawer and get back on to the many other passions in my life, like learning how to cook perfect pancakes.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• I'm the type of guy who loves to run under, or over, tables when playing with kids. The type that's just gassed out at the end of the day from all the insane laughing, and spinning, and piggy-back rides. But when you're the friend that they always go to, sometimes you just get bothered. Where sometimes we wouldn't notice that we'd start becoming a little mean. I've learned to properly communicate what can and can't be done. Don't take on too much. No matter how small they are, or that you still remember washing their butts, these kids are more mature than they look. They'll understand.

Amazing story Viscount! We really feel the love that you have for your child!

Jeriel Escoses

Next, we have Jeriel, one of our Quality Analysts here in Sprout!

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• It is the feeling of being young again. Seeing them have the things that I do not have growing up.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• Time moves fast, cherish every moment with your kids and make it last forever. It is not much but you got each other.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• Work life balance at its best. Instead of spending hours on daily traffic going to work, those hours are being spent now helping my kid with his homework, sometimes building lego cars before going online for work.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• All of it. Sprout products helped me to be a good provider for my family.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• I think it is the pressure of having to work at home. It is difficult to handle both work and non-work obstacles at the same time, you must manage each one. Focus on it one at a time.

Yes, Jeriel, we agree! Focus on it one at a time! We’ll all get there soon enough! Happy that you're part of the Rockstar Dads of Sprout!

Master Lance Violan

Now we have Master! One of our developers here in Sprout.

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• The ability to distinguish a fart from a poop.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• You can always pretend that you're in a meeting when it's time to change your child's diaper.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• Sprout gave me a chance to spend more time with my family and witness unforgettable moments with my son especially when he's teething (the feeling of being nervous if he will catch a fever or not).

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• Sprout Mobile App, it gave me the ability to login using my phone without waking up the monster. For when he wakes, he will move mountains.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• If you want to have a successful and effective meeting, don't forget to play cocomelon.

Great job not waking up your kid when clocking in with the mobile app! Way to be one of the Rockstar Dads of Sprout!

Kislay Chandra

Last but not the least we have Kislay, our Vice President of Product in Sprout!

We sat down to ask him a few questions about fatherhood and this were his answers:

What is the best thing about being a dad?

• You get to be a kid again as you play with your child.

What is your father’s day message to all dads out there?

• Fatherhood is about showing up and being there, more than anything. So show up first, and then you will figure out the other stuff.

How did Sprout enable you to integrate work and life?

• From our company policies, to our leadership and peers, Sprout enables work life integration at every level.

As a dad, what Sprout product helped you the most and why?

• Sprout Wellness. The availability of counseling, yoga and meditation sessions on demand has been immensely helpful in preserving my sanity during these stressful times.

What do you think is the biggest challenge faced by fathers in a remote work set up and what is the lesson that you've learned from this experience so far?

• The remote work setup blurs the lines between work and personal life. Even though you are at home, you can get so involved in work that you forget to spend quality time with your family. Thankfully, the work-life-integration model gives me enough flexibility to take time out of my schedule to spend with my family.

It’s great to know that you are spending time with Family, Kislay! You are indeed one of the Rockstar Dads of Sprout

To know more about how Sprout’s products help our rockstars, click here.

Happy Father’s Day to each and everyone of our rockstar dads and everyone out there!

Cheers!