Introduce Yourself.

I am Lorence S. Bumanlag currently residing in Nueva Ecija. I have a degree in Accountancy and
Accounting Technology. I’ve been working in the government for almost 4 years. My experience as an
Accounting Clerk in our LGU helped me to enhanced my taxation, accounting and personal relation skills
in a professional environment. I’m a hardworking and motivated person who is keen to learn and
contribute. When it comes to the tasks that were given to me, I always challenge myself to finish the
task on or before the deadline accurately and efficiently. I hope that I can utilize my skills and apply what
I learned to make a contribution in the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Why BIR?

Taxation is one of my best interest when I’m studying in college. And after finishing my degree, working
in the government is my priority. Although I’m already working in the government right now, I want to
follow what I truly wants which is my passion for Taxation and work in the BIR. In my current work I’m
just providing public service to our constituents but with BIR as a National which provide service for the
whole country. We all know that the tax is the lifeblood of the economy, it is very vital for a country to
have a proper collection and assessment of tax which is also the mission of the bureau which is to collect
taxes for nation-building through excellent, efficient and transparent services, just and fair enforcement
of tax laws and the upliftment of the lives of the Filipinos.

What can you say about the corruption in the Bureau?

When you say BIR, most of the people think that it is a place for corruption. This stigma or thinking
should be change because personally, I don’t think that corruption exists in the BIR. I believe that the
people working in the Bureau has a good conscience and always prioritize the need of the Filipino
people before their personal needs. Transparency and integrity are the factors to stop corruption. The
Bureau is transparent on all the transactions it conducts since the beginning. You can check in the
website the Transparency Seal, Annual Reports and Collection Statistics which shows all the data needed
to prove that the Bureau is not tainted with corruption.

Why should we hire you?

You should hire me because I have the skills and experience needed for the said position. I submit all the
reports and papers before the deadline and I’m dedicated to finish all the task given to me. I love dealing
with numbers and stay-organized. Moreover, once my superior told me what to do, I will be able to
finish it with minimal guidance. I can easily adapt to different working environment and can easily deal
with different type of people.

What can you contribute to the Bureau?

Aside from the work and duties that the job requires me to do so, I can contribute my learnings and
experiences from my previous jobs like my analytical skills, decision making skills and other skills that
will help me perform my job efficiently. I’m willing to help my co-employee especially during busy
seasons where the workload is at peak.

What can you do for us that others can’t?

I can used Microsoft Office Applications proficiently, especially, Excel. Which is very important for
making reports and performing basic math calculations. Just like what I usually do as an Accounting
Clerk, I am responsible for the preparation of Financial Statements of Special Education Fund and Trust
Funds. I’m honest and responsible employee, when a work is entrusted to me, I’ll make sure to finish it
on time and focus on the next task ahead. I rarely commit errors in the reports and make sure
everything is correct, because once you submit wrong information and your supervisor didn’t see it, it is
difficult to reverse.

What are your goals for the future?

My ultimate goal is to have a decent job and to be financially stable. And that job is the job in this
Bureau. In the next few years if given a chance, I see myself working in this Bureau in a much higher
position. I see in the future that I’m the one guiding and helping other people who wants to have a
career in this bureau.

What motivates you?

The struggle that we experience when I was a kid is my biggest motivation. I don’t want that the next
generation of my family will also experience the struggle that we encounter. That motivation is the
reason why I’m still striving for something better and pushing myself to the limit. Every time I’m starting
to give up, I always tell to myself “you’re not rich, wake up and go to work” which I think is effective
because I always wake up once that thought is in my mind.

What are your weaknesses?

One thing I noticed that I can consider as a weakness is it’s hard for me to say no when someone is
asking a favor. To overcome this weakness, I sometimes say no to them especially when I have things to
do first and explain to them why I can’t to their favor.

How well do you work under pressure?

I can still finish my work even if I’m under pressure. I keep myself calm and focus and make sure that the
pressure will not affect the result of my work. I will prioritize the task which requires to be finish first
and then follow the other until I finish my work within the schedule.
Tell me how you handled a difficult situation.

A difficult situation I encountered in work is when we need to submit reports in COA given in short
notice. In my work as I prepare the financial statements, the Treasury will transfer the vouchers to our
office and I will make the journal entries up to the cash flow preparation, but one instance happen,
when they transfer the vouchers late and we need to hurry and finish the report in the short period of
time. To be able to submit report, we render overtime and sometimes, I’m working in my home after
office hours. Thankfully, we manage to submit all our reports and comply all the requirements needed.

Describe a time where you were blamed for a mistake you did not make?

There was a time when my co-worker made an error in giving me the amount for a certain transaction.
This transaction is necessary for my report to be submitted in our supervisor, when our supervisor
noticed the discrepancy, I simply asked my co-worker and verify the amount she gave to me and then
she confirms that she was the one who made an error. I know that it is unproductive to pass the blame,
so I ask what we should do to solve the problem and make sure that the mistake will not happen again.

What is your biggest failure?

My biggest failure is when I didn’t pass the CPALE twice. I feel disappointed about myself and my family
are sad because of the result. They are the witness how much I sacrifice for that exam, but I think it’s not
my time yet. That’s why after my second take I enrolled in a refresher course to be able to take the exam
again, maybe third time is a charm. And I’m not giving up on my dream to become a CPA in the future.