NGC Rewind 2020

2020 has been a year of changes.

A year of challenges.

A year of adapting.

A year of growth.

A year of gratitude.

And most certainly a year to remember.

This year was a year in which our lives were turned around 180 degrees at the blink of an eye. Travel plans, reunions, etc all went down the drain. Everyone had to make changes, from the smallest of businesses such as local restaurants having to reach out to their loyal customers for support to large organizations such as concerts and major sporting events having to be postponed or even outright cancelled. Business events that garnered a lot of significant individuals together which usually ends up in a lot of mutually beneficial business arrangements were cancelled. International and sometimes even domestic borders were closed affecting not just the tourism industry but other services which rely on international trade such as import and export.

On the more personal side of things, people had to deal with being stuck in their homes during lockdown. Some were facing mental health problems that spiralled worse because they are no longer able to do their daily routines that kept those mental illnesses at bay; While others were under domestic violence and abuse without the reprieve of being able to go outside away from their abusers taken away from them. We had to deal with the shortage of necessities due to panic buying and inconsiderate individuals hoarding items. Everything had a sudden shift online, be it business, work, or even education.

As an organization, we have taken all this time amongst the agitation to take a step back and reflect upon our internal processes. We delved into factors such as work environment and company culture in order to reach a state of happiness for our team. An example would be how we decided to be selective about our clients. We decided to work more with people and organizations which understand the value that we bring to the table in order to reach a point of mutual respect and benefit. Instead of putting money ahead of everything else and getting overwhelmed down the line, we focused on what we can deliver better to the correct clientele.

Although this year has been a tough one, we kept rising to each challenge that came our way. We got through the various problems that we encountered by coming up with creative new solutions.

Here’s a recap of the innovations that we’ve accomplished during the course of this very ‘special’ year:

NGC Mars

The nucleus of our company that was born out of countless explorations.

• Many bug fixes.
• Since NGC Mars is focused on catering towards e-commerce business, we wanted our customers, and their customers, to have the best online transaction experience. Therefore we made updating the UI/UX for checking-out purchases a top priority for this product.
• We have also implemented an exciting new feature in the form of a floating WhatApp button on our platform that will make contacting website owners for any potential deals much simpler and easier. With one click of a button, visitors of the website will be redirected to your WhatsApp contact, and you can even set a default inquiry line that they can either just send or customize as needed.

NGC Earth

The dependable cornerstone of our operations that must not be forgotten.

• Many bug fixes.
• Upgrade the core framework to the latest version. This core framework that has been our bread and butter ever since it’s conception saw no end to updates. We wanted to increase efficiency by streamlining our work process which will also benefit our customers as they will receive a better product faster and at a more competitive price point.

NGC-CMS

Your loyal assistant since day one for anything related to content management.

• Many bug fixes.
• Security Improvements
• Refined UI/UX
• New feature: automated default user avatar generator.
• New feature: built-in language filter.
• Unification of CMS usage across products: NGC Mars and Earth are now using the same version of NGC-CMS.

Signing off for 2020

And with that we close our recounting of this unexpected and unique year that we will always remember as a time of perseverance and growth. We would also like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to come. Don’t forget to stay safe when celebrating the end-of-year festivities and may you and all your loved ones always be blessed with good health. See you in 2021!