Phabphada Dokbouathong
Phabphada Dokbouathong, known as Phab, was working at a gas station when she saw a newspaper ad for Digital Divide Data associates. She applied but failed the typing test. Mai Siriphongphanh put her on a backup list and called three months later, giving her a month of typing practice before accepting her in January 2004. Born in Vientiane to parents from southern Laos, Phab started as an associate on the afternoon shift when DDD Laos was quite small. She grew from supervisor to project coordinator to project manager, and in 2017 became VP of Operations, overseeing day-to-day operations in Laos.
The biggest challenge now, she says, is a shift in youth mindset. Some young Laotians are dropping out of school to earn money now rather than studying for better future opportunities. "They don't think studying will get them a good job in the future," she says. She's partnering with high schools to reach students at graduation. From her DDD cohort, she's the only one still at DDD—the rest work at high levels in other countries, some as senior ministers or office heads. What made them successful was commitment: arriving at six in the morning, balancing work and school, volunteering extra hours to support training programs. "You can't grow alone," she says about the culture of helping each other and sharing knowledge. Her dream is to nurture younger local leaders, and now DDD Laos is managed almost entirely by locals. She's working to bring the Career Connect program from Phnom Penh to Laos, helping graduates prepare for specific employers rather than searching for jobs themselves.
