Innovative creative, turn around ideas from a fmr classmate, multinational veteran

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution\\




Rizal Philippine
March 31, 2017




I met this morning at Glorietta a former classmate, also a public school product after 28 years. (Almost 45 years na kami since college)  The last time we met was when he was VP of media company.

He is now retired and we met for two reasons:   1.  old times sake, and 2.  ask his help run a business and get him on board as a director.


He shared with me a lot of things:

1.  He is active in youth leadership training as an Executive Director as one of the Knights of Rizal  He inspires them, and trains them to be future patriotic leader where love of country is prime concern;

2.  As a former toothpaste executive who was assigned in Malaysia, he quarreled with a Malaysian, because his argument was that the product needs Moslem certification.  However, he argued that when he visited the stores, the shelves had none of their product

3.  When he worked with a local media company, (and he was promised presidency)) he found it to be bleeding profusely?  Why?   Because according to him, there is a self inflicted wound.  In order to keep its rating up, it had to pay the dealers an x amount to tell the auditor that indeed their sales say is 500 pcs (instead of say 100) To top it all, the dealer had to return the unsold papers at the expense of the publishing company.  What if the papers come from Mindanao.  Well that amounted to a loss of P10 million a month.  He viewed the whole thing from a business finance perspective and simply had to stop the  practice.

Because the production cost of the papers exceeded the selling price of the papers, he had to change the Pulitzer formula:   he raised the fee for the ads, and added more ads by showing that they were really selling more papers.  If the cost structure is wrong the more they sell, the more they lose money

4.  At an insurance company, (non life) he said that they were a game changer.  He bypassed the traditional agencies in order to save com expenses, went by way of DSM, through partner banks, (to save also on expenses).    He employed tele marketers and after this failed then thats the only time they will go face to face selling

5.   He had good connection with IC because after they get an international award, they have photo opps with the Insurance Commissioner to honor IC with their achievement. They were the first financial services company to win Agora award for Marketing in 1993

With OIC commissioner


Even at the age of 66 he is innovative, restless, and impatient

CFO Forum at AGSB 50th anniversary

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution

Rizal Philippines
March 30, 2017

The Department of Economics Finance and Accounting held last March 28, 2017 a forum of chief financial officers on what to focus in 2017.  This was held at the Auditorium Basement 1 of Ateneo Professional School. The CFO who were present  were Francis H. Suarez Jr,  EVP,   Jose Teodoro K. Limcaoco,   CFO of Ayala group, and the moderator, Ana Bess G. Pingol, the moderators and also  CFO of Federal Land, SM Land Rockwell Land,  Deputy CFO of Metro Pacific Investment  Corporation.

What were the views of the CFO?

Both are conglomerates:  both have organic growth from core businesses, but Ayala is one of the oldest, and GT an investment arm of George Ty, the controlling stockholder of Metro Bank is the youngest, and only 5 years old.

The discussion were mostly from strategic point of view, rather from financial point of view.

Some critiques on the strama yesterday for MBAH

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution

Rizal Philippines
March 26, 2017

1. On the research facility -  A scientific game changing lab is bleeding profusely not because of its operational defects, but because it cant get support from the President, the doctors and the managers are quareling, the boss for the investors is blunt and unforgiving, and there is a lot of friction.  The strategy class does not handle  or delve on conflict resolution, and corporate politicsl

2.  Exercise on futlity  -  A GOCC is likely to fail in its mission as a cheap medicine procurement agency for the simple reason that the multi agency involved:  DOH DTI and the LGUS   (those are DTI, DILG, DOH)  will not buy from them, or that the admin code for buying , ie conducting the bidding that takes months even for their agency (these should not happen) That the student went through the ardous process of analysis can simply be solved by fiat or leadership move or a MoA wherein everybody promises to abide by the law.  And the law is clear (a simple case of insubordination, lack of communication, or cooperation)

3.  Family affair -  a student whose family owns a hospital proposes some brilliant analysis  and strategy.  But at the end of the day, nothing will happen and nothing will get done because her mother hates her, and sides with the other siblings,  her profession and her MBA cant move her mother to abide by her proposal.   The father on the other hand will not let go.

4. Some critical issues on revenue  - /This post appreciates more explanation on the data on the hospital in the south: 30% comes from PHIC, 30% comes from Diagnostics, and 30% comes from Pharma revenues, only 10% comes from admissions and board and lodging

It tells zillions that the hospital management and the strategist must mind the pharma, and diagnostics. That is why St Lukes and TMC makes zillions investments  for state of the art diagnostic sends their pharmacists to MBA, puts a pharma on every floor of the hospital, puts an ERP system for the pharma and that great relations must be made at PHIC, or beef our staff dealing with PHIC.  We should have had more time for that.

Since there are the main drivers of growth, they should guide the strategy and making the right decision

Some execs will remain as second in command and cant be strategists nor business owners

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution

Rizal Philippines
March 26, 2017


Some execs will remain as second in command and cant be strategists nor business owners/entrepreneurs.  Thats what the chairman of a large business told me.  He told me of  former senior officer he just got to run an operation.  From the way it looks, they are engaged in a constant debate or struggle, about the direction the business is to take.

How could that be.?"

Until I talked to the guy. He was sort of mayabang and kept on harping about his achievement. But take note that his former company closed in a big and embarrassing way and even boasted how he sold off some of the assets (for which he got some handsome commission). Despite his brilliance though, he cant see the big picture and aping the words of his chairman, which he could not fathom well.

I also observe my fellow panelists and their questions are shallow and often focus on the form (the scoring the matching of scores of this table with that table) and are not in depth analysis of the strama defense which must be searching, focusing on the critical thinking of the MBA candidate.

At the end of the day, and this is the defect of the course, the students come out with generic strategy that are more of the same, less of the same, that merely perpetuates administer the existing business, and in the strictest sense of the word, not really brilliant, strategic or game changing.

Some are country managers of multinationals. But their thinking is really that of subordinate who must report to a superior abroad.  

PREPREHO.

Strama defects - most writers can not connect FS and analysis, and strategy

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution

I was in 2 strama sessions this week:  one in the medical school last Tuesday, and yesterday at AGSB

I have seen this time and time again, students committing the same mistake, out of inexperience or lack of skills in financial. (as most do) It is only after 20 years of MBA that I learned the value of FS.

Thus the student will propose a plant or improvement, it no changes in FFE, in Balance sheet and cash flow, and no interest expense in P and L.  They all come together.  I

If they understand that strategy is about choice of resources and processes to reach an objectives, or a story of where am I now, where am I going, how do I get there, then they should see the totality of their work and connect, even the FS to their story

I met my former marketing professor at AGSB, former Administrator of SBMA, and now of Holy Land

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution



Rizal Philippines
March 14,, 2017

                                       Prof Jorge, Administrator Robert Garcia, and our business partner


Today, my business partner in Laguna, his son, and my daughter who is part of the management team went to Holy Land  at SBMA (near the entrance of Subic Freeport along Tipo Highway in Front of Seal oil station) this morning.

There I met my former professor in marketing at AGSB some 30 years ago (at H de la Costa) who just resigned from his post as SBMA administrator.  He used to be exec at RamCar group (the Petines family business)   He turned around SBMA from a net loss, to  a profitable one, restructuring its debt together with Joven Reyes, the CFO and COO (former AGSB classmate;  he was our class valedictorian)

His wife Maribi's passion is running and getting finances for the Holy Land, a religious shrine that features way of the cross, Jesus Christ life, and many more.  She is Jesuit bred and understands a lot about Jesuit reflection  We were drawing inspiration for inspiration for a religious shrine at our Holy Gardens Memorial Park

You should visit it this Holy Week.   You will enjoy its attractiona and the entrance fee is low.  A great way to observe Lent

                              I looked older than the Chairman who plays golf always

                          The Administrator's wife Maribi Garcia and the master planner Arch Florentino

Brilliant deal making from seasoned and veteran businessman

Every generation needs a revolution - an entrepreneurial revolution

Rizal Philippines
March 8, 2017

One of the companies which we oversee a memorial park in the north, is being wooed by a leading memorial park.   The first offer was rejected by my joint venture partners because it was  single digit million arrived at using present value.

The next offer which we discussed yesterday, made the offer 5x  the original offer, to be paid  levedl payment, over a period of 72 months.   If we do a PV of that payment, there would be about P12 million discount.  Our JV partners were salivating and wanted to grab the offer, except that they wanted to have at least 20% dp and the term reduced to 48 months

We have over 5,200 items worth over P40,000 each.   When they take over, they would sell our lots to pay us off.

Looking back analyzing the deal:

1.  We would lose about P96 million GP over the next say 20 years.   (that is after the op ex)

2.  We could do the same;  Discount our products down to 30T and they would sell fast, and generate over y amount of cash, flow, which would be 50% more than the payments to be made to us of x amount.  In other words the deal  is guisado with our own fat.  That is why they are balking on cash payment.  

Brilliant.  Whoever can think of such a deal?  One of the veterans of the trade, the former head of a chem company was thinking along that line all the time:   OPM and using 0 of their own money to get a business deal

However our marketing staff there is not that capable to sell the inventories fast