From left to right (1st row): Bautista, Cobonpue, Lim, Valdes, and Chan. 2nd row: Chong, Evangelista, Ilao, Ledesma, and Palencia.
On March 3 and 4, 2021, Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. held the very first Mansmith Innovation Awards and Summit. A dual conference and awarding ceremony, the event recognized the top 10 Filipino innovators for their significant contributions to innovation in the Philippines.
Innovation is the job of everyone–it is seeing things differently and doing things differently, not just within oneâs own organization but within the entire industry as well. Part of Mansmithâs advocacy is to spread this knowledge of what innovation is and help build a culture of innovation in the country through education and inspiration.
Here are the winners of the Master Innovator category, as well as some accompanying insights from their keynote talks at the summit.
Edwin Bautista, CEO and President of Union Bank of the Philippines, Master Innovator for Digital Technology Innovation
âPreviously, innovations were heavily focused on how to increase market share. Today, you cannot separate business model innovation from your strategy.â
âThink of innovation as a total business model transformation. Look at tools and technology to make this happen. But most importantly, put together a culture that supports all of this.â
Kenneth Cobonpue, CEO and Creative Director, Interior Crafts of the Islands, Inc., Master Innovator for Product Innovation in the Creative Industry
âInspiration comes from everywhere. For me, it could be crushed cans, leaves, foam, and the best of Philippine craftsmanship.â
âOriginal can be a new process, new materials, new shape, a twist. The intention is always to stand out.â
William Tiu Lim, President and CEO, Mega Global Corporation, Master Innovator for Business Model Innovation
âOnce you have set the standard, it has to be consistent along your product lines. You are building a brand with innovations in place.â
âDefine what you can do differently versus your competition. Disrupt them.â
Bea Valdes, Owner, BEAVALDES, Master Innovator for Innovative Designs and Use of Creative Technology
âMake your meaning. It gives you the tenacity to go extra miles. The things we make represent the things we value, it reveals who we are as a people and as a society.â
âDisrupt the process. Observe different scales, try a different perspective as it leads to an innovative path.â
The Enterprise Innovators also shared their experiences through panel discussions.
Katrina Chan, Executive Director, QBO Innovation Hub, Enterprise Innovator for Business Model Innovation
âNever let a good crisis go to waste. Disruptive events around the world are catalysts for innovation.â
âCreate an environment where people are encouraged to try, make mistakes and learn. Set-up easy channels for mentorship.â
Barnaby Chong, President, CHG Global, Inc., Enterprise Innovator for Product Innovation
âIn our company, we encourage our team to take small bets and look for projects to compensate for losses.â
âOperate consistently. Sometimes innovations fail not at the concept level but at the execution level.â
Neogin Evangelista, President and General Manager, PHILUSA Corporation, Enterprise Innovator for Business Model Innovation
âInnovation is the job of everyone in our organization.â
âOur employees have visibility on innovations in the pipeline. It emanates from a strong sense of purpose.â
Maria Rosario Ilao, CEO and Founder, MobileOptima Inc., Enterprise Innovator for Technology Innovation
âInnovation is not a finish line. If we donât make ourselves obsolete, others will. It is difficult to constantly iterate and keep changing but this is what we need if we want to stay relevant.â
âMore and more local companies have acknowledged that technology and innovation should be core principles of their organization.â
Merlinda Abadicio-Palencia, Chief Operating Officer, Envigor Natural Products Mfg. Inc., Enterprise Innovator for Product Innovation
âAs an educator, there is a bigger responsibility to show everyone that we can make local technologies successful.â
âWe need to be models that the way to grow is innovation and it can be done.â
RJ Ledesma, President and Co-Founder, Mercato Centrale Philippines, Enterprise Innovator for Business Model Innovation
âEntrepreneurs donât see business failure as a personal failure, and never stop thinking on how to overcome the crisis.â
âIn our small, agile team, we always think of solving pain points. Irritation of clients became our inspiration to create innovations.
The search is on for the 2nd Mansmith Innovation Awards! Application forms are available for download on https://www.mansmithinnovation.com until October 31, 2021.
