When business leaders discuss strategic risk, they usually focus on what is new: the startup investment, cross-border acquisition, digital transformation, or multi-billion-peso capital proposal. They ask probing questions because the future is unproven. But what about the core business that is already making money? It has paying customers, steady revenues, a long track record, and a management team that knows […]
Articles
Keynote Speech: Packaging Institute of the Philippines – Annual Exhibit and Industry Forum October 8, 2026 | SMX Convention Center Manila Right now, in boardrooms all over the country, packaging owners and CEOs are wrestling with the exact same headache: “How do we stop clients from squeezing our prices down to zero?” Good afternoon, friends, and leaders in the Packaging Institute […]
When economic conditions shift, customer buying habits change, and input costs rise, corporate leadership teams often find themselves at cross-purposes. Finance demands immediate cost discipline. Marketing and Commercial teams fight to protect brand equity, customer acquisition budgets, and promotional spend. Meanwhile, executive leadership struggles to balance short-term cash flow with long-term market position. The common, knee-jerk reaction/ launching across-the-board 15% […]
The more ambitious the strategy, the more dangerous it is to pretend we know exactly how it will succeed. For over three decades of advising business owners, mentoring C-level executives, evaluating turnarounds, and serving on boards, I have seen a recurring pattern: major initiatives rarely fail because leaders lack ambition. They fail because critical assumptions go unchallenged until reality forces […]
Too many entrepreneurs treat networking, marketing, or content as magic fixes. We join clubs, attend meetups, post daily, hustle hard. But no matter how busy you seem, if your business model is flawed, nothing sticks. I’ve learned this after mentoring thousands of entrepreneurs and guiding teams at Mansmith & Fielders. Let me show you why so many fail despite the […]
I have always wanted to thank a stranger. I don’t know his name. I don’t know what he looks like anymore. But I remember what he did. Seven years ago, I was in Taipei with some distributors from Waters Philippines. During some free time, I decided to go down a hilly area of Daxi Flower Oasis Farm ahead of the […]
Every strategy rests on assumptions. The problem is that once a strategy is approved, those assumptions can disappear from view. Imagine the Philippine government announces that every Filipino who reaches 101 will receive ₱1 million, with another ₱1 million for every birthday thereafter. At first glance, this may seem manageable. But how many Filipinos will reach 101? How long will […]
I watched Forgotten Island, DreamWorks Animation’s new feature inspired by Filipino mythology, and felt something I did not expect. Pride. Not simply because it is a major animated film, but because I was watching a world that felt familiar. The manananggal. The kapre. The diwata. Stories and creatures that many Filipinos grew up hearing about are now part of a film that audiences around […]
Building Brand Philippines Through Excellence, Execution, and Systems Every nation possesses a brand. A country brand is not created solely through government marketing campaigns, tourism slogans, or official state messaging. It is forged through what the world consistently experiences from a nation’s people, enterprises, and public institutions. Like any global enterprise, a nation competes in the international arena through its […]
Are Customers Returning Because They Choose You, or Because They Have Not Found a Reason to Leave? A few times each month, I return to the same beef noodle shop in Opus. It is only a kilometer from my home, making it convenient. Sometimes my wife, Chiqui, joins me, and we share a simple meal for less than ₱1,000. I […]