From trader to builder

Somebody asked me why there is so much media hype about the decision of Manny Pangilinan to give up the presidency of PLDT and who will replace him. Come to think of it, other companies just appoint people with not much funfare. In the case of PLDT, the suspense is building up two months before the main event.

So what if the president of Smart Communications, a wholly owned subsidiary and the cash cow of PLDT, has been nominated by MVP himself to be the next president of PLDT? So what if Manny has decided to become PLDT chairman and devote more time to First Pacific in Hongkong? So what if Tonyboy Cojuangco gave up the PLDT chairmanship and is now preparing for his official takeover of ABC 5 on Jan. 1?

But PLDT and Manny is Manny. MVP has always been a colorful personality. And PLDT is such a big company that what happens in it largely influences the business environment.

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Looking at Manny’s hair turning grey, I can’t help but be reminded the first I saw him. It was in Malacanang when he and other Filipino executives at First Pacific paid a courtesy call on then President Aquino. I was star struck. After all, this was the Manny Pangilinan, who had the distinction of being the highest paid CEO in the region. But more than that, he was perceived as a ruthless deal maker, such that he was given the monicker Pac-man (that video game character that gobbled everything in its path). He was larger than life.

I remember having interviewed the group when they announced their first venture in the Philippines – to build the highest structure along Ayala Avenue.

A friend told me having received a piece of advice from Manny then – that one should never fall in love with a business so that when the right price come along, sell. Remember, Richard Gere in Pretty Woman? He was in the business of buying assets, chopping them up, and then selling the pieces. Like Julia the prostitute, they never fell in love with their job because then, it would be difficult to let go. The problem was Richard never built anything, something he can truly be proud of.

Never in Manny’s wildest dreams did he imagine that he would fall in love with his business. The came when Manny wanted to prove to himself and to the rest of the world that he can manage a business. And he fell in love with PLDT. He had a great personal stake in the company. He almost died on his way to Manila prior to his takeover of PLDT.

It broke his heart when the owners of First Pacific wanted to sell PLDT to the Gokongwei group. After all, he devoted his heart and soul to the company. He was almost finished solving PLDT’s problems. It was just a matter of time when his efforts would pay off. Remember what the hotel manager told Richard Gere when Julia left? "How can you let go of something so beautiful?"

Older and wiser, Manny knows how it is to build and get the highest satisfaction out of building something. Which is probably the reason why First Pacific, once an asset trader, now wants to build. With PLDT and Indofood as the platforms, First Pacific under Manny’s helm will be expanding its presence throughout the region.

Manny can just sit back and enjoy his achievements. But he has no plans yet of resting. After all, he has the whole eternity to rest when he dies, according to him. The real challenge has just began for him. He decided to move on to become the top honcho of First Pacific and then chairman of PLDT something February next year mainly to ensure the continuity and stability of First Pacific’s investments – PLDT and Indofood. PLDT will not be sold, not now, not for the right price.

The Anointed One

Who is Napoleon ‘Polly’ Nazareno and why was he handpicked by Manny to be his successor?

Polly was a Filipino executive working in Europe when he was plucked by the First Pacific management to become president of Metro Pacific Corp, the flagship company of the Hongkong-based group. From there, he became president of Smart Communications in Feb. 2000 when it was acquired by First Pacific.

According to MVP, Polly will be a big asset to PLDT. Having come from the Smart stable, Polly knows what it is capable of. Once educated in the fixed line business of PLDT, he could then have a total view of the whole PLDT group, Manny explains.

Polly will be staying on though as head of Smart, which Manny says will result in more integrated operations between PLDT fixed and Smart. Certain units can be merged such as the backroom and other staff units.

But I believe that more than this, Polly’s management style will work wonders for PLDT.

Polly has been described as the ‘glue’ or the uniting factor at Smart. During mancom meetings of Smart, Boy Martirez (marketing), Peter Lawrence (finance), Roland Pena (networks), Mon Fernandez (admin) would be exchanging ideas, oftentimes ending up in heated arguments, and Polly would just listen. Once the dust settles, Polly decides. And that’s the end of it.

Even during meetings at PLDT, Polly rarely talks but when he does, the idea is a sure winner. He first absorbs everything that has been said and done at the meeting. Then he talks sense.

He also decides fast, which is something PLDT, with Smart and the data business as the core businesses, would be needing in an age when technology changes at the flick of a finger.

Changes in PLDT top and middle level management are unlikely to happen once Polly takes over as president. After all, he can work with anybody under any circumstances. There was sort of a panic among PLDT managers when news came out about the impending top level management changes. In fact, some people thought that Smart was taking over. But people at Smart, other than Polly, have no plans of transferring to PLDT. What for? Smart is earning much, much more than PLDT. And Smart managers find PLDT too messy, sort of a dog-eat-dog environment.

From The Grapevine

• Tonyboy Cojuangco’s group paid only P2.5 billion in cash to Edward Tan for the Associated Broadcasting Corp. (ABC 5). As part of the deal, Cojuangco’s group will be absorbing ABC 5’s liabilities. Cojuangco will likewise not be purchasing certain land assets of the company. So why did Tan sell at such a low price when Manny Pangilinan and Joey Concepcion were offering much higher before, in the vicinity of P4 to P5 billion? Cojuangco’s offer just happened to come at the right time, when Tan simply wanted to get out of broadcasting.

• Storm’s abrewing at PLDT. The company union and management seem to have arrived at a stalemate during ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). In fact, a strike is already looming in the horizon. Remember, the last CBA when the employees got huge bonuses, something like P150,000 each? Multiply that by 2,000 and you will get an idea how much we are talking about here. With PLDT expected to end the year with larger profits, expect the union to be asking for much, much more. Nothing wrong with that. After all, the employees should receive their just share of the blessings.

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