On the personal side

Did you know 1: Lucio Tan has now six honorary doctorates under his belt, the latest one from Western Mindanao State University in Zamboanga City last week.

Of the six, Dr. Tan had to work for only one. This is the one granted by the University of Sto. Tomas, which has a special program for those who don’t have the time to go back to school but have amassed enough knowledge from managing their businesses to qualify for one.

Yes, Dr. Tan had to undergo an interview with a panel of judges for that one.

And yes, it’s probably time that Dr. Tan started collecting honorary doctorates, particularly from China and Guam, where he has huge investments.

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Did you know 2: Now that the family business has been amicably and equitably divided, Bernadine Siy seems to have time for her personal life. She is seeing the equally successful son of a former Supreme Court Justice.

As everybody knows, Ms. Siy used to handle the Ramon Siy Group of Companies, on behalf of her mother (with whom she still lives) and her five siblings. The Siy Group is into real estate, garments, and food retail (such as the Philippine franchise for Seattle’s Best and Kenny Rogers).

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There’s a gradual paradigm shift in the League of Corporate Foundations headed this year by Lydia Sarmiento-Enrile.

For one, there’s a stronger distinction between philanthropy and corporate social responsibility, with philanthropy being one-shot deals like donating medicine to a hospital without any yardstick on how such good deeds have uplifted the lives of the beneficiaries.

For another, corporate foundations are now championing projects that are directly related to their core businesses instead of advocating causes that do not directly impact on the communities they serve.

For example, Nestlé Phils. has been "greening" its supply chain (read: suppliers are asked to be as friendly to the environment as Nestlé). Figaro Coffee Foundation, the smallest in the association that includes foundations put up by San Miguel Corp. and the Ayala Group, has been helping Cavite coffee farmers upgrade their production.

Of course, favorite advocacies include education and the environment.

By the way, LCF’s annual conference is ongoing until tomorrow.

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Oops! I got it backwards. Convergys Phils. country manager Marife Zamora is the highest ranking Filipino in the global organization, which she holds the position of vice-president.

Ma. Luisa Ros, who heads global communications and culture training, comes in second. Malu Ros is based in Florida.