Passing the torch in family businesses (Conclusion)

Continuing our insights from the SharePHIL forum on family business succession, the second part delves into more perspectives from next-generation leaders on navigating change, driving transformation and building enduring legacies.

Blending legacy and innovation

Belo-Cincochan also shared her journey of modernizing Wilcon Depot while remaining rooted in her father’s vision.

“Maybe I can share with you my story of the very first store opening I attended 22 years ago. It was January when I was with my dad, our founder, the first generation,” she recalled. “We were walking down the construction site of the store, which was along Alabang-Zapote Road… He was really larger than life to me.”

Her experience watching her father’s hands-on approach to business laid the foundation for her leadership style, which combined the core values of the business with a forward-thinking mindset. She realized that while a founder-led enterprise like her father’s was effective, transitioning to a more professionalized, scalable business meant evolving beyond centralized, gut-feel decision-making to ensure “organizational sustainability.”

“I am a great believer in technology as an enabler,” Belo-Cincochan explained. “It’s not about the latest and greatest AI, but how I can help enable people in the organization to give the best customer service.”

She modernized Wilcon’s internal systems, upgraded IT and compliance documentation and gradually shifted decision-making power to empowered teams.

Her focus on data-driven decision-making and operational efficiency helped Wilcon expand rapidly, now at 101 stores and counting, while maintaining a company culture that valued collaboration and empowerment.

Still, adapting Wilcon for the future meant walking a tightrope: modernizing systems and structures without abandoning the founder’s core values. “I told my dad, ‘I cannot fill your shoes.’ And he told me, ‘Just do what you can,’” she recounted. Part of her strategy was bringing in outside expertise. Since Wilcon went public nearly a decade ago, she’s made governance a cornerstone – adding independent directors and advisers to shore up areas like supply chain, procurement and finance. “I would say that’s one of the advantages of going public. In your face, it’s governance, it’s risk management. It was a light bulb moment for me,” she said.

“We experimented. We had Gen Zs present a program for approval with a Gen Y mentor and a Gen X for oversight,” she shared, emphasizing the importance of bridging generational gaps in the workforce. “These things… trying to see what floats up to the top and what will work – that’s what I think the way forward is.”

Ultimately, for Belo-Cincochan, leadership is both a duty and a calling.

“I feel that this is stewardship God gave me,” she said. “God gave us all of this to steward and I am grateful for the blessing of having such a rich legacy to uphold – and hopefully to multiply and pass on.”

Transforming challenges into opportunities

Delgado’s story focused on how he turned Delbros Group around during a time of crisis.

“Our business plans were outdated, the management team was very outdated, we were bleeding hundreds of millions per month,” he shared.

Faced with these challenges, he spearheaded a transformation that involved pivoting to new industries like agriculture, renewable energy and technology.

Delbros, once heavily invested in logistics from air freight to shipping and warehousing, was facing the stark reality that its overseas investments had masked deeper structural issues in its Philippine operations.

What followed was a difficult but necessary transformation: selling off the company’s warehousing group, downsizing its trucking fleet and replacing 80 percent of its management team.

“It was a very hard period for myself personally and for the company… but it allowed me to chart the path of the group moving forward.”

That path has involved a strategic pivot away from logistics, now reduced to 50 percent of the business, in favor of diversification into agriculture, renewable energy and technology.

Delgado reflected on the unique burden of considering both shareholder expectations and generational impact.

“Family businesses are fascinating because we’re trying to make decisions that are 50 years down the line,” he said. “It’s a lot of responsibility…I wear the hat of both a shareholder family member and a business leader every single day.”

While the role comes with weighty expectations, Delgado views it as a chance to lead with foresight and resilience – qualities that, he believes, were proven by how many family businesses weathered the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It showed us that we’re resilient. That we have the ability to chart paths through complexity,” he said. “And we’re finally, I think, getting a little bit of credit where in the past, it was public companies that were always seen as the businesses to emulate.”

A legacy of leadership and growth

The forum clearly highlighted that leadership in a family business is never just about inheritance – it is about carving your own path, shouldering responsibilities and redefining success on your own terms.

These leaders demonstrated that true leadership is not simply about holding a title but about making decisions that impact people’s lives, driving innovation and upholding values passed down from the founders.

In a world that often romanticizes generational wealth, these leaders showed that true legacy is not simply received–it is earned through hard work, resilience and a willingness to adapt.

Their stories underscored that while family names may open doors, it is personal character and commitment that ultimately sustain and elevate family businesses across generations.