Dedicated to delighting the Filipino

Canon in the Philippines has been synonymous to digital imaging. For some we are a camera company, for our corporate customers we provide a full range of digital copiers. But over the years we have identified ourselves as a leader in various technologies within the realm of digital imaging. 

All over the world, Canon is well respected and has consistently been in the top three rank for most brand surveys. In one survey conducted among Japanese companies in China by The Diamond Weekly, Canon was awarded the No. 1 position. We are the No. 1 digital camera in the Philippines according to Gfk Inc., the Gold awardee for digital cameras, printers and office machines according to Readers Digest Trusted Brand Awards and the recipient of the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry’s Seal of Excellence Gold award. 

All the recognition that we receive from our products and services serves as proof of our success that we are able to bridge our vision as an excellent company to the needs of our customers and partners. The development of technology in the world is meant to have a larger goal — to improve people’s lives which ties into our Kyosei philosophy.

All Canon employees live by Kyosei, our corporate philosophy which translated means “living and working for the common good”. This is not something that you would expect to hear from a technology company. But it is the key motivator for everything that we do. Our corporate philosophy echoes my own personal beliefs in committing oneself to improving the status quo. Locally, we have initiated the Canon Green Nation, an environmental campaign that has started by promoting recycling of old ink and toner cartridges and will continue next year with more activities that intend to bring more awareness to environment conservation. Aside from this, our Asia-wide Customer Delight program continues to promote development of new ideas and ways to delight our customers. This flagship program was created to continuously go beyond our customers’ expectations. 

Last year was a significant one for both Canon and myself. Canon celebrated its 10th anniversary in the Philippines. I started in the company as a senior vice president for Sales and Marketing also around 10 years ago and in 2005, became the first Filipino CEO and president. Having grown with the company for a decade was a milestone for me, not just personally but also because of the recognition of the Filipino as a leader. Canon Marketing Philippines celebrated its tenth year in the country by launching the Canon Image Nation campaign to serve as a tribute to the Filipino who has made images a part of their life. In the Filipino culture full of treasured celebrations, family gatherings and even with the simple salu-salo of friends, our commitment is to provide only superior imaging technology to ensure that everything is remembered and preserved for years to come.

We are all very much aware of the state of our country and what is happening in the world today. There is an impending forecast of more difficult times to come. As a business leader, I feel that there is a need for companies to get “back to basics” as a way to cope with anything that may face us in the next year. Going back to the basics simply means ensuring that the company has a strong foundation of both values and skills.  

In our company, we promote a family approach with our employees to develop positive commitment within our employee corporate culture. We celebrate various occasions such as family day, mother’s day, father’s day and halloween trick or treat with special gifts and activities, we provide free and subsidized medical coverage, extraordinary appreciation meals or gifts for families when the company has positive performance, and special movie screenings for employees with their families just to name a few. We also encourage volunteerism among our personnel with visits to institutions such as Nayon ng Kabataan or Golden Acres to provide much needed support and just some quality time with those less fortunate. This is above and beyond the support that the company provides for our Good Corporate Citizenship programs like sponsoring children’s operations through Operation Smile foundation, provision of much needed office equipment for Bantay Bata’s facilities and projects, construction sponsorship of ten houses through Gawad Kalinga, donation from both the company and from employees to the Philippine National Red Cross for the victims of typhoons and natural disasters. Our activities are in line with the development of personal values to enrich ourselves as well as others.

Canon is also a firm advocate of skills training and development. We communicate every individual’s career path and superiors encourage their staff to improve and move up within the organization. We have invested close to P5 million in technical, sales, product, overseas, public seminars, corporate and in-house training in the past year alone.  

From where we started in 1997 as a P150 million company which has grown to a P2.4 billion company in a span of only 10 years, Canon has the capacity and the capabilities of becoming even more successful in the long run. The success that I speak of is not just in terms of sales performance but also in bestowing delight to both our internal and external customers. This is our continuing commitment to every Filipino.