MANILA, Philippines — ‘To him, technology is not just another department in an organizational chart. It must be the foundation. It is a mandate.’
For many business leaders, board meetings revolve around financial performance, market expansion and shareholder value.
At Multisys Technologies Corporation, those conversations naturally cover revenue, operating expenses, and business pipelines.
According to Corporate Communications Head Athenna Ordoña, there is one topic that consistently captures the attention of Chairman Manny V. Pangilinan — technology.
"I don't personally know many people in their seventies or eighties who genuinely feel energized and appreciate software demos," she says.
"I only know one, and that is MVP."
Having attended board meetings as one of the youngest people in the room, Ordoña has watched Pangilinan engage with discussions on software, artificial intelligence, and automation with the curiosity of someone decades younger.
"What many people don't know about MVP is that beyond corporate liturgy, technology seems to come as second nature to him," she says. "I have seen this firsthand. He is intentional and all in when it comes to innovation."
Whether the discussion involves telecommunications, power, water, tollways or media, Pangilinan invariably asks how technology is transforming the business.
"AI? Software? Automation? He asks about it across every company in the MVP Group," Ordoña says. "To him, technology isn't just another department in an organizational chart. It must be the foundation. It is a mandate."
That philosophy has shaped Multisys' own journey.
When PLDT invested in the homegrown software company in 2018, Ordoña says Pangilinan recognized the growing importance of enterprise automation and digital transformation at a time when many organizations were still beginning to understand their potential.
As part of the PLDT Group, Multisys has been able to preserve its entrepreneurial culture while benefiting from the reach and scale of one of the country's largest business groups.
For Ordoña, however, what stands out most is not the investment itself but the mindset behind it.
“MVP is intentional," she says. "He genuinely wants to understand what's next."
That curiosity is shared by the people who work closest with Pangilinan.
Asked to describe him in a single word, Multisys President and CEO Vic Tria chose "decisive." Chief Operations Officer Atty. Kath Mila called him "savvy," while Chief Financial Officer Nathan San Diego described him as a "luminary." Chief Revenue Officer Kirk Esconili sees him as a "magnate," and Chief People Officer Joan Marie Eder simply calls him a "visionary."
Taken together, those descriptions paint the portrait of a leader whose influence extends well beyond business performance.
For Ordoña, however, one observation matters more than any title or accolade.
"He's human," she says.
"He has built a legacy and continues to build new ones. He ages, yet his curiosity for technology remains fresh as ever, as if he's someone from our generation.
“Like the rest of us, he goes through every season of life. But what endures is his continued legacy."
At 80, Pangilinan's greatest competitive advantage may not simply be experience.
It is the willingness to keep learning.