© Aboitiz Equity VenturesAll rights reserved
Powered by:
AEV

SMA Breaks Down One Aboitiz

"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts." – Aristotle

More than a hundred years ago, Aboitiz & Company was a small abaca trading family business in the Visayas. Fast forward to 2020, the company has grown exponentially — a team nearly 40,000 strong, expanding beyond borders, and capitalizing on its diverse portfolio to drive change for a better world by advancing business and communities.

Now being a much larger organization, different cultures emerge and a singular message can be interpreted in different ways. On its 100th year, Aboitiz returns to fundamental thinking, which Sabin Aboitiz, the new Aboitiz Group President and CEO, is pushing forward.

United as One Aboitiz

Caf8 at the Taguig Corporate Center buzzed with excitement while team members from different locations joined online for the first SuperDuperCon of 2020. A revamp of the SuperCon, the SuperDuperCon marked the first time Sabin M. Aboitiz addressed A-People since taking over as the new Aboitiz Group President and CEO on January 1st. In an engaging and casual Q&A set-up, SMA took the opportunity to introduce “One Aboitiz” — a mantra inspired by AboitizPower's own —  and what this means, particularly, for team leaders.

“It goes back to when we were still a small organization. People identify themselves as ‘I work for Aboitiz’,” he recalled. “The thinking was the same. The culture was the same. Now, we are a much larger organization.”

As a community that has grown beyond its own expectations over the years, it is inevitable that there will be different cultures among SBUs and BUs. However, it is not impossible to bring back the mindset of being, simply, from Aboitiz as long as team members work together.

You are always stronger together than apart, in everything you do.
A-People from across SBUs listened to SMA's first townhall as Aboitiz Group President & CEO.

SMA cited that one way of putting this into action is finding solutions with the help of team members from other business units. “The solution is always within the organization and not outside,” he said emphatically. “If you have a problem in the power plant or in the foundation, your first solution should not be isolation and you solve it. Find a solution within the Group.

During the Q&A, SMA was asked how 1AP will align and fit in the "One Aboitiz" direction. With the “One Aboitiz” mindset, silos among units are broken down and teamwork is not confined within a specific team or group. He encouraged team members to help other units by being interested in them and sharing what you have learned with them.

Go out of your way to help another unit. Help each other succeed.

Believing in One Aboitiz

Being a leader, SMA recognized that the burden in making One Aboitiz possible is “communicating to the leaders and convincing them”.

“When you are communicating with five people, you can do it yourself. But when you are communicating to a thousand, you have to go through leaders…leaders must truly believe — not only in words, but also in actions.”

Team leaders will be given the opportunity to hear more from SMA about One Aboitiz during the Group Management Conference on February 7, 2020.

As for team members, SMA challenged to support and prioritize One Aboitiz in everything that they do. It is moving into a bigger vision from where they are to ONE ABOITIZ.

What do you think?

Responses: 0