Jan 1, 2022

A NEW ABOITIZ

“The Great Transformation begins with you and I – our mindset, attitude, and behavior.”

Dear Fellow Team Members,

Today marks the beginning of a new year around the world, but for us at the Aboitiz Group, it marks the beginning of something deeper. At the stroke of midnight, we turn the page of our company’s proud history and commence a pivotal chapter of our great story.

Since the founding of our company over a hundred years ago, it has always been defined by transformation through innovation and finding better ways of advancing business and communities. But once in a great while we experience a more profound change in our charted course; a sea change in almost every aspect of who we are and what we do; a moment in time where so many things alter at once, and we suddenly realize we are at the center of it all.  

I took the helm of this ship in 2020, and was given the responsibility to steer it longer than I was supposed to. It won’t be smooth sailing all the way: tides will turn and headwinds will come, but it is only with the crew I have on board that I am confident we will drive through all of them. It’s only been two years and we are already navigating the roughest of waters, and if we are to reach our destination, we need to change tack in more ways than one. The world as we know it is changing right before our eyes – and we need to ride along with it.

The Great Transformation

The Great Transformation begins with you and I – our mindset, attitude, and behavior. We are compelled to make these adjustments by things happening to the world we all share, like climate change, technological advances, and viruses. So as we start the new year, take an introspective moment to ask ourselves if our eyes and minds are open enough to clearly see the horizon of progress, and do whatever it takes to get there – even if it means unlearning everything we’ve been taught our whole life, and trying things we never would have imagined. Everything everywhere will be accelerating forever, so the first thing we must do is get used to it and be comfortable with the unknown.

Although not out of the woods yet, the pandemic appears to be giving us a breather, and this is the first change that needs to happen. We handled it with agility, resilience, and sacrifice; and we accepted the new way we work and live as a flexible hybrid of working from everywhere, depending on what enables us to deliver and perform faster, better, and stronger. With today’s technology, we can, at once, be more loosely flexible but more tightly connected than we ever were before.

SBUs Moving Forward

This year we start the transition to a federated organizational structure, where SBUs will have more autonomy to operate towards achieving their goals.

2022 will also mark the beginning of a key strategic alliance with our new partner Jera, who will help us transform our Power business and move us closer to our sustainability targets of more renewable energy. This partnership will provide us with the resources to pursue our plans for growth, expansion, and diversification into other business opportunities and markets.

Part of this expansion will be in our formidable banking and financial services leg, where we seized the opportunity to acquire the consumer and retail banking assets of Citigroup Philippines. The Citi acquisition will accelerate UnionBank's growth not only as a Great Retail Bank, but also fulfill its aspiration to become a Bank of Enduring Greatness. Coupled with its successes in digital transformation and soon the separate Union Digital bank, which will be operational in July, UnionBank has become relevant to the communities it serves while bringing greater value to Filipinos across segments – from thrift to rural bank customers to the mass market and private banking segments.

AboitizPower will continue to provide reliable, affordable, and more sustainable power in this decade, and deliver substantial value to the Group. By the time I retire and with your support, we will be at or very close to our 2030 target of achieving a balanced 50:50 portfolio between thermal and renewable energy, and this will be one of the most important transformations under our watch.

Sustainability and ESG will continue to develop this year with significant strides towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. These strides include our new Sustainability microsite, leadership among Philippine peers in ESG performance, and more renewable energy projects in our development pipeline.

The Food Group’s ambitious transformation towards becoming an integrated regional agribusiness and food company with a mission to feed humanity will be achieved through a 10-year strategy anchored on a balanced business portfolio, optimization of operations, and development of new business in other sectors.

Aboitiz InfraCap launched a new brand identity that captures their transformative ambition to be the country’s first choice for infrastructure. Their 10-year plan continues to revolve around growth through proactive participation in project opportunities in the economic estates, water, digital infrastructure, and mobility and transport sectors.

Republic Cement is already seeing positive results after they began their transformation to a data science-driven operation resulting in a more efficient process of manufacturing better quality cement.

Introduced to support our transformation by adopting and operationalizing data and AI technologies, Aboitiz Data Innovation was just recently incorporated to work closely with the other BUs to accelerate its own transformational journey towards becoming a conduit for growing ecosystems with limitless possibilities.

To realize its vision of becoming a sought-after and responsible contractor within the Group and its industry, Aboitiz Construction bravely pivoted and expanded its footprint, transformed its culture and talent, and re-imagined its place in the #OneAboitiz vision of a future-ready Group of companies.

It was also a transformational year for AboitizLand, marked by its highest sales in its 26-year history. Their agile and innovative mindset allowed them to transcend a challenging year for real estate through such pioneering projects as the Contactless Homebuying Service. The continuing digitization of their operations, organizational transformation, and strategic partnerships will propel them forward and ensure a future-ready workforce.

The recent work done by Aboitiz Foundation in response to Typhoon Odette is a shining example of how we are transforming the ways we live up to our promise of advancing communities, and I look forward to what they have in store to address this year’s theme of Responsibility. The Foundation must also transform to help the business make more impactful changes.

These are just some of the transformations taking place this year, and they are all part of a larger transformation in the way we think. This is largely thanks to the Remix, and will most likely also be attributed to new sources of learning like Adam Grant’s appropriately titled Think Again. According to plan, the Remix will continue to be a critical catalyst for change in everything we do.

The Future Starts Now

In summary, the Great Aboitiz Transformation will be a paradigm shift from the traditional legacy business of the last 100 years, to a more modernized, inclusive, and technology-driven one. It is a major part of the evolution of our brand promise, which changes over time and moves with the demands of our stakeholders. We must adapt and change as well, and exceed their expectations consistently in order to stay ahead of the game.  

Our education never ends and I pledge my commitment to continuously improve myself as a leader, and it is my sincere hope that you do the same. That my example might inspire all of you to find the transformation you need to become the very best versions of yourselves, both as a team member of the Group and a citizen of the world.

Thank you and Happy New Year – now let’s get to work and enjoy every minute of it!

Sabin

[Read SMA's Christmas 2022 Message here]