(MAIN PHOTO: Top from left: Jose Jerome Pascual, Ma. Victoria Españo, Dr. Karen Remo, Hilaria Conception, Esther Magleo | Bottom from left: Marilou C. Cristobal, Sherisa P. Nuesa, Elwyn Sansius Panggabean, Ruth Yu-Owen)
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As the world reels into the entrepreneurship-led new world order, all executives must cultivate new skills—in addition to the skill set they already possess—in order to thrive in the future.
This is according to Dr. Karen Remo, CEO and Managing Director of New Perspective Media Group—a 360-degree media and marketing agency in the UAE, with offices in the Middle East and Asia Pacific—and the Publisher of The Filipino Times.
In the recently concluded webinar of Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), through the Women in Finance Committee (WIF), titled “Rising Up to the Challenges in the New World Order”, she emphasized how entrepreneurs are the biggest competition of businesses today—especially given the bandwagon that is currently occurring amid today’s crisis.
Remo noted how the landscape has changed for businesses, with many entrepreneurs dominating the social media right now through posts from netizens and people around you.
“Who is your biggest competition? They are the entrepreneurs. They don’t necessarily have names, but they come in multitudes of armies. So be prepared and be ready for them,” she said.
In the recent survey conducted by The Filipino Times, it showed that 9 out of 10 Filipinos are planning to open their own online business—indeed the “biggest entrepreneurship bandwagon of all time,” according to Remo.
Top characteristics of the entrepreneurship era
During the webinar, Remo noted that the emerging entrepreneurship era possesses three main characteristics: inclusive, has low business barriers, and is borderless.
According to the CEO, entrepreneurship has become inclusive, a great equalizer that is accepting anyone regardless of gender, race, and age. She added that this era has made businesses boil down to one thing only: the ability to satisfy the customers’ needs.
“It does not matter who you are, what matters is you satisfy the needs of your consumers,” said Remo.
The era now has low business barriers, added Remo, specifically because of the convenience provided by today’s digital age.
“Before, the factors of production include land, labor, capital, and enterprise. That is not the case anymore. For one, land is not necessary to obtain now because everything is done digitally. For labor, you can now just outsource or us AI. For capital, you can raise funds or look for investors. What is left now? It’s entrepreneurship,” she said.
Today’s era has also become borderless, says Remo. Now, businesses can access markets far beyond their reach, thanks to the power of the internet.
“The Filipino Times is based in Dubai, but is read in 236 countries. Before, the growth was almost always vertical. Now, because no one owns the internet, growth has become horizontal—you can all have your share of the table,” added TFT’s Publisher.
Skills to thrive in the new world
While all executives, including CFOs, have always been very good in finance, Remo emphasized that they now have to upskill in order to keep up with the changing landscape of today’s entrepreneurship era.
“We are in a crisis right now, but if you have other skills, you’ll be able to survive. It’s about time to widen our skills, let’s use this opportunity to improve our skills,” she said.
The CEO also said that among the skills that all executives must have today include: knowledge in programming and technology, being stakeholder-focused, marketing, and communication.
“Technology is the future, so it’s imperative that you understand how it works. If you don’t understand something, you won’t be able to control it,” she said.
Remo added that aside from vast knowledge about the company’s numbers, all executives must now understand the dynamics of the company in all facets, including what is happening both inside and outside the organization.
Another important skill that all executives must learn to master is marketing, according to Remo. She added that marketing is the ammunition of businesses in today’s war with the crisis, a reason it should not be taken away.
“When it’s crisis, it’s like a war, and when you’re in a war, what’s the first thing you give to soldiers? Ammunition. Marketing is your ammunition. Marketing is not an expense, it’s an ammunition you need to be able to go back to the growth trend,” she said.
Lastly, she also talked about how the success of business today lies in the ability of business leaders to catch attention, and how it can only be achieved through effective communication
“A share of attention equals a share of the wallet. It’s all about attention. You get their awareness first, you get them interested, then the desire, and then they buy from you. You cannot have attention if you don’t have communication skills,” said Remo.
“You have to find out who they are, what they want, and communicate with them in the language that they understand,” she added.
FINEX President Jose Jerome (Jeng) Pascual also emphasized the need for all executives and CFOs to upskill, noting the importance of catching up with the entrepreneurial culture that is becoming widespread today.
“These characteristics [that Karen mentioned] relate to our new criteria for [ING-FINEX] CFO of the Year. [For instance, being] a future programmer is about being a strategist; being stakeholder-focused is about being a steward; being a marketing enabler is ensuring you perform your job as a good operator to enable the rest of the organization; and being communication savvy is about being a catalyst, knowing not only about when to say no, but also when to say yes to support the organization,” he said.
Meanwhile, Elwyn Sansius Panggabean the Advisory Lead of Southeast Asia at Women’s World Banking, talked about some of the trends presented by the pandemic to entrepreneurs, specifically women—including government-to-person payment and digitization of financial services. He underscored the need to provide women in SME sectors more financial knowledge, stating that while they are good borrowers, they still struggle to get credit access.
Among the other participants in the FINEX webinar include: Ma. Victoria Españo, the Chairperson and CEO of Punongbayan & Araullo; Esther Magleo, Chairperson of WIF Committee and CFO of Paynamics Technologies, Inc; Hilaria Conception, Liaison Director, WIF Committee VP and Chief Advisory Officer of Marsh Philippine Advisers and Insurance Brokers, who introduced WIF committee; Sherisa P. Nuesa, President & Board Director of ALFM Mutual Funds Group and former Director at FINEX, who introduced the speakers; Ruth Yu-Owen, CEO of Upgrade Energy Philippines, Inc. and Co-Founder of Connected Women; and Marilou C. Cristobal, Chair of Multinational Investment Bancorporation.
