Filipino Entrepreneurs

Henry Sy. As a child, Henry Sy used to work twelve hours a day to help his father run their small family-owned convenience store. During the Second World War, their store was looted and burned so the young Sy switched to buying whatever he could to sell for a profit. Hard times and a humble background in retail shaped and molded the young Sy. Today, he is touted by the business community as the richest man in the Philippines. With over fifty malls and stores of various sizes, the most recognized of all famous Filipino businessmen has foothold in virtually all the major cities in the Philippines. They recently even expanded to Guam and China. To date, three of the ten largest malls in the world are owned and operated by his company.  

Litson Manok (roasted chicken), sometimes called the poor man's litson (whole pig roasted on a spit), did not make a poor man out of Sandy Javier, owner and CEO of Andok's Corporation.

Sandy's dream began more than 25 years ago when he set up a small stall along West Avenue in Quezon City. Wanting to cash in on the litson manok craze, he asked his mother's friend who owned a poultry store to 'outsource' 12 whole chickens which he then roasted with hopes that it will catch on with passers by. At the end of the day he only sold two.

Instead of being discouraged, Sandy decided to innovate. He experimented with his ingredients and cooking methods until he found what he felt was the right formula that would capture his buyers' tastes.

In 1985 Sandy's efforts were rewarded when the hungry masses began trooping to the first Andok's Litson Manok-Liempo store at the corner of Baler Street and West Avenue in QC. Andok's soon became synonymous with litson manok and its stalls were soon a common sight in Metro Manila.

In 2002 Andok's branched out to the Visayas starting with 2 stores in Cebu followed by 9 more stores in two years.

Two years later Sandy decided to put up his first dine-in store at D'Mall Boracay. Budget-conscious tourists and locals enjoyed Andok's affordable menu so much that 6 outlets were operating on the island in less than a year's time.

Aside from it's bestsellers, a typical Andok's menu also offers meat-heavy fare that include lechon kawali (fried pork rinds), crispy pata (deep-fried pork knuckles), pork sinigang (sour pork soup) as well as a host of desserts and merienda (snack) which include banana con yelo (bananas in iced milk) and leche flan (vanilla custard).

Andok's has even evolved to include selling daily necessities such as rice, sugar, beverages and grocery products.

At a seminar for business students at the Colegio San Juan De Letran, Sandy shared the lessons he learned from running Andok's.

"Kahit walang pera, sipag lang ang capital, common sense and hard work. (Even if you don't have much money you can use diligence, common sense and hard work as your capital)", adding that an entrepreneur should find enjoyment in work, "If you are enjoying what you do, you are not working at all. You are just enjoying."

He also emphasized the Pinoy trait of being matipid (thrifty) by always spending less than what they are earning.

For future entrepreneurs Sandy has this to say: "One has to have passion, commitment, direction and (a) goal and one must not stop until he or she reaches (that) goal and when he or she does, he or she will work some more."

Andok's is a perfect example of a fad turning into an institution. From a corner stall with 12 roasted chickens, Sandy Javier now owns 300 outlets nationwide and counting, earning Andok's the tag, "Pambansang Litson Manok".

Trivia: Sandy ran and won as the mayor of the town of Javier, Leyte. He is also the brother of Danny Javier, one of the members of the famous musical trio, The Apo Hiking Society. "Andok's" is the nickname of their late father, Leonardo Javier, Sr.

In 1940, Socorro Ramos, barely 18, started working as a salesgirl at a Goodwill Bookstore branch owned by her brother in Escolta, Manila. Because of her selling skills, Ramos was put in charge of the store.
It was only after marrying Jose Ramos that her dream of the setting up a bookstore finally materialized. The couple started the first National Book Store as a stall shop in Escolta selling supplies, GI novels, and textbooks. Unable to afford extra help, Ramos worked not only as manager but also as cashier, purchaser, saleslady, janitor, and helper. When war broke out, strict censorship regulations forced many retailers in Manila, including the Ramos couple, to shift trades. They moved to selling soap, candies, and slippers instead.
After the Japanese occupation, the Ramos couple were able to rebuild a barong-barong in the corner of Soler and Avenida Rizal in time to catch the boom of post-war business. Using the door of their house as a counter, Ramos again started selling textbooks, notebooks, pad paper, and pencils in time for the first postwar school year in the country. Just like that, National Book Store made its transition from being a general merchandise store to a store that sells books and more. Business went well mainly because only a few stores sold school supplies during that time.
In 1948, Typhoon Gene entered the Philippines destroying dozens of houses and property including the Ramos'. Their house and store were taken down and all the merchandise soaked following the typhoon. But this did not bring down the Ramos couple. They worked harder, they slept for only three hours a day spending the rest of their time rebuilding the business. Eventually, through will and determination, the Ramos couple were able to construct a two-story building complete with mezzanine that would be their store for years. After more than a decade, Ramos acquired a nine-story building along Avenida Rizal, and in 1963, the construction of the Albecer Building (Albecer taken from Ramos' three children - Alfredo, Benjamin, and Cecilia) began. Little did the Ramos couple know that the Albecer Building would be the first of many buildings they would build. Socorro Ramos now has more than 2,500 employees in over 80 branches of her once-small stall. From a humble beginning, Ramos' National Book Store is the Philippines' biggest bookstore chain and an icon in the country's retail industry.

Page 19-20. Assignment #5

Page 19:

DO YOU UNDERSTAND?

1. Do you think all the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur are equally important or are some more important that the others? Explain your answer.
             
- I think all the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur are equally important because if one characteristic is not being done equally, she/he might be not successful and every characteristic gives us advisory to be a successful entrepreneur. :)


CAN YOU APPLY IT NOW?

Many of the world's greatest inventors also became successful entrepreneurs. These include Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Alba Edison, and Bill Gates of Microsoft. Do you agree that these talented people would not have become successful businessmen if they didnt have the characteristics of an entrepreneur? Why?

- If they didnt have the characteristics of an entrepreneur, They would not be successful of their work because every characteristics is important and it means a lot.


Page 20:

Identify the entrepreneurial characteristics that helped Carla succeed in her business.

- Creativity
- Self-confidence
- Self control
- Courage
- High energy level
- Decision making skills
- Well defined values

Assignment no.4 (Due date: June 16,2011)

 Evaluate the different entrepreneurial characteristics under PEC's. How does applying similar characteristics help us succeed in the other areas of life? Explain your answers by giving examples.



1. Vigilance of Opportunities- When an entrepreneur sees an opportunity for business, he is quick to take it. Entrepreneurship is a competitive field, and he is always on the lookout for chances to improve his position.
EXAMPLE: Paolo and his classmates are required to do a lot of paperwork like summaries, book reports, and term papers. All these need to be typewritten, forcing his classmates to rent computers. Because he has a computer, he offered to encode his classmates papers for a fee.


2. Commitment to work contract- An entrepreneur always delivers his promise promptly. He values his reputation for dependability and will do everything not to back out on a commitment.
EXAMPLE: He sometimes finds it hard to finish a typing job because he also has his own papers to work on. But Paolo does his best to finish the tasks that his classmates entrust to him. He therefore skips his leisure activities to deliver the task.


3. Persistence- An entrepreneur dosent let setbacks lead to failure. He is so committed to his goal that he finds ways to overcome obstacles and accomplish his tasks he set for himself.
EXAMPLE: Because he is swamped with typing jobs, Paolo sometimes mixes up his classmates' papers and type the wrong items. Instead of losing patience and quitting, he revises his work until he gets things right.


4. Willingness to take risks- An entrepreneur knows that business involves taking risks. It is when one takes his chances with a new venture that better products and services are discovered.
EXAMPLE: Soon, Pablo has saved enough money to buy a second computer. It was a lot of money for a first year student like him, but he knew he would profit from it by renting it out to his classmates.


5. Demand for efficiency and quality- a true entrepreneur dosent settle for anything but the best. He also insists that items of excellent quality be done at the soonest time possible. This increases his productivity and sets him apart from the competition.
EXAMPLE: Paolo practices accurate typing and improves his speed. He does this to make sure he is able to come up with the best results at the fastest time possible.


6. Goal setting-  Setting goals gives the entrepreneurs a sense of purpose. It inspires him to make definite plans and to follow those plans with concrete action.
EXAMPLE: Soon, many of Paolo's classmates frequent his house to take turns renting his computers. He then resolved to use all his profits to buy two more secondhand computers in the next two months.


7. Information seeking- an entrepreneur is always searching for new information related to his business. He uses these information to improve his services, satisfy his costumers, and be ahead of his competitions.
EXAMPLE: His classmates started asking him to apply for a internet connection so they wont have to rent outside to do their research. He made inquirie about the best internet service provider in his area and the most ideal package for his purpose.


8. Systematic Planning and Monitoring- the success of an entrepreneur relies greatly on his ability to make detailed plans before starting out on a new venture. He couples this with careful evaluation to be aware of his progress every step of the way.
EXAMPLE: having acquired two more computers, he carefully planned on the additional software to install in the units so that the systems will not slow down. he also installed a program that automatically records computer use.


9. Persuasion and Networking- an entrepreneur with a good product or service to offer is able to promote it convincingly in addition, satisfied customers will help him promote the business through word of mouth.
EXAMPLE: after installing the necessary applications, he convinced his classmates that they will have access to all the software they will need to do their assignments. he was able to convince them to pass the news around about his superior services.


10. Self Confidence- an entrepreneur shows confidence in his business because he knows he has done and is doing his best to give his clientsthe best value for their patronage.
EXAMPLE: although there are bigger computer shops around, Paolo's classmates still prefer to use his computers. This is because he shows total belief in the advantages of his services over the more expensive and impersonal shops.


Explain how having the Personal Entrepreneurial Competencies can help you become a successful entrepreneur.


- It can help you become successful because if you have those 10 characteristics of PECS, it will be easy to make you successful. :) :) :) :)

Assignment no.3

Personal Entrepreneurial Competencies (PECs)
For reference, I'm posting here the ten Personal Entrepreneurial Competencies (PECs) which seems to be used in the Business Technology/Entrepreneurship programs of the Technology and Livelihood Education (T.L.E.) subject.

The original research by McClelland and McBer identified 14 PECs; the EMPRETEC [a UN program for small businesses; from the Spanish words emprendedores (entrepreneurs) and tecnología (technology)] clustered these into just 10:

Achievement Cluster
I. Opportunity Seeking and Initiative
* Does things before asked or forced to by events
* Acts to extend the business into new areas, products or services
* Seizes unusual opportunities to start a new business, obtain financing, equipment, land work space or assistance

II. Risk Taking
* Deliberately calculates risks and evaluates alternatives
* Takes action to reduce risks or control outcomes
* Places self in situations involving a challenge or moderate risk

III. Demand for Efficiency and Quality
* Finds ways to do things better, faster, or cheaper
* Acts to do things that meet or exceed standards of excellence
* Develops or uses procedures to ensure work is completed on time or that work meets agreed upon standards of quality

IV. Persistence
* Takes action in the face of a significant obstacle
* Takes repeated actions or switches to an alternative strategy to meet a challenge or overcome an obstacle
* Takes personal responsibility for the performance necessary to achieve goals and objectives

V. Commitment to the Work Contract
* Makes a personal sacrifice or expends extraordinary effort to complete a job
* Pitches in with workers or in their place to get a job done
* Strives to keep customers satisfied and places long term good will over short term gain

Planning Cluster
VI. Information Seeking
* Personally seeks information from clients, suppliers or competitors
* Does personal research on how to provide a product or service
* Consults experts for business or technical advice

VII. Goal setting
* Sets goals and objectives that are personally meaningful and challenging
* Articulates clear and specific long range goals
* Sets measurable short term objectives

VIII. Systematic Planning and Monitoring
* Plans by breaking large tasks down into time-constrained sub-tasks
* Revises plans in light of feedback on performance or changing circumstances
* Keeps financial records and uses them to make business decisions

Power Cluster
IX. Persuasion and Networking
* Uses deliberate strategies to influence or persuade others
* Uses key people as agents to accomplish own objectives
* Acts to develop and maintain business contracts

X. Independence and self-confidence
* Seeks autonomy from the rules or control of others
* Sticks with own judgement in the face of opposition or early lack of success
* Expresses confidence in own ability to complete a difficult task or meet a challenge

Assignment no.2

      THE HISTORY OF THE TELEPHNONE.


 In the 1870s, two inventors Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell both independently designed devices that could transmit speech electrically (the telephone). Both men rushed their respective designs to the patent office within hours of each other, Alexander Graham Bell patented his telephone first. Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell entered into a famous legal battle over the invention of the telephone, which Bell won.

The telegraph and telephone are both wire-based electrical systems, and Alexander Graham Bell's success with the telephone came as a direct result of his attempts to improve the telegraph.
When Bell began experimenting with electrical signals, the telegraph had been an established means of communication for some 30 years. Although a highly successful system, the telegraph, with its dot-and-dash Morse code, was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time. Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to conjecture the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a multiple telegraph had been in existence for some time, Bell offered his own musical or harmonic approach as a possible practical solution. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch.

Assignment no.1

Page 6:

- Hardworking
- Industrious
- Patient
- Intelligent
- Smart

a.  James acquire his trait of being hardworking by selling newspapers and cigarettes when he was in high school to pay for his schooling. :)

b.  He discovered that he wanted to make his own profession someday.

c. If he chose to work for another company, he might be not one of the most successful  furniture companies in the country.



Page 7:

- Hardworking
- Smart
- Creative
- Industrious


a.  James and Marie both did a hardworking job. They are both industrious
b.  When james was in high school, he started to sell newspaper and cigarettes and he is also good in designing furnitures while Marie attented horiculture classes when she was in high school. She is also creative in designing plants.

c.  She worked as a florist. She also applied her knowledge and creativity for the company she was working in.

d.  James and Marie are both Smart, Creative, Industrious and Hardworking to achieve their goals in life. :)



Page 10:

If I were and entrepreneur, I would be in the computer shop business because some people need computers for communicaiting with their relatives from far away and for students that has homework and assignments that they need to search and its also because i like helping people. :)