Vivienne Tan: Great expectations
March 18, 2007 | 12:00am
"To whom much is given, much is expected," as the saying goes, and Vivienne Tan would not be blamed for trying to give the world everything because she has been given much. After all, being the daughter of one of the most successful businessmen in Asia, Lucio Tan, doors have been opened for her. She believes that when you have knowledge and resources, you have the moral responsibility to invest your "personal capital" on making a difference in business or society.
For a woman in her late thirties, Vivienne looks young for her age, and for someone who has accomplished so much, her face hardly shows signs of the hard work she has put in to achieve her goals. While she will always be known as her "father’s daughter," she has, however, made a name of her own as an entrepreneur-educator and is now being recognized for her achievements. She is one of the founding trustees of the GoNegosyo Movement of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship together with Joey Concepcion, Soccoro Ramos, Tony Tan Caktiong, Butch Campos, Dr. Roland Hortaleza, Harly Sy, Felipe Gozon. And Vivienne was recently awarded TOYM for Business Education and Entrepreneurship for 2006 by President Arroyo and the Jaycees.
Before the accolades, however, she was a working student who graduated with a double degree in Computer Science and Math from the University of San Francisco. Later, she achieved a post-graduate degree in Fashion and Merchandising from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles. She wasn’t going to rely on her family more than she has to. After graduation, she worked outside the family’s business so she could be measured on her own capabilities and not as a "COO" or "Child of Owner."
Her first venture as an entrepreneur was in Women’s Sports Apparel in the United States; however, she had to sell her business after a year because her family asked her to help her father when he bought Philippine Airlines. Being the dutiful daughter, she decided to come home and worked for PAL with her father for two years.
Her father has raised her to be independent and hardworking, and from her mother, Vivienne learned the values of simplicity and being socially conscious. This eventually led to her being a social entrepreneur. Here is an entrepreneur who sets up a venture with not just profit in mind, but to also make a difference in society.
Vivienne believes that to achieve success in life, you have to have passion, perseverance and skill. One cannot expect to be successful for the long-term without those three traits. As a social entrepreneur, she chose to pour in all her energy and resources in entrepreneurship education because she believes that education is the key to nation building and that entrepreneurship is a powerful tool to fight poverty.
She co-founded the Entrepreneurs School of Asia (ESA), formerly known as Thames International, with Joel Santos. It is the first college in Asia focused entirely on creating and instilling the entrepreneurial culture and mindset in all aspects of the institution. ESA has a campus in the Philippines and a satellite campus in China.
Aside from teaching practical skills of doing business, Vivienne says ESA imparts in its students the principle of entrepreneurship for social development. As the school’s slogan says, "Entrepreneurs for Society," it focuses on developing entrepreneurial individuals that aim to make a positive change in their communities.
Despite being the chairperson of ESA, Vivienne is remarkably hands-on in many of the school’s academic and extra-curricular activities and projects  including regular meetings and discussions with students, panel evaluations and counseling on their respective business planning, venture management report, defense and assessment sessions. This is part of Vivienne’s personal philosophy that the students of today need as much interaction with the leaders of the school.
To whom much is given, indeed, much is expected. This is what Vivienne does for her students  she gives them the tools that they need in order to be successful entrepreneurs, so they would have a lot more to contribute to society in turn.
For a woman in her late thirties, Vivienne looks young for her age, and for someone who has accomplished so much, her face hardly shows signs of the hard work she has put in to achieve her goals. While she will always be known as her "father’s daughter," she has, however, made a name of her own as an entrepreneur-educator and is now being recognized for her achievements. She is one of the founding trustees of the GoNegosyo Movement of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship together with Joey Concepcion, Soccoro Ramos, Tony Tan Caktiong, Butch Campos, Dr. Roland Hortaleza, Harly Sy, Felipe Gozon. And Vivienne was recently awarded TOYM for Business Education and Entrepreneurship for 2006 by President Arroyo and the Jaycees.
Before the accolades, however, she was a working student who graduated with a double degree in Computer Science and Math from the University of San Francisco. Later, she achieved a post-graduate degree in Fashion and Merchandising from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles. She wasn’t going to rely on her family more than she has to. After graduation, she worked outside the family’s business so she could be measured on her own capabilities and not as a "COO" or "Child of Owner."
Her first venture as an entrepreneur was in Women’s Sports Apparel in the United States; however, she had to sell her business after a year because her family asked her to help her father when he bought Philippine Airlines. Being the dutiful daughter, she decided to come home and worked for PAL with her father for two years.
Her father has raised her to be independent and hardworking, and from her mother, Vivienne learned the values of simplicity and being socially conscious. This eventually led to her being a social entrepreneur. Here is an entrepreneur who sets up a venture with not just profit in mind, but to also make a difference in society.
Vivienne believes that to achieve success in life, you have to have passion, perseverance and skill. One cannot expect to be successful for the long-term without those three traits. As a social entrepreneur, she chose to pour in all her energy and resources in entrepreneurship education because she believes that education is the key to nation building and that entrepreneurship is a powerful tool to fight poverty.
She co-founded the Entrepreneurs School of Asia (ESA), formerly known as Thames International, with Joel Santos. It is the first college in Asia focused entirely on creating and instilling the entrepreneurial culture and mindset in all aspects of the institution. ESA has a campus in the Philippines and a satellite campus in China.
Aside from teaching practical skills of doing business, Vivienne says ESA imparts in its students the principle of entrepreneurship for social development. As the school’s slogan says, "Entrepreneurs for Society," it focuses on developing entrepreneurial individuals that aim to make a positive change in their communities.
Despite being the chairperson of ESA, Vivienne is remarkably hands-on in many of the school’s academic and extra-curricular activities and projects  including regular meetings and discussions with students, panel evaluations and counseling on their respective business planning, venture management report, defense and assessment sessions. This is part of Vivienne’s personal philosophy that the students of today need as much interaction with the leaders of the school.
To whom much is given, indeed, much is expected. This is what Vivienne does for her students  she gives them the tools that they need in order to be successful entrepreneurs, so they would have a lot more to contribute to society in turn.
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