Womenpreneurs’ time to shine

We are on the cusp of change in our country’s economy. I say this because we now have a woman entrepreneur leading the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). It is a rare occurrence that bodes well for the country’s MSMEs. There has not been a woman at the head of the DTI since Cory Aquino’s time and, to my knowledge, there has never been a DTI secretary who was a small entrepreneur.

I know Cris Aldeguer-Roque from her days when she volunteered to speak and mentor at our public entrepreneurship events at Go Negosyo. She was a familiar, friendly face among her fellow mentors and a successful entrepreneur that people looked up to.

Cris’ story is one of grit and resilience. She started like so many women-led enterprises – selling clothes. She built her business from the ground up, facing the same challenges that many micro and small business owners encounter, such as limited capital, production woes and even having to take on delivery duties herself in the early days.

Many entrepreneurs can relate to this because every small entrepreneur was, at one time or another, a one-man show. She knows firsthand what it means to have doors closed in one’s face and fight for a foothold in a world that does not always roll out the welcome mat for small businessmen. I had similar problems when I started my small business.

Cris managed to nurture her small business to growth. From a small shop, she grew it to several stores in major shopping malls and kept it going even under the challenge of so many global brands coming to the Philippines. It is now counted as one of the most successful homegrown fashion brands in the country.

Her accomplishments alone are enough to get her appointed to head the DTI’s MSME Development Group, and in as short as a year after heading the office, to be named as acting secretary.

Things are also changing around us. MSMEs are now seen as a powerful engine of the economy, no longer dismissed as “underground” and “informal,” with whatever the connotations that used to come with those words. This is true even among our more prosperous neighbors in Asia. Even in a highly industrialized country like Japan, you will find a very dynamic MSME sector, where micro-enterprises can grow into small, then eventually medium – creating a steady stream of exciting enterprises that employ people and help build a resilient economy to help the country withstand downturns.

Her presence at the DTI serves as an inspiration to the women who are founders and leaders of micro and small businesses. I am confident that she will do everything in her new role to give back and give them that opportunity. I understand how powerful that force can be; it is what inspires me in my work at Go Negosyo to give back and help others uplift themselves through entrepreneurship.

My optimism is rooted in knowing that Cris is that convergence of characteristics that could make a difference for MSMEs. She will not be the first businessman or woman to become DTI secretary, but she will be the first who began as small entrepreneur.

I believe public-private sector cooperation is poised to flourish under Cris’ leadership. Her deep understanding of the challenges and needs of the MSME sector, coupled with her proven track record as a successful entrepreneur, will undoubtedly inform her approach and ensure that the private sector voice is well-represented within the DTI.

The person who leads the DTI carries on his or her shoulders the immense responsibility of shepherding government policy on the development, governance and advancement of the country’s industries and trade. Cris will be in good company as the list of former DTI heads is a roster of formidable personalities. In recent memory (mine, at least), I count my father, Jose Concepcion Jr., as among the most notable. He took on the reins at a time when the country was in transition and he did so without compromise. He divested from RFM when he got the post, knowing that his business dealt with price-controlled commodities because he didn’t want his decisions at DTI ever coming into question on conflicts of interest.

After his stint at the DTI, there was Peter Garrucho, Lilia Bautista, Rizalino Navarro, Cesar Bautista, Titoy Pardo, Mar Roxas, Cesar Purisima, Juan Santos, Peter Favila, Jesli Lapus, Gregory Domingo, Adrian Cristobal Jr., Mon Lopez and Alfredo Pascual, Cris’s immediate predecessor.

The other people who have headed the post were either businessmen (or industrialists, like Joecon), technocrats or politicians. No doubt, every DTI secretary brought their own set of skills and values which influenced how they carried out their jobs. Having a leader at the DTI who has walked the path of the entrepreneur, who has faced the same obstacles and overcome them, is an asset.

Cris’ time at the DTI will signal a shift in the traditional mold of DTI secretaries. Her unique perspective, forged in the crucible of her own entrepreneurial journey, will shape the agency’s priorities and strategies in ways that resonate with the needs of micro and small enterprises.

That Cris will be only the second woman to head the DTI since Lilia Bautista became DTI secretary in 1992 is significant because more than half (64 percent) of micro and small (not to mention nano-) entrepreneurs in the country are women.

In Cris, the women micro and small entrepreneurs of the Philippines have found a champion, a kindred spirit who understands the struggles of caring for a business and looking after the family. With hope, she will demonstrate the kind of leadership that is nurturing and responsive to the needs of women-led enterprises.

Her appointment is a transformative moment for the DTI and the countless Filipinos it aims to serve. The journey ahead may be challenging, but with Cris at the helm, the future for the country’s entrepreneurial class has never looked brighter. It is perhaps destined that it will be during her term that true economic empowerment will come to MSMEs and Filipina entrepreneurs.