“What fulfills me is solving problems,” says Jay Diego, 39, president of a motorcycle dealership family company.
As managing editor of the Ateneo de Manila University’s paper The Guidon, Jay worked to make the graphics and content of the paper the best possible. When he worked for advertising agencies after graduation, he took care not just the content and layout, but also the quality of the paper the promotions would be printed on.
Though Math was not his forte, this Communication major made sure to familiarize himself with measurements, points, picas, “to print the broadsheet in the most economical way,” while maintaining quality.
Jay excelled in word problems, usually the most dreaded topic in algebra. “That’s the only time I got 97 in Math!” he laughs. “With a story, the problem is made clear. Word problems are logical.”
So it was only logical that when Jay told his father Felipe, now the company’s chair, that he wanted to join the family business in 2001, he worked hard not just to learn the ins and outs, but also to learn things we may not be naturally passionate about.
“Follow your passion” is a buzz-phrase, but “it’s often a lazy way out,” says Jay. “If we would all follow our passion, then we would all be doing photography or other fun things, no offense [meant], but who among us would make hangers or toilet paper?”
“Turn what you do into a passion instead. Apply yourself. You may not want to do finance, but if you make yourself like it, it becomes easier with time. If you seriously learn, you will improve with time.”
Jay was not fluent in Filipino before, but now “my spoken Tagalog is more classical than that of many of my employees” who grew up speaking the language.
“Numbers don’t faze me anymore,” Jay says. He does estimates mentally. “Technology often dumbs you down. To [do the] high jump, you have to learn basic steps first. Dad taught me ways to look at figures. Now I enjoy seeing trends and making sense of data.”
No excuses
Felipe has worked in life insurance for decades, but became a motorcycle dealer upon retirement in 1996. Now, the family business has made a name for itself despite being a latecomer to the industry.
“It’s easy to grow fast, but problems arise when quality is sacrificed over quantity,” Jay says. “We need to ensure that we can take care of our people.” Once, when a bank got bogged down, affecting the payroll, Felipe sent his people out to hand over the pay to employees in far-flung areas.
“Sometimes, businesses say they can’t pay their people on time because the signatory is out of the country, the bank is closed,” says Jay. “We don’t make excuses.”
No excuses to suppliers or banks either.
“When we started, we were unknown, with no credit line, but we have built a reputation of paying on time. We don’t over-promise and under-deliver. We strive to under-promise and over-deliver.”
Respect is key. “Ask, don’t tell. Don’t just take employees’ word for things. Not that they are being dishonest, they are often just being human. When they say they did the job they may believe they did it. But [judicious asking] reveals the truth, not just so you see it but also so they see it for themselves.”
In 2001, Jay took a master’s degree in entrepreneurship from the Asian Institute of Management. He learned a lot, but cautions against buzzwords that people don’t readily understand.
Take for example, the term “storm surge,” says Jay’s friend Joseph de Leon. “What does it mean? Just say ‘tsunami.’ Buzzwords are a shortcut for ideas but are never substitutes for understanding them and taking action. Throwing around the term ‘storm surge’ and not preparing for tsunami effects is not just a failure of understanding but also of leadership.”
Or “empowerment.” “What does it mean? Coaching, mentoring? We often think it means saying ‘I believe in you! You can do it!’ How much time do you really spend with someone, going over what he has done? Sitting down with him so he doesn’t make the same mistakes? Don’t hide behind buzzwords. Explain to people what they entail.”
“Dad put me in situations where I had to confront problems. He didn’t give solutions, but he challenged my thinking. He does the same to other employees.”
“Many founders complain that the next generation doesn’t know anything. But they don’t encourage new ideas. If your child is in the business, then it’s only logical to listen to him. Or else why is he working there? I am lucky, because Dad spent years as a professional before creating our business, so he is pre-equipped with the tools and ideas to make it run well.”
At the same time, unlike children who enter the business thinking they know better than their parents, humility is needed for learning. Jay’s Communications (not Management) background might have been a blessing, because it made him humble, and gave him the space to be wrong and the drive to learn.
Working with family
Jay’s mother Marissa and brother John are in the business. Marissa complements her husband, emphasizing the “people side” of issues. John works under Jay’s supervision. Both brothers work hard.
Jay averages three hours of free time in three days. John spends the night in provinces overseeing their stores. “Dad never forced us into the business. He told us what to expect. Work hard. Those with the great ideas, they had to put in the hard work. While the business can start as a sideline, it has to be more than a racket or hobby to make money. That’s why we need to be mindful of say, franchises. In pursuit of a shortcut to success, we might be shortchanging ourselves.”
But “don’t force your kids to join if they’re not interested. They won’t put in the effort. They’ll branch off and work on what they really want to do.”
As for siblings, “realize that you are co-owners. If you dig your heels in and say you’re right and they’re wrong, the business suffers. Despite your differences, you have a business to run!”
Next week: When harmony works, and when it doesn’t
(Queena N. Lee-Chua is on the Board of Directors of Ateneo de Manila University’s Family Business Development Center. Get her book “Successful Family Businesses” at the University Press (email msanagustin@ateneo.edu.) Email the author at blessbook.chua@gmail.com.)