GOINGS-ON: JG Summit aims to banner ‘sustainability’ in its future

JG Summit aims to banner ‘sustainability’ in its future

In May 2018, JG Summit Holdings Inc. announced the appointment of Lance Gokongwei as the conglomerate’s president and chief executive. This development marks a new generation of leadership that will take JG Summit to even greater heights, but one that requires strategically transforming the enterprise, to include focus on key areas—one of which is the adoption of a formal environment, social and governance program.

“The move toward greater sustainability is strategic for us in aligning our business strategies with all our corporate social responsibility efforts on empowering communities, elevating people’s lives and protecting our planet,” Gokongwei says.

With the combined strengths and competencies of its strategic business units—Cebu Pacific, Robinsons Land Corp., Universal Robina Corp., JG Summit Petrochemicals Group and Robinsons Bank—JG Summit has carved for itself an essential role in nation-building, a mission reflected in the three pillars of its sustainability framework: pulling for progress, raising people up and caring for the environment.

Pulling for progress means creating a business and social environment that inspires, empowers and enables others to achieve success.

Raising people up, meanwhile, pertains to practical and tangible positive impact in the daily lives of all stakeholders—customers, suppliers, society at large and employees as well.

Finally, caring for the environment ensures only positive impact of business operations and prudent use of natural resources. Waste management and energy efficiency are only among the most important areas of environmental concern that need to be highlighted in this time of climate awareness.

“Running a truly sustainable business is a must. It is not anymore a nice-to-have, but rather a necessary component of a well-run business,” Gokongwei says.