The first leadership forum of Ateneo Graduate School of Business entitled “Leadership: Aligning, Bridging and Empowering Organizations” has successfully transpired at SM Clark Cinema.
Ateneo Graduate School of Business Student and Alumni Organization in Clark together with the Leadership Class of this academic year, which Cloudstaff’s Country Manager Joy Cuison is a part of, organized the said leadership forum. It was attended for free by hundreds of students, administrators, and faculty members of colleges and universities in the region.
As one of the sponsors, Cloudstaff was able to set up a booth at the venue and introduced the company to heaps of leaders including leaders in the making who are present at the event. The attendees were also very fortunate to have the chance to listen to the stirring talks of Angie Hizon and Francis Kong.
Angie Hizon’s discussion revolved around Authentic Leadership: Leading with Emotional Intelligence where she shared her story. According to her, she used to be a feared boss until she reached a turning point and became a well-loved leader. Instead of letting your staff work for you, you need to work with them; that’s how one can be an authentic leader. In the end, she described herself as a beast — but a beast with a heart. Angie is the Director of Sales and Marketing of Pampanga’s Best; the daughter of the founders of the company, Angelo and Lolita Hizon; and the owner of Sweet Details, a pastry shop that also caters to outdoor events.
The second speaker of the event is one of the most prominent inspirational speakers in the country, Francis Kong, who is also an entrepreneur, a broadcaster, a book author, and a columnist. Waves of laughter resounded through the cinema numerous times as he interestingly and wittily discussed the Challenges of Leadership. “You got to be where the action is happening,” that’s how leaders should be according to Francis. He also mentioned that rapid technological changes, especially artificial intelligence and robots, are indeed a threat to humankind as it may result in loss of jobs. However, there are critical skills such as problem solving, creative processing, emotional intelligence, and leadership perspective among others that cannot be placed in an AI — such are the skills that one needs to have in order to gain advantage over the aforementioned technologies.
The final part of the forum was a panel discussion between Francis Kong, Angie Hizon, and the audience. The crowd actively participated, shared their insight, and asked away their questions while the two speakers gracefully answered them all.
Cloudstaff is grateful to be able to contribute to the success of this fruitful event and the company will continue to support such events that empower and motivate people to be great leaders.