There was never any pressure on Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala to join the family business. So how did he end up leading one of the Philippines’ oldest and biggest business empires?
As it turns out, all it took was a little favor from his father, or more accurately, a series of little favors.
The elder Jaime Zobel de Ayala had financed his son’s education in the United States and encouraged him to find his own path in life. Along the way, Jaime Augusto, better known as JAZA, would also lend a hand whenever his father asked him to help out with this or that.
Then, one day, came a bigger request: Would he come home to the Philippines and work in the family business for just three years? After that, he was free to pursue whatever future he wanted.
“I enjoyed the challenges that the Philippines put on the table, working in an emerging market. I found it fantastic and very exciting, a chance to make a difference,” JAZA said. “The rest is history.”
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Decades later, he is chairman of Ayala Corporation, a nearly 200-year-old conglomerate whose businesses span banking, property, telecommunications, and energy.
And now, it is his turn to prepare the next generation of Zobels, including his son Jaime Alfonso Zobel de Ayala, better known as JAZ.
A new generationAt the ASEAN Inclusive Growth Summit on Wednesday, November 11, father and son shared a few stories about growing up in a family that has been running businesses for nearly two centuries.
JAZA recalled sending his son, then just 13 or 14, to work on a farm in the Australian Outback, far from familiar faces and comforts. It was part of his parenting philosophy of pushing children outside their comfort zones.
“All of us have a responsibility to put people through difficult places at certain points in life to try and build up a sense of resilience, a sense of problem solving,” JAZA said.
His son remembers things a little differently.
“JAZA has never liked me hanging around during the summer,” JAZ joked, recalling that his time in the Outback also involved “a lot of horseback riding.”
And yes, he calls his father JAZA, even when sharing family stories. “It’s his name in the office. Hard to say ‘Dad,’” JAZ said, drawing chuckles from the crowd.
In any case, JAZA said he had “no kind of formal plan” when it came to preparing his children. What mattered was teaching them to find solutions rather than complain about their circumstances.
Time will tell whether these lessons will play out as the next generation of Zobels take their posts in the conglomerate.
JAZ now heads ACMobility, Ayala’s automotive and electric mobility arm. His sister Mariana Zobel de Ayala oversees Ayala Land’s leasing and hospitality businesses.
Their cousins Jaime Zobel Urquijo and Paloma Zobel de Ayala are also involved in the group, part of another generation preparing to carry the nearly 200-year-old institution forward. (READ: Preparing for the future: Ayala promotes 4 ‘next-generation’ leaders)
But succession at Ayala isn’t just about keeping executive titles in the family. Career executives have played a central role, with JAZ crediting his father for empowering them to lead. At BPI, for instance, JAZA remains chairman even as the bank prepares to hand over its presidency from TG Limcaoco to Ginbee Go in April 2027.
Must Read Bigger bank, broader base: TG Limcaoco’s BPI years
The next 200 years
Ayala traces its beginnings to 1834 and will celebrate its bicentennial in 2034. Having survived Spanish and American colonial rule, two world wars, and countless economic crises, the conglomerate has seen more than its share of history.
But for JAZA, more important than holding on to its storied legacy is ensuring that the nearly 200-year-old institution is still relevant.
“Remaining relevant to the changing nature of the country and the world is vitally important,” JAZA said.
“I always wanted an Ayala that was important to the country in a broader sense and touching the lives of as many Filipinos as possible.” – Rappler.com
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