DMCI Holdings’ Isidro Consunji is MAP Management Man of the Year 2022
AFTER a stringent selection process, the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) conferred to Isidro “Sid” Consunji, chairman and president of DMCI Holdings Inc, the prestigious “MAP Management Man of the Year” award.
The 46th awardee of the said recognition in the five-decade history of the award, Consunji was chosen for his business acumen and management qualities in transforming a private construction firm into one of the Philippines’ biggest and most resilient conglomerates; for his leadership role in his group’s substantial contributions to national development, job creation and income generation through huge investments in construction, real estate, mining, energy and water distribution; for his unparalleled commitment to developing, training and sustaining a Filipino management team and staff; for his generous contribution to education, particularly in the field of engineering and science; for his significant contribution in the form of innovative solutions to the housing problem of the Philippines; for his expertise in turning problematic assets and distressed companies under seemingly insurmountable situations into very productive investments; for being an exemplar of the Filipino entrepreneurial spirit without public display and self-promotion; and for his personal contributions to shaping national values and inspiring others through his track record of integrity, managerial competence and professional leadership.
The “MAP Management Man of the Year” is an award that the MAP confers on individuals in
business or government, whether a member of the MAP or not, who have attained unquestioned distinction in the practice of management, and have made valuable contributions to the progress of the country and in re-shaping national values. It is bestowed on exceptional persons who have posted a record of achievement and distinction as leaders and managers of organizations, and who are exemplary models who deserve to be emulated by their peers and by the younger leaders and managers.
The criteria for the award includes integrity, leadership, and management qualities; contribution to nationbuilding and values formation; effective stewardship within the confines of the highest standard of business and management practice; among others.
Consunji up close
Consunji, the eldest son of the late David “DM” Consunji, known as the father of Philippine construction, made a name for himself through all his current positions as president, chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of the board at DMCI Holdings Inc; and executive director at Semirara Mining and Power; Chairman of the Board at DM Consunji; and director at Atlas Mining.
Besides these major positions, he is also chairman and CEO at SEM-Calaca Power Corp., Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corp., Semirara Claystone Inc., Semirara Energy Utilities Inc., Southeast Luzon Power Generation Corp, SEM-Cal Industrial Park Developers Inc., DMCI Mining Corp., chairman of St. Raphael Power Generation Corp., chaiman of ENK Plc (U.K.), vicechairman at DMCI Masbate Power Corp., director at Dacon Corp, director at M&S Company Inc., director at DMCI Projects Developers Inc., director at Toledo Mining Corp. Plc U.K., director at Maynilad Water Services, director and president at Semirara Cement Corp., director, Private Infra Dev. Corp. and trustee at Asian Institute of Management (AIM).
The Consunji legacy of building, however, did not start with the eldest Consunji. It all started with his father, David, a civil engineering graduate, also from UP Diliman, who founded DMCI, a construction company that grew to become a conglomerate.
Consunji was exposed at an early age to the real world of construction and building. Sid spent a lot of time with his father in the project sites. He was even brought to Saudi Arabia when his father got a contract to build a dozen bridges.
Consunji loves to build — not just buildings, homes, and bridges, but more importantly, his own lives on his own terms — but cognizant of the lessons from the older generations, the people who helped them and the communities that welcomed them.
In an interview with Sid, he proudly talked about his father’s legacy to him and to his siblings Josefa, Jorge, Luz, Maria Cristina and Maria Edwina: “My father taught me to be fair, to know myself and to learn from my failures.”
Sid always remembers his father’s advice: “You should always give back to society because society gave you a good life and education.”
Educational background
A civil engineer by profession, Consunji graduated from the University of the Phiippines with B.S. Civil Engineering course. He finished his Master’s Degree in Business Economics from Center for Research and Communication; Master’s Degree in Business Management from Asian Institute of Management; and Advanced Management from IESE School, Barcelona, Spain.
Inheritance
Sid is the eldest among his five siblings. The six Consunji siblings inherited DMCI Holdings Inc. founded by their father David in 1954 who built it into the largest and most successful property company in the Philippines.
David died in September 2017 aged 95, and his children inherited his fortune. Isidro, his eldest son became the CEO and chairman of his father’s former firm, which along with property development, also has interests in water services, power generation and mining.
Theconstruction magnate followed his father’s footsteps by maintaining professional and financial interests in the mining, power production, and water services industries.
Despite suffering a loss as a result of the epidemic, the company was able to rebound from the impact. After recovering from the damage caused by the Covid crash, DMCI’s revenue in 2021 increased by 60 percent to $2.1 billion, while the company’s net profit increased by 100 percent to $350 million.
At the virtual stockholders’ meeting held by Semirara Mining Corp. in 2021, chairman and CEO Consunji predicted that the company’s bottom line would increase as a result of the recovery of the coal and energy markets from the historic lows that were reached the previous year.
Milestones
At 18, Sid was already a hardworking apprentice under his Dad who was then building the Cultural Center of the Philippines and a majority of the country’s five-star hotels.
Major corporate structure, high-rise condominium or flyover were built by DMCI with the partnership of father (David) and son (Sid). Sid and his company started a new venture with residential market which includes high-rise condominiums and developing subdivisions both for the middle-income market on prime land. He also had the chance to give back to society by building low-cost housing projects for soldiers in Fort Bonifacio.
A man who won’t think twice about getting his hands dirty, Sid grew up around constructions sites, tagging along with his father. According to Sid, in an interview, after their morning classes, together with his brothers , they would go and play with the gravel, sand and cement in the constructions sites where their father always took them.
For the last 68 years, DMCI has become very familiar with its edifices, structures, highways and skyways. Among these are the CCP, The Manila Hotel, Shangri-La Hotels, Rizal Theater, Tower One and Exchange Plaza, PNB Escolta, Ortigas Center financial district, Manila Doctors Hospital, Asian Hospital and Medical Center, UP Chapel, South Metro Manila Skyway, and the Pangasinan-La Union Toll Expressway.
Because DMCI carried the name of his father, the old Consunji made sure all his projects had that unmistakable seal of quality and excellence.
According to Sid, his father was a Renaissance man. “He knew his engineering, he liked sports, he enjoyed art. But he always made time for his family. We were always with him visiting construction sites. He played basketball and golf with us.”
The legacy continues
Victor Consunji, the son of Sid, have so much in common. Both are civil engineering graduates from UP Diliman; both are members of the prestigious Beta Epsilon fraternity; both are active in sports; both enjoy drinking — Macallan 18 for Sid and gin or vodka for Vic; both are adventurous and daring; both enjoy solving problems; both love to travel.
And, more importantly, both have a passion to build and are skillfully running their respective businesses with an engineer’s mind. Sid is chairman, president and CEO of mammoth diversified conglomerate DMCI Holdings Inc., while Vic is founder and CEO of Victor Consunji Development Corp., a real estate developer that builds contemporary and future-ready homes.
Indeed, the Consunji legacy continues with Sid and Vic.
Like his father Sid, Vic had the same exposure, also in the construction sites, and at times, he even tagged along with his grandfather to a mine site, “walking that dark tunnel at the age of seven,” Vic recalls.
Thus, Consunji men are those who aren’t afraid to build — not just buildings, homes, and bridges, but more importantly, their own lives on their own terms — but cognizant of the lessons from the older generations, the people who helped them and the communities that welcomed them.