CEO Blog

I feel good.

Today, we just reached an agreement to organise and promote The Servant Leader: Lead Like Jesus workshops designed by Ken Blanchard through licensed facilitator, Boris Joaquin. Boris has leadership experience with top corporations like Procter & Gamble (Manila and Singapore) and Campaigns & Grey. He was also Vice President with CSM-Church Strengthening Ministries--and led the Christian publishing group's marketing and training programs.

I first encountered Ken Blanchard's Lead Like Jesus workshop when I attended Blanchard's ASTD session in Floriday. (I actually "escaped" for an afternoon from my wife and our Chava girl during our Disney World vacation.) Anyway, it was refreshing and encouraging to see Blanchard--best known for his mega-million best-selling management classic, The One Minute Manager--talking about Jesus as the best leadership model that one could follow (whether a believer or not.)

We'll update you on the dates of the first offering... We're trying to book May 30 & 31 for the initial offering. Watch out for announcements on this site. Send us your email address if you want to receive invitations from us.

Oh, by the way, the beneficiary of these workshops will be The Salt & Light TPLR Foundation and World Vision foundation. Proceeds will help poor children get a Christian education. 

Guerrillas in our midst

No, we're not talking about the Sigourney Weaver movie.

As I write this blog, Jay and wife, Jeannie, Levinson are in Boracay, hopefully enjoying the white sands and the clear blue waters. They deserve it after delivering a great performance at the Araneta Coliseum and Onstage Theatre. Hosting Jay Levinson and his co-author and wife, Jeannie (they just finished a book on Guerrilla Entrepreneur's Guide to Start Ups published by Entreprenuer Press in the US) was a pleasure. They were not prima donnas and were very friendly to everybody. Jay is already 74 years old and part of the secret of his staying power is that he's worked a 3 day workweek since 1971 (he was the creative director of Leo Burnett and he and his team came up with the Marlboro Man and Marlboro Country advertising theme that still exists until today.)

He finishes all his work from Monday to Wednesday 6pm (he has a home office) and then takes a four day weekend spending time with his wife, 8 children and 26 grandchildren.

It's amazing. Jay Levinson has written about 40+ books and his titles have sold more than 15 million copies. It's a far cry from JK Rowling's count, but hey, this is a marketing book series. He's the best selling marketing author in history.

I just thank God for giving us good weather (we prayed that no typhoons would come this week) and for blessing us with an SRO crowd at Onstage Theatre where more than 800 marketers and entrepreneurs came to listen to Jay.

Pictures of the Araneta and Onstage event coming!

Jay Levinson with Chit Juan of Figaro

Before Jay and Jeannie Levinson left for Boracay and then Manila before flying back out into outer space (actually Japan and then Ireland before going back to their home base of Florida) to hit the speaking circuit, Chit Juan, the co-founder of Figaro and social advocate of pinoy coffee farmers, graciously hosted dinner at Sugi for the couple, her Figaro partners and Salt & Light Ventures. (That's her sitting on the Guerrila Marketing guru's lap! Tingting is wearing her green guerrilla outfit.)

Chit is a long-time fan of Jay Levinson and it was cute to see her act like a teenaged groupie following a rock-star and watch her pull out 7 or 8 old and new books of Jay for him to sign.

We're grateful for these teachers (like Ronyla Santiago whose students include the MNLF rebels)

Just wanted to post this before leaving for Singapore.

Last Thursday, we had a presscon at the AIM Conference Center to introduce four teacher awardees that we will be paying tribute to on September 1, 2007 at the Araneta Coliseum. The event is aptly called, Tribute to Teachers. The Bato Balani Foundation and Diwa partnered with Francis Kong a long time ago and started this annual practise of giving thanks to our teachers who hold the thankless job of educating the future of the country.

This picture shows me with Ronyla Santiago, a young teacher who is pioneering the mobile school in Nueva Ecija. Among her students? The MNLF rebels. The full story is in today's Inquirer. It's a well-written and touching article that recounts the emotion and tears that accompanied their stories.

Salt & Light Ventures has been involved since last year in helping Tribute to Teachers get sponsors and funding. For sponsorships as low as P15,000 and as high as P1M, you could help sponsor this annual event and fund the Masters in Education of young, deserving teachers who want to devote their lives to teaching our children here in the Philippines.

Give my partner, Carol Roa, a call at 813-2732/03 or send her an email at carol@saltandlight.ph or at marketing@saltandlight.ph.

Thanks and God bless you all!