“We didn’t just want to remain at the top; we desired to make a difference while being there. Ultimately, we discovered our new purpose was to create a ‘globe of good.’”
In a nutshell, this is the vision and mission of Ernest Cu, president and chief executive of Globe Telecom Inc.
Between 2009 when he took over the driver’s seat of Globe and 2024, Globe saw a remarkable growth from a far second to Numero Uno in the domestic telecommunications industry.
Being a dyed-in-the-wool visionary, Cu led Globe’s transformation to digital technology innovator, expanding the firm’s scope of connectivity to cover more than 500 far-flung areas, empowering its flagship GCash program to 80-percent national following, while trailblazing multiple digital solutions.
Cu’s dream of seeing a digitalized Philippines stems from his belief that “digital connectivity can act as an equalizer in society, granting access to information, services and opportunities regardless of geographical location.”
As of mid-2023, Globe’s mobile subscriber peaked at 53.727 million, reputedly the highest among local telecom players and 1.2 million higher than the previous leader.
“We have transformed into a full-fledged tech company, with a newly-identified purpose: to uplift the lives of Filipinos through digital technology,” Cu said.
Globe’s footprint can also be seen in the corporate incubator 917Ventures deemed as the country’s “most prominent corporate venture builder that has pioneered tech solutions companies like Konsulta MD, HealthNow, KodeGo and EdVenture, to name a few.”
As the company’s non-telco incomes continuously ramp up, Cu mulls more investments to sustain corporate growth. “I want to build a better future by empowering Filipino entrepreneurs, content creators and artists,” he said,
“Change is one thing. Simply making organizational changes would have been tough by itself. However, transformation and disruption of the industry is another thing entirely. We must develop entrepreneurial and technical talents, creating solutions to unique problems,” he said.
Beyond heading Globe, Cu also sits as independent director at LivePerson Inc., an advisor at Kubera Partners LLC, independent director at AsianLife & General Assurance Corp., AsianLife Financial Assurance Corp., ATRAM Trust Corp., Philippine Life Financial Assurance Corp., investment committee chairman at Kickstart Ventures Inc., member of the influential Makati Business Club and other executive positions in different corporate entities.
He received his undergraduate degree from De La Salle University and a Master’s degree from Kellogg School of Management.
For his exemplary accomplishments, he was conferred the DLSAA Lasallian Achievement Award and the ICT Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003.
He was also recognized as the Philippines’ Best CEO by Finance Asia in 2010 and 2017 and CEO of the Year by Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific in 2012.
Cu is also known as one of the founding fathers of the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines. He was named the Best CEO in Telecom in the Philippines by the London-based The Global Economics Limited in 2022.
Cu’s firsts job after graduation was at Bank of America where he was immersed in the technology industry.
In 1997, he was offered the position of president and CEO at SPi, a BPO company with 30 employees which eventually ballooned to 900 employees under his wings. It is now one of the world’s largest outsourcing destinations.
On being a father, Cu instilled in his children Cristina, Martin and Arianna the values of empathy and adaptability as well as the wisdom to inspire rather than to give orders.
“My kids taught me patience. Despite being raised in the same household, the same environment, they are very different [from each other]. So you have to treat them and interact with them differently at different levels,” he said.
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