From the get-go, this leader and sustainability advocate’s career path has always been about reaching out to others — creating value in the long term and taking part in programs that create a positive impact on people and communities.
By Francine Y. Medina
Photography by Mark Chester Ang
As first vice president and chief reputation and sustainability officer for Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. (AEV), Ginggay Hontiveros-Malvar is taking the helm to transform how the conglomerate approaches its economic, social, and governance commitments. She has worked tirelessly to shape her present and now embarks on helping her fellow leaders steer the group to the future.
The public has met her prominent and feisty sisters: Risa, the senator, who is fighting to protect the country’s territorial waters within the West Philippine Sea, and Pia, the broadcast journalist, who is undaunted in throwing difficult and probing questions to her subjects. Ginggay is the third Hontiveros sister. With three younger siblings after her, they are a total of six in the family.
“We grew up in an environment where everyone was expected to have a voice and to use it. My cousins, my sisters and I are all very outspoken. But there is healthy respect,” she says. “My dad was the youngest in a clan consisting of 10 kids, so we have a large extended family. We’re supportive of each other but we do our own thing.”
The palpable sense of leadership is due to their upbringing, she surmises. “My mom wasn’t working so she was able to focus on raising us. Everyone was encouraged to excel in school. There was no pressure, but there was a natural environment that inspired us to do well.
“Daddy was cool and supported us with whatever we wanted to pursue. Mommy, on the other hand, believed that aside from academics, we should have our own extra-curricular activities. So we were also involved in all kinds of activities at school.”
Ginggay says she looked up to her sisters, “And I also kind of grew up seeing Risa accomplish so much that I felt there’s an expectation to be good at something. So, Pia worked in media and I went to the side of the private sector.”
Silent worker
Working quietly but passionately in her field, Ginggay eventually forged her own path: “I consider my work as my life. It’s part of who I am as a person.”
On days when she’s not in the boardroom strategizing communication plans or evaluating policies aligned with the company’s transformative mission, Ginggay is checking in on their teams that have co-created projects to support underserved communities. These programs all have a people-centered and forward-looking purpose. They are designed to enable a future generation of leaders through education and upskilling, to contribute to enterprise development and job creation, and to take practical, balanced and sustainable climate action.
“My job is focused on building, enhancing and protecting the Aboitiz Group’s reputation, and providing direction and strategy for our group sustainability pathways. I work with an amazing team and oversee brand, media, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) for the group. These tracks are meant to develop strong and lasting stakeholder relationships, upon which our business depends.”
Preparing for the future
What excites Ginggay the most about her work are projects that create a positive and lasting impact. “My belief is that it can’t just be all about yourself. I feel a sense of responsibility and obligation to do something more to help. I aim to make things better for the stakeholders that I’m engaged with and inspire confidence in the future and in ourselves,” she says.
From the get-go, her career path has always been about reaching out to others. To Ginggay, growth never stopped at making profit; for her, the real work lies in how to harness that growth to achieve a greater purpose.
Her early posts, for instance, included one for a foundation that had her working in Tacloban during its period of recovery and rebuilding from Super Typhoon Yolanda. Ginggay still vividly remembers the massive damage, the thousands of lives lost and the grief that the city’s people went through.
“This experience was life changing for me. It reinforced my belief in the power of the human spirit to overcome despite overwhelming grief and challenges, that compassion and kindness transcends all borders. It opened up my mind to harsh realities that otherwise I would not have seen. It forced me to respond in ways that I didn’t think were possible and inspire others to do the same. When faced with such a situation, you just need to think on your feet while down in the trenches and just do it. After that experience, nothing fazes me anymore,” she says.
The next job involved working with Bangsamoro communities, where she helped launch agricultural programs and livelihood opportunities.
Ginggay’s personal purpose of future-proofing communities through economic development and social programs aligns with the Aboitiz Group’s modern vision to be the country’s first “techglomerate” — a new name the group gave itself to describe a heavily tech and innovation–driven conglomerate. Besides Aboitiz’s involvement in power, banking and financial services, food, real estate and infrastructure, it now has focused its sights on the brave, new world of data science and artificial intelligence.
“The company is a legacy conglomerate that’s been steeped in tradition for over a hundred years,” says Ginggay. “In preparation for the next hundred, we are in the midst of this exciting cultural revolution where we are opening our minds to new ways of thinking and working, adapting more of an entrepreneurial startup mindset, with greater accountability, democratized decision-making, and making faster, more data-driven decisions in order to create more value for our stakeholders, which includes our communities. So that part of me that still aims to help others is not lost.”
Ginggay’s work with many teams within Aboitiz, all led by the strong vision of her boss, Sabin Aboitiz, is paving the path forward not just for the company but also for the country. Aboitiz is involved in the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC), of which Sabin is the lead convenor, and in the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), where ABAC Philippines successfully hosted the ABAC III Meetings in Cebu. Recently, Ginggay has been re-elected to the United Nations (UN) Global Compact Network Philippines (GCNP) Board of Trustees. These developments mean being able to champion the country’s value-driven green initiatives and best practices on the global stage.
Private life
Ginggay’s personal life, on the other hand, takes a more laid-back beat. “Balance is important for me to be able to sustain my passions,” she says.
Mornings find her and husband, Gabby Malvar, walking their three Siberian huskies — Louis, Olaf and Grizzly — at 6 a.m., which is also the time she starts messaging her team, “not to make them reply, but because I might forget my thoughts.”
Gabby was in the corporate world and based abroad for a long time. He retired from his job to pursue his creative passions. “He is a multi-awarded documentary filmmaker and storyteller. Also an amazing musician and pianist. He’s the great-grandson of the late great general Miguel Malvar. We are very supportive of each other in our individual pursuits, which is key to why our unconventional relationship works,” she says.
Bound by love and creativity, Ginggay and Gabby are also partners in The Extra Mile Productions, founded in 2010, a film and video company that has been producing compelling narratives of communities and people.
Her daughters, Inna, 35, an international fabric designer with her own brand Feanne, and Iris 26, a talented copywriter for a major ad agency, are her children from a previous marriage. The devoted mother in Ginggay comes out when she talks about them, her voice tinged with tenderness and affection.
“My girls are my life’s greatest joy. I am very proud of them.”
Whether it’s supporting her children’s pursuits or scaling the Aboitiz Foundation’s programs to serve more Filipinos across the nation, Ginggay is eager to do her part in building a brighter future for her loved ones, her community, and her country. Not only is she ready for what comes next; she steps fearlessly into tomorrow.
“I’ve gone through a lot, and at this point in my life, I acknowledge that I still have so much to do and learn,” she concludes. “I’m an optimist. I’ve been like that since I was a child. What I’ve seen and experienced through the years really helped to open my mind and develop grit. I’m not afraid of the future. Whatever comes my way, I just say, sige, bring it on.”
Art direction by Dexter Francis de Vera
Hair and makeup by Eddie Mar Cabiltes
Styling by Mike de Guzman and Geo Palmiano of MGP
