The recently held Alumni Hour delivered a double dose of wisdom and lessons for students of iMBA and MDM. Jun Palanca, MBM 93, and ING Bank Country Head, together with Wing Bayoneta, MBM 92, and ING Bank Product Management and Development Lead, regaled the students with a recounting of their career paths while imparting critical lessons to get on the career fast-track lane.
From the get-go, both were very clear about their chosen paths and made certain to acquire the skill set needed to succeed. For Wing, it meant taking all the Finance courses offered in the MBA program. Jun was exposed to the family’s business early on by working in the factories during school breaks. He had enough experience to know that being in business was not for him and that he would be happier as a banker.
Both attest to the value of their AIM education as a critical factor in achieving successful careers. Their MBA lessons have been ingrained deeply so much so that to this day, both still use the frameworks they learned at AIM to analyze complex business problems and issues. As such, they encouraged the students to take stock of what makes them happy and learn as much as possible to prepare themselves for what lies ahead in their professional careers.
For Wing, her additional role as a mother certainly added to the demands of her time. However, she was clear with her priorities and made certain to balance her time between her professional responsibilities and her family. Efficient time management allowed her to juggle her office and home life effectively.
On the other hand, Jun stressed the importance of learning to compromise. As he and his wife held positions that required plenty of travel, they had to work their schedules so that there was always one present to attend to the kids. And in times when it was inevitable that both of them had to travel, they made sure to have relatives look after the children.
This Alumni Hour had a cozy, casual feel but with lots of practical lessons imparted to the students. Jun and Wing have gentle and warm personalities that radiated throughout the session. This made the students feel at ease and connected with the speakers effortlessly.
We thank Jun and Wing for taking time off their busy schedules to share valuable lessons accumulated over their successful careers with the students. They have proven that one can be successful with family and career and that it is never a zero-sum game.
