They are part of a growing crop of successful women executives in the highly cutthroat Philippine real estate industry.
In a country touted to be the “most gender equal” in the region, women in the Philippines enjoy key managerial positions across a number of industries. And it’s no different in real estate, where female executives have long played a crucial role in defining the landscape.
The Inquirer sat down with some of these highly successful women, whose unwavering passion, ingenuity, and sheer determination have allowed them to rise through the ranks, and at the same time, helped shape the industry in which they are active and present.
Here are their stories.
A STRONG FORCE
JOSEPHINE GOTIANUN-YAP
President and Chief Executive Officer
Filinvest Land Inc.
Gotianun-Yap continues to steer Filinvest Land to greater heights.
She is a force to reckon with.
Her keen aptitude in heading one of the country’s leading property developers across several economic boom-and-bust cycles has been widely recognized within business circles, and had accorded her numerous prestigious citations and accolades throughout the years.
But there seems to be no stopping Gotianun-Yap as Filinvest Land continues to innovate and embark on new projects. As it is, the Filinvest Group has already introduced a number of landmark projects over the last several decades to cater to a growing and changing demand in the local market.
Gotianun-Yap, who got involved in the property business in 1989, recalled that as early as the ’60s, her parents introduced gated residential communities for the middle class with their Filinvest Homes communities.
According to Gotianun-Yap, Filinvest was among the first companies to get involved in mass housing in the ’80s, and in the following decade, it then introduced the first satellite central business district with Filinvest City.
By the year 2000, the company’s subsidiary, Cyberzone Properties Inc., received pioneer developer status for the Northgate Cyberzone, which now has the largest concentration of outsourcing offices in the south with 17 buildings and almost 250,000 sqm of gross leasable area.
Gotianun-Yap further shared that Filinvest City was also the first to register for the LEED in Neighborhood Development with the US Green Building Council.
“We have the country’s biggest district cooling system in Filinvest City to improve the energy efficiency of our buildings. We are ground-breaking another first—a water recycling plant for industrial use within the city. All these contribute to the sustainability of Filinvest City in addition to our electric vehicle loop, linear greenbelt along our river walks, the dedicated bike lane system we have put in place, and the Spectrum pedestrian walk in the landscaped median,” Gotianun Yap explained.
“Today, we are venturing into another first, being a pioneer developer of New Clark City. We also recently introduced Filinvest Mimosa + Leisure City and we would like to invite the public to see the refreshing changes and renovations we have introduced to Mimosa. We aim to bring a premier lifestyle hub to Central and Northern Luzon,” she added.
Indeed, Filinvest remains well poised to sustain its strong momentum, as it continues to introduce even more significant innovations in city development. Gotianun-Yap and the team behind the Filinvest Group are definitely a force to reckon with.
Related News: Inquirer.net
