HOTEL ALEJANDRO, Tacloban City — DELWATER President Jose Eduardo C. Delgado (JED) led his management team down memory lane as he formally opened the 2008 DELWATER Planning Conference on November 12, 2007.
Photo Credit: awonderfulblog.com
The 2008 planning conference informally commenced on the evening of November 11 with the now-traditional get-together dinner and fellowship. The day took twice as much significance as it also marked JED`s 53rd birthday. The conference lasted until November 15.
Tacloban City is the latest addition in Delwater’s growing network of branches nationwide, with the Delwater-Tacloban branch commencing operation in July-August this year. This is the primary reason the city was chosen as the venue of the semi-annual planning conference.
Tacloban, the biggest city in Leyte, also happens to be a city rich in historical significance. The city is well-known for its role in World War II, being a major base for the US forces and the first town liberated by Douglas MacArthur`s forces from the Japanese Imperial Forces shortly after he fulfilled his famous “I Shall Return” promise. For a time, it served as the capital of the Philippines while Manila was under Japanese control. For several decades, Tacloban was just a barrio of Basey (now Samar province).
The exact venue of the planning conference, Hotel Alejandro, is itself a historic landmark. It is literally a time capsule with its impressive collection of War-time photos and memorabilia.
In his opening remarks, JED invited his management team to “travel in time” with him some time in 1944-45, when the biggest Naval battle in history was unfolding in Leyte Gulf. He drew parallelism on the big planning and decision making challenges that confronted Gen. MacArthur and the country`s leaders at that time and the ones that Delwater`s management has to deal with to survive and lead in today`s competitive business environment and realities.
The tone for the planning conference was set after the reading of MacArthur`s “I have returned” speech by Delwater`s legal counsel, Atty. Juanito R. Carlos.“…Rally to me. Let the indomitable spirit of Bataan and Corregidor lead on… rise and strike. Strike at every favorable opportunity. For your homes and hearths, strike! For future generations of your sons and daughters, strike! In the name of your sacred dead, strike!…” [click here to view full text of MacArthur`s speech]
JED also found (and was deeply moved by) a not-so-well-known speech given by Gen. MacArthur when he returned to the Philippines in the early `60s, near the end of his life`s journey. JED shared this to the conference participants.
And then it was down to pure business discussions up until November 15, with each manager presenting his project line-up and business outlook for his department or area of responsibility in 2008.
The next planning conference is tentatively set in April 2008 with Delwater-Palawan as host. /RUS
Related Link: A Time Capsule In Tacloban
