ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Megaworld CEO is only Filipina in Forbes' Asia Power Businesswoman list

Megaworld CEO is only Filipina in Forbes' Asia Power Businesswoman list

Published Nov 6, 2024 01:19 am

Only one Filipina made it to Forbes Magazine’s Asia Power Businesswomen list which features 20 industry veterans who set precedent by becoming the first women to step into top leadership roles at their companies.

Megaworld Lourdes T. Gutierrez-Alfonso.jpg
Megaworld Corporation’s new president Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso joined other businesswomen in Asia-Pacific who are stepping up and taking the helm in industries with no shortage of challenges.

“As economic uncertainties continue to loom over businesses everywhere, these 20 women have been entrusted to lead enterprises, investment firms and family businesses to continuous growth and stability," Forbes said.

A certified public accountant, Gutierrez-Alfonso became Megaworld’s president in June, succeeding billionaire Dr. Andrew Tan, who founded the company in 1989 and built it into one of the Philippines’ biggest call-center landlords and hotel operators.

She has been given the task of handling a major expansion of the company as Megaworld plans to spend P350 billion in the five years to 2027 to develop and expand its townships and beef up its hotel portfolio.

Since joining Megaworld in 1990, Gutierrez-Alfonso, has held various positions, including senior executive vice president for finance and administration and, most recently, chief operating officer.

The other women in the list have taken on booming industries including EVs and server hardware production to meet growing demand, while others are running conglomerates, airports as well as banking and retail businesses.

“The entrants this year represent a new generation of businesswomen with bold strategies, who are ready to face any difficulties head-on. They were chosen for their accomplishments and proven success as leaders in the business world,” said Forbes.

Also in the list are Vicki Brady, CEO and Managing Director of Australia’s largest telecom Telstra; Bonnie Chan, the first female CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing; Clara Chan, CEO of Hong Kong Investment Corporation at 44; Maggi Chen, Cofounder and Chairman of Taiwan’s computer chassis maker Chenbro Micom; Shina Chung, first woman CEO of South Korean’s tech giant Kakao; Miwako Date, President and CEO of Japanese real estate firm Mori Trust Holdings; Nyrika Holkar, Executive Director of India’s Godrej Enterprises Group which has interests in everything from aerospace and appliances to real estate and security locks; Carrie Hurihanganui, first female Chief Executive of Auckland Airport; Michelle Jablko, the first woman to head Melbourne-based Transurban, one of the world’s largest toll-road operators; Rishma Kaur, Chairman of Berger Paints India; and Stella Li, Executive Vice President of China’s electric vehicle giant BYD.

The power list also included: Stephanie Lo, Vice Chairman of mainland China-focused Shui On Land; Vishakha Mulye, CEO of Indian financial services firm Aditya Birla Capital; Shania Manoj Punjabi, President Commissioner of Indonesian film studio MD Entertainment; Feny Djoko Susanto, President Commissioner of minimart empire Sumber Alfaria Trijaya; Tan Su Shan, Deputy CEO and CEO-Designate of Singapore’s DBS Group; Serena Teo Joo Ling, CEO of Singaporean real estate investment trust CapitaLand Ascott Trust; Mitsuko Tottori, the first woman to run Japan Airlines (JAL) as CEO, having started as a flight attendant for Japan’s flag carrier; and Jo Townsend, CEO of Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation which manages the country’s sovereign wealth fund, NZ Super Fund.

Related Tags

Forbes Magazine Forbes Asia Megaworld Corporation Lourdes T. Gutierrez-Alfonso
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.