A CEO's journey from the Classified Ad
A single ₱7 copy of the Manila Bulletin in 1993 became an investment that yielded a 30-year return for Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC).
For Mybelle V. Aragon-GoBio, now the president and chief executive officer of the Gokongwei-led real estate giant, the ritual of scanning the classifieds was more than a post-graduate chore. It was the catalyst for her climb to the C-suite.
The story begins with a common frustration for fresh graduates, the bureaucratic lag of a “dream job.” Having recently graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, Aragon-GoBio was slated to join San Miguel Corp., one of the country’s most storied conglomerates. However, the onboarding process was taking longer than expected.
“As a young graduate eager to begin working and learning, I felt I couldn’t afford to just wait," Aragon-GoBio recalls. “I decided to actively look for other opportunities.”
In 1993, “actively looking” meant navigating a landscape without the internet. There were no online job portals to refresh and no LinkedIn “Easy Apply” buttons. Instead, there was the “Bible” of the Filipino workforce: the Manila Bulletin classifieds.
On a Sunday morning that would eventually rewrite her trajectory, Aragon-GoBio engaged in the analog version of scrolling.
“Buying a copy was almost automatic if you were looking for work,” she says. “I remember deliberately getting the paper and going straight to the classified ads. I had a highlighter ready to mark out the ads that looked interesting to pursue.”
Among the dense columns of text, a listing for a Staff Assistant for Project Development at Robinsons Land caught her eye. It wasn’t a flashy display; it was a simple block of ink on newsprint. Yet, in a pre-digital world, a company’s reputation was weighed by the gravitas of its print presence.
“The position sounded challenging and promising,” she notes. “Robinsons Land was already a reputable company, and the ad conveyed professionalism and credibility. That simple block of text on a newspaper page gave me the confidence to apply.”
The ‘Bulletin effect’
Today, as she oversees the massive portfolio of malls, residential towers, and office buildings, Aragon-GoBio views the Manila Bulletin as “gateway” rather than just a source of information.
“Looking back now, it’s almost surreal,” she says. “My entire career started with a single newspaper ad. That physical piece of paper became the starting point of a journey I never imagined would lead me to where I am today.”
She describes this phenomenon as the “Manila Bulletin effect”—the way a singular source of information could act as a bridge between a candidate’s uncertainty and a corporation’s need. Without that specific Sunday issue, she muses, her path would have unfolded differently. She might have waited for the San Miguel opening or ended up in an entirely different industry.
Aragon-GoBio’s rise within RLC from a junior staff assistant to the CEO’s office mirrors the growth of the Philippine property sector itself. She joined at a time when the “tiger economy” of the 90s was beginning to reshape the Manila skyline, and her career grew in tandem with the steel and glass she helped develop.
Her journey also highlights a stark contrast between the job hunts of Gen X and Gen Z. While today’s candidates are often overwhelmed by the sheer volume of digital “noise,” Aragon-GoBio’s experience suggests that the lack of options in the 90s forced higher level of intentionality. When you only have one newspaper and a highlighter, every application carries more weight.
Advice for digital age
Despite the shift from newsprint to pixels, Aragon-GoBio insists that the “essence of success” remains unchanged. Her advice to the next generation of Filipinos looking for their “big break” is a blend of old-school grit and modern adaptability.
“Today’s young professionals have access to tools we never had—online platforms, instant information, and global networks,” she says. “But the essence of success hasn’t changed. Be proactive, be patient but not passive, and don’t be afraid to explore opportunities when they present themselves.”
Her most poignant takeaway for the digital generation? “Your big break might not come from a viral post or a digital platform. It might come from an unexpected place. What matters is having the courage to take that first step.”
As Robinsons Land continues to expand its footprint across the country, its leader remains a testament to the power of a single moment of initiative.
In the high-stakes world of real estate, where the future is built on blueprints and vision, it all started with a young woman, a highlighter, and a 50-centavo newspaper.