Roderick Enriquez: Finance, the Japanese Community, and People Skills

After completing his Part-time MBA with GLOBIS in 2012, Roderick Enriquez used his expertise in finance to advance his career and ultimately return to Japan. We caught up with him to see what he’s been up to and how GLOBIS helped his career take shape.

What have you been doing since you left GLOBIS?

After GLOBIS, I returned to my former employer, Philippine National Bank, where I was offered a higher position and more responsibilities. Since then, I have risen from branch head to area head to region head, with an increasing number of personnel to manage and supervise in different parts of the country. This included stints in our Manila headquarters and the countryside. Effective September 1, 2018, I was designated deputy managing director of Philippine National Bank Japan, helping manage our Tokyo and Nagoya offices. This is my first foreign post, and I’m very excited. What better place to be assigned to than Japan?

How has your GLOBIS experience helped you so far?

GLOBIS prepared me to take on professional challenges. One of the core competencies required by my bank, especially from senior officers, is managing change. In order to seize opportunities and achieve organizational goals, it’s very important for us to constantly think about our management approach and utilize innovative strategies. GLOBIS enabled me to readily welcome new assignments—even relocations—and build a positive reputation. Now, with my latest work assignment taking me back to Japan, my “leap-of-faith” decision to leave everything for GLOBIS feels justified.

My new assignment in Philippine National Bank Japan will enable concrete realizations of the personal mission I developed at GLOBIS—that is, to be a positive influence on others through teaching or mentoring in the field of finance. Our primary market is the many overseas Filipino workers and residents based in Japan. My new position will allow me to closely interact with them and join their activities. I’m looking forward to using my experience and knowledge to improve their financial literacy and planning. Hopefully, this will have a positive overall impact on their lives and the lives of their families, either in Japan or in the Philippines.

Any advice for other GLOBIS alumni who are thinking about working in your field?

I work in finance, which requires certain technical skills and competence, but what has proven to be critical to my success is people management skills. The best way to build these skills is to actually spend time with your people, particularly those on the ground. You can develop soft skills like active listening and negotiating through these close encounters and interactions.

As your circle and scope of influence expands, you need to be able to harness cooperation and move everyone toward a common goal. This will require adapting to your audience (particularly today’s millennial workforce), fostering teamwork, and reaching consensus.