February 13, 2007, Wednesday- Seventy-five of the top engineering student leaders attended a one-day exclusive leadership workshop entitled Blaze a Trail, Take a Lead Seminar in P&G Room located at the fifth floor of the UP Engineering Building. During the seminar, several speakers had shared their thoughts and wisdom about different aspects of leadership. One such distinguished speaker is undoubtedly one of the best business leaders in our country’s history. He was the President and General Manager of what is considered one of the top manufacturing companies in our country, Procter & Gamble. He was awarded as 2007’s Most Distunguished Alumnus of the College of Engineering. He graduated BS Chemical Engineering in the said school in 1978. He is no other than Mr. Johnip Cua. |
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 In his course of his career in P&G, he had made significant contributions and innovations in most of its products. For example, Pantene was originally a local brand of shampoo in Taiwan sold by small-time retailers. But, with his discovery of the effects of chemical surfactants to the shampoo’s silicone content, it has become a world-renowned brand that caters to all women who desire to have black and shiny hair.
From being a technical brand manager to general manager of P&G, Johnip Cua proved that a researcher can make it to the top of the heap. In an interview with LSEC, with persistence and creativity, Johnip Cua proved that there is always an opportunity for our local brand of science to be used in business and to stand out globally.
LSEC:What were your initial aspirations before deciding to be a Chemical Engineering Major?
Mr. Cua: I have always been fascinated by chemicals. They are like "magic" to me. Mixing a few chemicals together can produce something phenomenally different and useful. With Chemical Engineering, I was hoping to take this "magic" one step further by commercializing new inventions.
LSEC:What was your chosen field of research within your course?
Mr. Cua: My "thesis" for graduation was my Plant Design to turn coconut oil into gasoline. This was suggested by Professor Ted Festin because of increasing oil prices then (mid 70's) which were controlled by OPEC. Since we have an abundance of coconuts in our country, using coconut oil as a source of energy made perfect sense. Technologies to turn coconut oil into biodiesel (coconut methyl ester) were already available then. But not much had been done to turn coconut oil into gasoline. In that sense, it was a breakthrough research for me.
LSEC:Have you ever thought of pursuing graduate studies after your undergraduate studies?
Mr. Cua: No. After I started working in Procter & Gamble, I discovered that this company was already offering me the best graduate and post-graduate studies. I did not have to go to a university to do further studies anymore. I was working in a lab, pilot plant, and an actual plant everyday. I also had the opportunity to work in the best technical centers of Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati for a couple of years.
LSEC:What had made you decide to work for Procter and Gamble?
Mr. Cua: Procter & Gamble offered me a Product Development job which I felt would make use of my Chemical Engineering skills. Also, during the interviews, they made me feel very comfortable. They made me feel that I would be part of one big family. They are a company that cares. More importantly, I discovered that they are a company that has pioneered in a lot of breakthrough technologies and products.
LSEC:What are the contributions of Procter and Gamble to the scientific community?
Mr. Cua: Procter & Gamble invented a lot of products that have made life better for all of us. A few examples are:
- Ivory Soap that floats
- Tide, the first detergent in the world
- Pampers, the first disposable diaper in the world
- Pantene and Rejoice, the first complete 2-in-1 shampoo-and-conditioners that use silicone conditioners
- Whisper, the first sanitary napkins with "wings"
- Safeguard, the first anti-bacterial soap
- Downy, the first fabric softener
LSEC:Compared to other companies, what had made Procter and Gamble one of the leading companies in the world?
Mr. Cua: The people of Procter & Gamble are what distinguishes them from other companies. They are the key factor that made the Company the biggest "fast-moving-consumer-goods" company in the world. This is because they recruit the very best people at the entry level, and develop and nurture them until they become the future leaders of the company. They only "promote from within", and ensures that their culture of "leadership", "honesty & integrity", "winning as a way of life", and "innovation as the lifeblood of the company", are perpetuated.
LSEC:What can you say about the possibilities provided by technopreneurship in the Philippines?
Mr. Cua: We have lots of possibilities for technopreneurship in the Philippines. Within my family, I have an uncle who has become successful by transforming soya proteins into soya meat ("Magic Meat"). He also invented the first dual-direction "ro-ro" ferry to transport vehicles across the river, before the Mactan Bridge was built. Our country is famous for the many discoveries and commercialization of the uses of coconuts and coconut oil. From something as simple as virgin coconut oil and coco fiber, to something more complicated like coconut methy ester and coconut surfactants. I think the areas of renewable energy and renewable raw materials are opportunities our technopreneurs can look at. Mineral production is another rich area. I am optimistic that Filipino technopreneurs will be able to compete globally. It is going to be only a matter of time before this happens.
LSEC:What can you say about the state of science and technology in the Philippines?
Mr. Cua: We are obviously behind the more industrialized countries in terms of science and technology. However, we should not give up. The recent boom in the Business Outsourcing Business presents an opportunity for the scientific community in the Philippines. Many of the scientific research, laboratory work, analytical work, pilot plant testing, etc., can actually be done in our country at a faster pace and lower cost. To make this happen, we should strengthen our university programs, and develop more engineers, scientists and PhD's. Once we have achieved a certain critical mass, the big global companies will see the opportunity to do some of their scientific work over here. And this will dramatically improve the state of science and technology in the Philippines.
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