Company chair and business tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan reminded guests at the IPO ceremony of those early struggles two decades ago.
Fittingly, he reserved his final thanks for the “men and women of Maynilad” who helped steer the firm through turbulence and its eventual success.
It was an important occasion for the company, its employees, and its investors but one key executive behind its turnaround was noticeably absent.
We’re talking about Randolph “Randy” T. Estrellado, the former chief financial officer turned chief operating officer of the water utility, who retired last August.
He was unable to attend the listing, but we hear it was for something truly special.
An insider said Estrellado had kicked off a planned trip to Europe, where he intends to tie the knot with his partner, Keith, in Portugal.
This is part of an “elopement package” first reported by Philippine Star columnist Marianne Go.
Estrellado was among the original executives who joined Maynilad during the Pangilinan-Consunji group takeover in 2007. We’re sure he would have appeared if not for an important—perhaps the most important—reason of all.
Right now, the successful corporate executive, whose past experience includes CFO of Metro Pacific Investments and ABS-CBN Corp., is taking a “career break,” as his current LinkedIn status shows.
But a break suggests only a pause, and we hope to see him back in action after this well-deserved hiatus.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
