As Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of Pathway Technologies, an engineering and distribution company in the Philippine construction industry, Mark Dantes is helping to bring sustainable development to rural areas with innovative road-building solutions that are cheaper, faster and more environmentally friendly than traditional construction methods.
Mark credits his time with NUS Business School’s MBA programme as being instrumental in giving him the skills and the confidence to venture out into a new career as an entrepreneur. We caught up with Mark to find out more about his MBA experience and the exciting opportunities it has opened up for him.
Q: What made you decide to enrol for the NUS Business School MBA and how has your career evolved since?
Prior to enrolling in the MBA programme, my expertise was mainly in advertising and branding. After working for several years for a mix of large corporates and advertising agencies, I saw the MBA as a way to fill in some of the gaps in my knowledge and sharpen my skills.
I had the option to go to a top business school in the United States, but I chose NUS because I knew that I wanted to live and work in Asia. I wanted to gain exposure to the way business is done here and to build my network in the region, things the NUS MBA could help me accomplish.
As a mass communications graduate, I didn’t have much experience working with numbers and it used to be something I would dread. But the deeper I delved into the field of marketing, the more I saw the importance of numbers in running a business. The MBA gave me exposure to a broad range of subjects and made me realise that working with numbers isn’t so scary after all.
After completing the NUS MBA, I joined one of the Philippines’ largest conglomerates, The Villar Group of Companies, and became Head of Investor Relations for Golden Bria Holdings, helping the company list on the Philippine Stock Exchange. I also gained exposure to other parts of the business, notably real estate and land development. This experience allowed me to discover new technology in that sector and meet the people that would eventually lead to the founding of Pathway Technologies.
Q: How has The NUS MBA helped you get where you are today?
The MBA programme opened a lot of doors for me. As one of the most respected and admired educational institutions in Asia, an NUS MBA carries a lot of weight and it gave my former companies and my partners the confidence to expose me to more finance-related roles despite my relative lack of prior experience in the field.
Studying in Singapore also opened up opportunities all around the world that would have allowed me to choose where I wanted to work and live. But I felt that there was something I could still do for my country – the Philippines. This is why I continue to stay and push to make a positive impact through the work that I do back home.
To be completely honest though, prior to doing my MBA, I never thought I would be an entrepreneur. But the programme exposed me to a lot of different experiences and situations. It challenges you and stretches you in a way that makes you more willing to tackle the unfamiliar and chase the unknown. It also gave me confidence through the exposure to people from different cultures and backgrounds, and this has been a big help to me in negotiating and building relationships with the different stakeholders I work with today.
Q: What was the most memorable highlight of your MBA?
In my cohort, students from the different nationalities would take turns to organise an evening out, so we would have Korean night, Chinese night, Japanese night and so on.
There was only one other full-time Filipino student aside from myself in my cohort, and we were racking our brains to think about what we could do for Filipino night. None of the local options seemed that appealing and so we ended up organising a weekend getaway to Boracay. It was a fantastic experience as a good number of people from our class went along and we had the chance to share with them some of the best parts of Filipino culture.
Unfortunately, after such a big weekend some of us didn’t make it to our Monday morning classes, but the experience was definitely well worth it! The NUS MBA is not just about the classroom teachings after all, but also the shared experiences with other members of your cohort that would stick with you for a lifetime.
Q: How have you kept in touch and stayed engaged with The NUS MBA community?
The MBA experience brought us all closer and there were definitely a lot of lasting friendships that were formed. I regularly meet up with classmates that are also based in the Philippines and we try to see each other often. Even during the pandemic we would get together over Zoom.
I am also very close to one of my Japanese classmates and we arrange to meet up in Tokyo or somewhere in the world every year. COVID put a temporary stop to those meetings but we are looking forward to seeing each other again soon. He has also been a big help to me in my professional life and we have tried working together on several business projects.
Q: What advice would you give to other Filipino MBA aspirants?
One of the biggest barriers for a lot of the people I talk to is uncertainty. Some don’t feel like they can do it or that they are qualified enough to attain an MBA. My advice would be to have confidence in yourself and believe that it is possible. If you are prepared to put your heart and mind to it then it can be done, and if you see a need and an opportunity presents itself – take it!
Q: What does the future hold for you?
I feel like I’ve only just started on this entrepreneurship journey, so I want to see where this leads me. I feel like I’m just scratching the surface given also that the first two years running my businesses brought with it the extra challenge of dealing with a pandemic. The experiences I took home with me after graduating from the NUS MBA helped give me the courage to make many tough decisions and now allow me to enjoy all the different experiences and opportunities that lie ahead. Every day is always a huge learning experience for me and I am committed to enjoy the ride!