Isidro Consunji's Secrets to Getting Rich 

Isidro "Sid" Consunji, the eldest child of DMCI founder David M. Consunji, practically grew up seeing his father run the family business. At age 10, construction and logging sites served as his playground. This early exposure naturally developed his business mindset. 

"Nasanay kaming [magkakapatid na] mag-manage ng negosyo mula pagkabata," he shares on Anthony Taberna's YouTube channel. "Madali naman yan. Ibenta mo [ng] piso, dapat ang gastos mo, less na one peso, di ba?" 

Following in his father's footsteps, Consunji pursued civil engineering at the University of the Philippines, only to later discover that his true strength lies in management. "Mas gusto ko ang maging manager than maging technical engineer. Yung engineer, ang pinagkakabit niya, bakal, simento, kahoy. Yung manager, ang pinagkakabit mo ay pera, competence, lupa, raw material, market, customer," he says.

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Consunji currently holds the positions of Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer at DMCI Holdings, Inc. Under that mother company are DM Consunji, Inc., DMCI Homes, DMCI Mining Corp., Semirara Mining and Power Corp., DMCI Power Corporation, and Maynilad, which employ a total of about 33,000 employees. 

Despite holding this top leadership position, Consunji dresses simply, favoring casual polo shirts and shorts even for board meetings. "Nakasanayan na e. Mula't mula noong bata ako, wala akong hilig magdamit [ng pormal]," he says in the same interview. But he does adhere to the dress code for formal events. 

He is admittedly frugal, a trait he embraced early in life. Not one to indulge in costly pleasures and possessions, he owns six Japanese watches, though he doesn't consider them a collection. In his younger years, he collected guns, but poor eyesight has led him to abandon this hobby. For him, luxury consists of enjoying a smoke, a drink, and taking local and international trips.

Isidro Consunji's style of leadership

Consunji doesn't see himself as a terror boss. "Tanungin mo mga tao ko," he tells Taberna. "Pero palagay ko hindi." He's also not the type of boss to micromanage. "Karamihan ng tao namin self-starter. Bigyan mo na ng parameters kung anong dapat gawin, iwanan mo na, bahala na sila. Ba't ako mag-iisip para sa kanila? Kaya sila nandiyan para mag-iisip," he says, smiling. 

He doesn't subscribe to the idea that a high-tension environment leads to better work performance. "It's possible to have high performance in an informal environment," he notes, suggesting that the relaxed environment could be a factor why their employees stay longer.

"Hindi ako makulit [na boss]. Pero gusto ko yung tao ko makulit. Parang yung nakikita nila, iba sa nakikita ko. Parang complimentary, di ba?" he says. 

He doesn't believe that company leaders need to be blood relatives. He wouldn't hesitate to assign leadership roles to non-family members who have demonstrated trustworthiness, resourcefulness, and a satisfactory track record. "Kung sinong magaling, babae o lalaki," he says.

Saving struggling businesses

One thing that DMCI Holdings seems to be good at is taking over failing businesses. When they acquired Semirara Mining and Power Corporation in 1997, it was on the brink of bankruptcy. 

Consunji says that while exploring the entire Philippines, they found Semirara, which is the country's largest coal reserve. The main challenge, he notes, wasn't finding coal but rather producing it profitably. 

Because the mining site was 300 meters below sea level, they needed to prevent saltwater intrusion into the mine. They applied construction technology, specifically a cut-off or curtain wall, which had not been used before. "Nung nagawa namin yan, na-prevent namin ang pagpasok ng tubig sa mina. Tapos nag-shift kami from bucket-wheel to truck-shovel. Pero seven years bago kami nag-break even," he says. Now, Semirara is DMCI's largest source of income, with construction ranking last.

Meanwhile, upon acquiring a majority of Maynilad's shares, they inherited not just its debts but also the task of replacing old pipes, some over a century old. Consunji says that Maynilad has already replaced 5,000 kilometers of pipes and plans to continue installing new pipes as new buildings and subdivisions are developed.

They've made a little more than eight billion in 2023 and invested more than 26 billion. But he's positive that the company is well on its way to recovery. 

"Nung pumasok kami, more than 600,000 lang ang customers ng Maynilad. Fourteen years later, naging more than 1.5 million na [ang customers]. The number more than doubled. Yung ibang areas na matagal ng walang tubig, ngayon may tubig na. Masarap ang feeling na makapagserbisyo," he says. 

Consunji believes the key is to identify businesses that align with their skill sets. "There are many competencies in construction that we've applied to real estate, and similarly, to coal mining, nickel mining, and Maynilad," he says. "So, if there's something out there that's affordable and somewhat damaged, but we can rebuild it, we'll give it a try," he adds.

When asked about the legacy he wants to leave, Consunji shares his aspiration to leave a positive impact to society. "Gusto namin makatulong talaga. Money and business are just tools para umunlad ang buhay ng tao.  What truly matters are values, principles, competence, attitude, and resourcefulness," he says.