Wesleyan University–Philippines (WUP) President Irineo G. Alvaro Jr. challenged State Universities and Colleges (SUC) and Local Universities and Colleges (LUC) leaders to move beyond simply responding to change and begin creating the futures their institutions need.

Speaking last September 8, 2026, during the Leadership Development Program under the Commission on Higher Education and the Development Academy of the Philippines, Alvaro introduced “The Strategic Intrapreneur: Designing Preferred Futures Through Innovation and Impact.”

The program aimed to develop leaders of SUCs and LUCs through four learning areas, including Strategic Vision and Global Thinking, Higher Education Governance, Quality Assurance and Performance Excellence, and Personal Leadership and Innovation.

Alvaro presented a simple framework called STAR:
S — Select the preferred future
T — Transform possibilities into reality
A — Amplify impact
R — Rally people around a preferred future

He said the role of a strategic intrapreneur is to find possibilities within an institution and turn them into initiatives that create public value. “The future is not a destination waiting to be discovered. It is a possibility waiting to be created,” Alvaro underscored.

He cited two initiatives from WUP as examples: Wespresso, which transformed an underused campus space into a coffee shop and learning hub, and Wholy Water, which turned an everyday institutional need for drinking water into an internal enterprise.

Alvaro noted, however, that innovation is not simply about creating something new; what matters is the difference it makes. “Whose future becomes positively different because this exists?” he inquired.

CHED Commissioner Michelle Ong emphasized the relevance of the conversation, saying, “It’s time for us to talk about this.” The remark highlighted the need for higher education leaders to engage more directly with questions of innovation, institutional transformation, and the future of Philippine higher education.

The session was part of Learning Area 1: Strategic Vision and Global Thinking, which examines emerging developments in Philippine and global higher education and how SUCs and LUCs can respond to social, economic, and technological change.

Alvaro ended up reminding leaders that universities should be remembered not only for the plans they made, but for the people they developed, the communities they transformed, and the futures they made possible.

Alvaro brought to the conversation a perspective shaped by experience in business. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of BB International Leisure and Resort Development Corporation, a major Taiwanese real estate and tourism developer in Clark, whose projects included Midori Clark Hotel and Casino and Aqua Planet. In 2018, he was elected Chairman of the Clark Investors and Locators Association. His experience in leading a major private-sector enterprise and working with investors and business locators brings to the conversation a perspective beyond academic administration—one grounded in entrepreneurship, innovation, and turning opportunities into sustainable ventures.

Article by Emmanuel John R. Pangan (OP)
Photos and videos courtesy of the Office of the President