2025 MAP MANAGEMENT PERSON OF THE YEAR NOMINATION

My firsthand experiences with disasters and rehabilitation pushed me to strongly advocate for disaster resiliency in everything we do across the SM group.

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I dream about having a resilient and sustainable society that the next generations can benefit from...where no one is left behind, and where everyone can experience a safer, better future.

On May 18, 1988, a fire at SM Makati left a deep impression on Hans T. Sy, then head of construction. As the fire raged for four days, he and his father, Henry Sy Jr., planned how they could reopen the mall in six months.

"A week after the fire, I went to the site, and it felt like I was entering an oven. That experience made me realize that nobody should go through things like this," he recalled.

Understanding that man-made disasters often worsen the impact of natural ones made him more focused on the environment. He realized these events were happening because people were not treating the environment right. Seeing the documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" would later reinforce his belief that risks can only be averted through foresight and decisive action.

These moments shaped Hans’ lifelong commitment to disaster prevention, environmental stewardship, social inclusion, good governance, and resilience or ESG+R.

As the founding president of SM Prime, Hans integrated ESG+R principles into the company’s core from the very beginning. He instituted elevated structures, flood defenses, solar power generation, and water reuse across the growing network of SM malls, long before these features became standard in the property industry. Under his leadership, ESG+R drove both growth and efficiency, making SM Prime a pioneer and a benchmark for resilient urban development.

In 2016, he stepped down as President and, together with the SM Prime Board, appointed a non-family member as his successor—marking the first time a publicly listed Sy-owned company was led by someone outside the family. The move, championed by Hans himself, reflected his deep commitment to professionalized leadership, meritocracy, and long-term institutional governance.