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‘Live your life according to what is always right.’
For Lizelle G. Maralag, Chief Marketing Officer of GMA Network, integrity remains the most important value.
By DONA MAGSINO, GMA News
April 29, 2019
For those on the outside looking in, marketing and advertising may seem to be about selling ideas and making profits.
But for Lizelle G. Maralag, it all goes back to the most basic thing: integrity.
“There’s no such thing as ‘free lunch,’” GMA Network's Chief Marketing Officer told the audience at the 13th Hildegarde Awards for Women in Media and Communication of St. Scholastica’s College Manila on April 24, as she was feted for her work in the advertising industry. “Freebies and gifts can promote a culture of corruption. Power and influence for personal gain is corruption.”
With two decades of experience in marketing and advertising, Maralag has won numerous global marketing awards for the Kapuso Network. And now, her main goal is to instill in the next generation to the values that should be treasured most.
“It gives me great joy to be able to touch the lives of people that I work with and see the flames of integrity, passion, commitment continue,” she said during her acceptance speech at the awarding ceremony.
Working with the younger generation has become a passion for Maralag.
Early achiever
Success for Maralag came at a young age. She started school when she was just two and a half years old, and she finished with a Bachelor of Science degree in Statistics from University of the Philippines Diliman at the tender age of 18.
She became a media director by the time she was 25. Nine years after that, she was already country managing director for Starcom MediaVest Group Philippines Co. Inc., a top media agency.
At 44, she became the first female president and COO of GMA Marketing and Productions, Inc.
Her rapid ascent to the top was a result of a lot of hard work. Her main motivation, she admits, was providing for her family.
“With no inheritance as a fallback, I started young,” she said. “Age is just a number. What really drove me were my life goals.”
But as she found professional success, her motivations were also transformed.
“As you grow older, goals change. It's not just about yourself but about giving back, sharing your time and knowledge,” she said.
These days, Maralag provides constant mentorship, emotional support, and inspiration to employees under her wing. Because of this leadership style, the people who work for her call her Mother.
Maralag to millennials: “More #YOLO (You Only Live Once) and less #FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).”
Working with millennials
These days, her work involves spending a lot more time with the next generation, for whom she has high regard.
Contrary to popular belief, she sees no truth to the claim that millennials are entitled and who are too preoccupied with instant gratification.
"They are actually tech-savvy, big dreamers, crazy in a good way, and socially idealistic," she said.
A proof of her passion for mentoring younger people is her constant involvement as a juror in advertising competitions among college students, something she sees as a way of giving back.
“It shows love for the industry. It allows mentorship and guidance for the next generation,” she said.
Maralag believes in the potential of the youth, and believes that they have many ideas to contribute.
“There's nothing wrong with being young and having a lot to learn,” she said. “Remember that real wisdom comes with age and experience.”
She encourages young people to be open to constant learning and to treat mistakes as opportunities to acquire more knowledge.
Millennials, she said, should aim to live full lives. As she puts it: “More #YOLO (You Only Live Once) and less #FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).”
“To all the young people in the audience and the young at heart, allow me to enjoin you to be involved,” she said. “Amidst all the struggles, amidst the challenges, hardships – we should inspire other people to do good, even when it’s hard, even when nobody is looking. Be involved. Live your life according to what is always right.”
