ABS-CBN vice president for corporate communications Kane Errol Choa has been named chair of the International Association of Business Communicators Asia Pacific Region (IABC APAC), a professional organization that advances the profession of business communication in the region.

Two communication leaders in the Philippine banking industry are joining Choa on the IABC APAC board:  RCBC vice president for marketing communication Liza Vengco as awards and recognition director and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company’s assistant vice president and Wealth Insights editor-in-chief Anthony Alcantara as a brand and communications director.

IABC APAC is comprised of eleven chapters in eight countries throughout the Asia Pacific region, along with members-at-large in Singapore, Pakistan, China, Fiji, and Thailand.  The organization is responsible for the Fusion regional conference, the Silver Quill Awards, and the Communicator of the Year Awards.

Choa is a communication leader with 29 years of experience in media and communications.  He previously served as the vice chair and the awards and recognition director for IABC APAC.  He has won IABC’s Gold Quill, IABC APAC’s Silver Quill, and IABC PH’s Philippine Quill Awards for ABS-CBN Corporation, the country’s leading content company.

Vengco has been in the communication profession for more than 25 years in retail, FMCG and financial industries.  She now leads the marketing communication division of RCBC, the fifth largest bank in the country today, and holds the distinction of being an Accredited Business Communicator (ABC) from IABC.

Alcantara, who has over 20 years of experience in economic journalism and corporate communications, is one of IABC APAC’s brand and communication directors.  Currently, he oversees Wealth Insights, an online platform for wealth management of Metrobank, one of the biggest universal banks in the country.

The Fusion regional conference, taking place in Bali, Indonesia on September 4 and 5, is one of the most anticipated events of IABC APAC.  The two-day event, titled “Making Waves Together” with the theme “Communicating and connecting across cultures,” will bring together mid- to senior-level communication professionals from the Asia Pacific region.

Choa, Vengco, and Alcantara join the roster of IABC APAC’s new board, which also includes past chair Jyoti Khan (Singapore), vice chair and acting treasurer Ross Monaghan (Australia), secretary and governance director Samara Williams (Australia), conference director Melinda Coyne (Australia), brand and communication directors Andrea de Palatis (Australia) and Suchithra Krishnan (Malaysia), certification director Moushmi Balachandran (India), and members-at-large liaison and development director Raul Hameed (Pakistan).

The 2023/24 Board composition was recently confirmed at the IABC Asia Pacific annual general meeting.  The new board directors have assumed their posts since 1 July 2023.