Noticias de IESE

IESE's Business Angels Network Receives EBAN Prize

Thu, 16 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE's Business Angel Network was recognized as the European network of the year at the 8th EBAN Awards ceremony, which distinguished excellency across the EBAN community. Accepting the award in Vienna was IESE Prof. Juan Roure, who spearheads the 10-year old initiative. The network connects investors and entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas.

Open to IESE alumni and any entrepreneur or investor, the network does not function as a traditional investment club requiring an upfront investment commitment; instead, investment decisions are on an individual basis.

EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds, and other Early Stage Market Players) brings together more than 100 member organizations in 29 countries. EBAN was established in 1999 by a group of pioneer angel networks in Europe with the collaboration of the European Commission and EURADA.

Entrepreneurship plays a central role in IESE Business School's activities, which include educational opportunities and the generation of relevant research for leaders of new business ventures.

Seeds of Change

Wed, 15 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Responsible investment is moving from being a niche in the asset management universe to increasingly becoming mainstream. In Europe, especially, it appears to be taking off. This article identifies some of the key drivers and the challenges that responsible investment poses to investors and managers as they try to take this novel field and embed it into their institutional practices.

Looking to the future, the author highlights three areas that he believes will need close attention: new financial strategies to deal with problematic industries; the role of Chief Sustainability Officer will become increasingly strategic; and the transparency requirements being demanded for public companies will need to apply to private ones, too, otherwise the diffusion of these practices will only be partial and their impact greatly reduced. Though much remains to be done, the author believes this is an opportune moment for institutionalizing responsible investment and ushering in a new, more sustainable age of capitalism.

Based on research by the author on the emergence of responsible investing in mainstream financial markets, which is supported by a five-year grant (2011-2015) from the European Research Council as well as a study on the institutionalization of the Global Reporting Initiative, published in Organization Science.

You can read the complete article by Prof. Fabrizio Ferraro in the IESE Insight magazine.

May Edition: Eye on IESE

Wed, 15 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

This month's edition of Eye on IESE: MBA Class of 2013 Graduation, Spring Games, elBullifoundation, The Financial Times has ranked IESE Business School executive education programs second in the world. Don't miss: MBA Alumni Reunion 2013, New York Breakfast with Prof. Sandra Sieber.

IESE and Cornell Team Up for Tourism Summit

Wed, 15 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Travel and tourism industry experts from Europe and North America will gather at IESE Business School in Barcelona on May 17 for the 3rd Annual Tourism Summit, organized jointly by IESE and the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

The summit, which has the theme "Emerging Trends in the Tourism Industry," will delve into key issues such as polarized economic growth between developed and emerging markets; the impact of digital technologies on brands; and new creative business models opened up by social media and online channels.

Academics leading the event will be IESE Prof. Juan Roure, academic director of the summit; Prof. Steven Carvell, associate dean for academic affairs, Cornell School of Hotel Administration; and Prof. Rohit Verma of the Cornell School of Hotel Administration.

Among the industry leaders taking part will be Isabel Hill, Director, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, U.S. Department of Commerce; Christian A. Boyens, general manager, Ritz Paris; Alison Copus, vice president marketing, TripAdvisor; Heather Leisman, managing director EMEA, Hotel Tonight; and Miquel Moyà, travel industry head, Google.

Organizations providing support for the summit are BCG, Exceltur, La Vanguardia, THR and IESE's Balearic Islands Alumni Chapter.

For more information.

Getting to Grips With the Digital Dimension

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Businesses need to ask themselves if they have the digital leaders capable of meeting their customers' changing demands. These leaders need to be able to translate technology into business impacts and business strategy and they have to understand that digital is a dimension that permeates the entire organization and all the phases of the value chain.

Watch video.

Changing the World Through Business

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Catalina Parra (MBA ’96) enjoyed a successful consulting career until one trip, which required that she spend four months in Calcutta, changed her world view. Since then, she has launched three projects aimed at creating greater equality in the world and her vision is clear: "My number one priority is to change the world."

The foundation Hazloposible works to foster greater interaction and participation in society in charitable projects using new technologies. The second project, UEIA, is "the first accelerator of social companies based on new technologies," while the last project Philanthropic Intelligence, advises philanthropists, investors and large institutions.

"Social entrepreneurship strikes a balance between business experience and social commitment," she said during the IESE Continuous Education session, "Social and Environmental Entrepreneurship: Experiences," which was part of series of Finaves events. The session was moderated by IESE Prof. Alberto Fernández Terricabras.

The event, organized by IESE’s Alumni Association, took place on May 9 on the Barcelona campus. During the presentation, Parra described the ideal profile for a social entrepreneur, noting that "there should be a strong motivation, beyond that of just a volunteer."

Supporting local projects

Dídac Ferrer spoke about the co-op which he founded, Tarpuna Coop, where he currently serves as director of innovation. Tarpuna promotes small-scale local projects to generate stable changes. He also works through a cooperative human network, which does not reject technological platforms but maintains a critical view.

He went on to describe several initiatives, such as the creation of urban vegetable gardens and the employment of unused land and other urban spaces for community vegetable gardens, where unemployed people can train and work, while maintaining a small plot for cultivating their own food.

Another project is Infinit Loop, which focuses on reusable "smart" that promote social inclusion. An application allows the user to access information on the life, path and benefits of the "infinitloop" of the gift.

Integral support

Francesc Ventura, director of the Palau Macaya - Obra Social "la Caixa", described the social entrepreneurship program at "la Caixa", its objectives and public. The initiative focuses on fledgling social companies, less than three years old, or a new line of business within an existing social entity. "For the social entrepreneur, the company is a means for making an impact," he said.

Ventura also discussed the "integral support" offered by "la Caixa", which includes executive programs led by IESE. The basic criteria for the selection of projects include: social impact, economic viability, entrepreneurial potential, innovation and project coherence.

FT Ranks IESE Executive Programs 2nd in the World

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The Financial Times has ranked IESE Business School executive education programs second in the world in its recently-released annual survey. The school climbed two places in the overall results this year.

The 2013 FT executive education ranking evaluated 50 top business schools worldwide. IESE earned particularly high marks for participant and client follow-up, faculty, global partner schools and international facilities.

The school was ranked 2nd in the world in the category of open enrollment programs and held its position as 3rd in the world in custom programs. Recent IESE custom program partners include BMW, Abbott, Airbus, BBVA, Henkel, Nestlé, Novartis, Oracle, Santander, SAP and Telefónica, among other leading firms.

The FT survey is based on a mix of customer feedback and data provided by business schools on open and custom programs. It takes into consideration criteria such as program preparation, course design, international participants and location, faculty, follow-up and aims achieved.

"An important part of our mission here at IESE is to put people at the center of how companies face up to their challenges," said Prof. Josep Valor, IESE’s Dean of Executive Education. "We apply this principle when planning and executing each one of our programs. We think carefully about our clients’ needs and the best way to provide them with the most adequate response."

For more information, visit IESE Executive Education Programs.

“The Best Role Model is the Servant Leader”

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“I think the best role model is the servant leader,” Brian Duperrault, president & CEO of Marsh & McLennan Companies, told graduates of the 2013 class of IESE’s MBA Program, on May 10.

“The servant leader recognizes that the team and the team’s success are primary. In order for the team to be put first, the leader needs to be put him or herself second,” said Duperrault, adding that a leader must diminish himself or herself so that the team’s power can grow.

“Extracting the best from the team requires you to care more about them than you care about yourself. You have to be concerned about their work life and their home life. You have to listen to them.”

He also advised them to allow team members to answer questions first. “Even if you think you know the right decision, you must let them offer alternatives,” he said. “This doesn’t mean anarchy. You are still controlling the process. This doesn’t mean indecision. Ultimately, you will make the call. But you will have benefited from their input. You will have done it together and they will support it and work hard to see that it gets done. By the way, you may not always know the answer. That’s okay and it is okay for the team to know that. You are in search of the truth together. That is very powerful.”

Duperrault’s speech was preceded by words from Lola Puerta, representative of the Class of 2013, who thanked IESE’s faculty, Career Services team and MBA Affairs team for their dedication and support.

“It is time for us to give back. We have a responsibility. We need to transform all the lessons learned into results, results that drive and change the world,” she said.

IESE’s Dean Prof. Jordi Canals and Prof. Franz Heukamp, Director of the MBA Program, also spoke during the ceremony.

“Let me highlight one aspect of our MBA program that I consider especially important: personal feedback and mentoring,” said Heukamp. “Nowadays, you can watch video lectures on pretty much any academic topic for free, wherever and whenever you want. But in the educational process it is more difficult to obtain extremely valuable personal conversation with a mentor, faculty member or staff member who knows you and cares about you.”

Dean Canals urged the graduates to keep in mind the true meaning of character, as they set out on future career paths. “Character is sometimes associated with tough decision-making or an aggressive approach, but that is not what it really is,” said Dean Canals. “Character is revealed in the drive to be rigorous, in seeking sound solutions to complex problems, in the quality of our values and the way we consistently maintain them under all circumstances, and in the resolve to do what needs to be done at all times, without thinking about the sacrifice that might be demanded of us.”

Final words of advice came from Alfonso Sánchez-Tabernero, President of the University of Navarra. He encouraged the graduates to continue learning throughout their lives.

“If we accept the core value of people, we have no choice but to cast our eye on focus on education, that collective undertaking in which people and the government make an effort to offer the best to new generations of young people.”

Innovate, Differentiate and Export

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The food and beverage sector today is increasingly impacted by consumers’ circumstances and behaviors. Due to the crisis, customers have become more prudent, selective, demanding and informed. More than ever, the consumer has become the center of the entire value chain, with his or her opinions and perceptions determining the success or failure of brands. Succeeding as a company in this environment involves three elements: innovation, differentiation and internationalization.

On May 7 on IESE’s Barcelona campus, the IESE Alumni Association organized a Continuous Education event, "Food and Beverage: Current Situation, Aims and Opportunities for the Industry. " Experts analyzed key issues during the session, which was led by IESE Prof. Jaume Llopis and José María Bonmatí, general director of AECOC.

More Frequently, More Closely

Prof. Llopis, who is also the academic director of IESE’s upcoming 17th Annual Food and Beverage Industry Meeting, reviewed current trends and compared them with previous years. He noted that "consumption has dropped outside the home, while at-home consumption has risen slightly, although values are very similar to those of last year. And the consumer has turned to cheaper products, which have lower margins."

In terms of retailers, he pointed to a rise of discount stores and mid-size supermarkets, which has coincided with a drop in the number of megastores and traditional stores." "People are buying more frequently, closer to where they live and for the short term, reducing stocks they have at home," he said. "They are only buying what they need."

Product and Customer at the Center

In a mature industry, which has to adapt to new circumstances and trends and which retail brands have increasing power, the key is to recover margins through innovation, differentiation and exports, Llopis said.

"To innovate does not mean to launch a new product, since this involves a very complicated process. But a lot can be done in design, creating emotional links with the customer, production efficiency and finding niches in the market. For example, we actually see that luxury products are working very well and also those aimed at consumers with low incomes. Price wars are not the answer; you have to be unique," he said.

Along these lines, Bonmatí, said that today companies that triumph are those "centered on the consumer. The perception of value has changed and it is the client who decides what to buy. They connect with brands through different channels and will pay attention to other customers before advertisements. That’s why it is critical to avoid trivializing products and develop emotional links, which cannot be copied easily by the competition."

Also important is productivity and competitiveness to create the most efficient supply chain possible. "The value chain has changed and so have the functions within the chain. It starts with the client and goes backwards. All the tasks are becoming increasingly integrated, with retailers who innovate in commodities or industries that sell directly to the client," he said. "It is also important to be careful with the selection you offer, since excessive variety can scare the consumer."

Pack your Suitcase, be Fearless

Finally, the speakers agreed that exportation will be another factor in the future success of companies in the sector. Exports "generate economies of scale, boost production output, diversify risks, help react to new competitors and compensate for saturation of the domestic market, Llopis said. Emerging markets, including the BRICs and the Next Eleven, are destinations that can provide opportunities.

Bonmatí said that "it is fundamental to look for and define the competitive advantage that a product can offer before exploring a new territory" and that "you must constantly rethink strategies to adapt to the evolution of each market."

For more information:
Estilos de dirección
Internacionalización empresarial: argumentos y estrategias para el directivo

Vital Patrimony: Key to Business Family Longevity

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

A company's "vital patrimony" is a set of memories and/or possessions that a family identifies as testimony or symbolic of its existence. This concept was the focus on the Continuous Education session, "The Incorporation of Vital Patrimony in the Family Business," held on May 7 on IESE's Madrid Campus.

The session organized by IESE's Alumni Association focused on the idea of vital patrimony as a tool that, in the service of business families and their companies, serves different purposes. Among these uses is the transferrence of a legacy from one generation to another.

IESE Professor and holder of IESE's Chair of Family BusinessJosep Tàpies discussed three elements that comprise the foundation of this idea: beliefs, values and myths.

"What has to be done to preserve and develop the patrimony of business families over time? Many families often commit the error of focusing on the management of financial capital. But the real goal should be managing human and intellectual capital, since that's the only way to ensure the longevity of a family business. The key to endurance lies in managing talent," he said.

A Pioneering Initiative

Felipe Gómez-Pallete, partner and founder of Casa Da Qiao, analyzed discussed how the new field of vital patrimony builds upon IESE's family business research activities. "This is a pioneering initiative and a merit for IESE. But what is it and what purpose does it serve? It is an asset and a way to represent the company."

For practical purposes, vital patrimony is a set of ordered elements (music, manuscripts, testimonials, photographs, objects and documents) that make up the legacy of the business family. The opportunity to have clear and organized access to this history is an asset for the future of any company, he said.

"A deep knowledge of the company's past is one of the most powerful tools for preparing for the future," said Gómez-Pallete.

Once traced and defined, vital patrimony serves to "prepare for the future in a proactive way." It also serves to "capture the present" and "give value to the past."

This is because the history of a company shapes its culture, bringing family members together around common ideals. It can also help to reflect on the organization's origins, resolve conflicts and manage changes that may be necessary.

Survival of the Business

The ultimate objective of the business family is survival of the business in the long term. To carry this out, the family should integrate its goals, aspirtations, ideas and expectations with those of the firm, the speakers said.

At the same time, the continuation of the family itself must be a primary goal. Companies should seek a continuation of the culture and the family's values within the philosophy of the firm. Tools such as family meetings, work session and board meetings can help accomplish this.

Once the business family has reflected and analyzed key issues involving vital patrimony, the most important challenge remains: family members have to agree on what they want to represent. They must decide upon what values, traditions and experiences that they want to preserve so that future generations will also feel compelled to join the business.

A Framework to Weigh Up Health Innovation Options

Tue, 07 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

In most Western economies, health-care systems are facing significant challenges. Scientific and technological innovation in patient treatment has steadily increased life expectancy and quality of life. However, health-care systems have not evolved toward models that are able to incorporate such innovation within the context of current economic conditions, requiring a balancing of limited resources while trying to maintain existing levels of service.

To address this, Jaume Ribera, Magda Rosenmöller and Pablo Borrás of IESE's Center for Research in Healthcare Innovation Management, in collaboration with Accenture, have produced a conceptual framework to help evaluate health-care innovation, in order to optimize the use of health resources when treating patients.

Their framework consists of three key components, which they describe in detail.

Read full article on the IESE Insight website.

Building on a Strong Foundation

Tue, 07 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE and elBullifoundation formally announced their joint venture today at a breakfast held on the school’s Barcelona campus which was catered by renowned pastry chef Cristian Escribà. The first batch of MBA students recently completed their stint working with former elBulli chef Ferran Adrià and his creative team.

Opening the discussion, Associate Dean Eric Weber described the joint venture as "a magnificent example of collaboration between a business school and a company. It is in elBulli’s DNA to be entrepreneurial and innovative."

After it was voted best restaurant in the world three years running, Adrià served the last dinner at elBulli in July 2009 and six months later announced that he planned to establish elBullifoundation. "We will officially present the foundation in November," he said this morning. "We are transforming what was the restaurant into a creative space. It is still taking shape and we plan to open in March 2015, but we’re not in a hurry. It will be a place to reflect and think. We want everyone, even small children, to think about cooking in the context of creativity."

In 2012 Adrià launched the Global Ideas Challenge in which 31 business schools competed to draft ideas of what elBullifoundation would be. IESE was chosen as the partner to help to develop the creativity center on the site of the restaurant at Cala Montjoi on Spain’s Costa Brava. The project is part of the entrepreneurship course run by Prof. Julia Prats.

As the foundation is very much a work in progress and Adrià is famously mercurial, the project represented something of a departure for the MBA students. "It’s so dynamic, you don’t know what to expect from one session to the next," says Patricia Cabrera (USA), who says it has helped her free herself from a more rigidly structured approach to problem solving. "The team is constantly brainstorming and the aim is always to break the mould and create something new. It’s a way of thinking that could be applied to many fields," says Spaniard Oriol Chimenos.

"It’s the kind of practical experience you crave when you’re in the classroom," says Belkis Boyacigiller (USA), speaking of her three months stint at the foundation. "It’s not always by the book, which is what makes it so exciting. I’ve learnt a lot about ambiguity and coming up with a concrete solution."

Adrià says he didn’t look on them as students. "I saw myself as a sort of CEO, and they were part of the team," he said, adding that "being creative means breaking the rules."

Watch video.

IESE Family Business Expert Named IFERA Fellow

Mon, 06 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE Prof. Josep Tàpies has been named a Fellow of the Inernational Family Enterprise Research Academy (IFERA). He was was nominated for his many years of significant contributions to the family business field in general and to IFERA in particular. IFERA is an organization dedicated to fostering a network of academics, business owners and practitioners committed to supporting the family business field.

Prof. Tàpies is a full professor in the Department of Strategic Management and holder of the Family-Owned Business Chair at IESE. He has taught general management in a number of different business schools in both Europe and Latin America, including AESE in Portugal, IDE in Ecuador, PAD-University of Piura in Peru, ISE in Brazil, IAE in Argentina, ESE in Chile, and INALDE in Colombia. He has also been a member of the academic board of IPADE in Mexico and ESE in Santiago, Chile.

Prof. Tàpies has worked as a consultant with individual businesses, many of them family-owned, as well as with international banking institutions. He is a member of the board of directors at several companies, the International Family Enterprise Research Academy (IFERA), the Spanish Association of Family-Owned Business Consultants and Academics (CAEF) and the international center for financial research (CIIF). He is also a Fellow at the International Academy of Management.

He blogs (in Spanish) at http://blog.iese.edu/empresafamiliar/.

“We’ve Made Profits Because We’ve Taken Risks”

Sun, 05 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Perfectly turned out in their gowns and mortarboards in the bright spring sunshine, on May 3 the Class of 2013 of the IESE Executive MBA Barcelona put an end to two years of hard work that have changed their lives. On the one hand, they have learned concepts that will help them to develop their careers. On the other, the experience and IESE’s humane approach to business affairs have made it clear that they have a responsibility to be aware of their impact on society.

The keynote speech was given by Rafael Villaseca (MBA '76), CEO of Gas Natural Fenosa and a member of the executive committee of the IESE Alumni Association, who looked back nostalgically at his time at the school almost 40 years ago.

“It’s inevitable that I would look back to how 37 years ago I was sitting here in a gown, in one of those first rows of seats, graduating in a similar ceremony. Nor can I help but look back over the adventures of these almost 40 years. Many things have happened, many have changed and many clearly have not.”

After congratulating graduates on the hard work of the past two years, Vilaseca discussed what are, in his view, the keys to studying at IESE. “Without any doubt we chose well by studying IESE; me 37 years ago and you now. Without what I learnt then, without some fundamentals, I would never have been able to fully develop my professional career. Ignoring from fashion and confusion, in spite of crises and bubbles, our profession can and must be based on solid and consistent foundations. This doesn’t mean that change is unnecessary, but the fundamentals of doing our job well have not changed and only need to be modified and adapted to our times.”

Villaseca also talked about risk. He said that for an executive “there are two factors for assessing whether we are doing the right thing: profit and risk. The first is justified by the second. We mustn’t lose sight of this: we make profits because we take and manage risks.” And he added that “it is essential to know how to correctly manage the professional and also personal risks that life presents you with.”

The CEO of Gas Natural Fenosa said, “You must be rigorous and professional but not optimistic when it comes to taking on a challenge. In time, you will see what is the best way to move forward and devise an action plan. That is the moment for confidence and optimism! After rigorous and realistic planning, you have to go into action without hesitating, optimistically and confidently, with resolution and the desire for success. Do it professionally and intelligently, and don’t look for the easy way.”

“After the time you have spent at IESE there is one thing that you understand for sure: running companies requires intense and important work and dedication.”

IESE Dean Jordi Canals congratulated the graduates and then went on to say “Today, companies in the West are experiencing a new situation. They’re no longer the main players in economic growth, a position they held for many decades; instead they’re being held responsible for the negative effects of globalization and are unable to assist with the economic recovery. In such a context, what can a manager or business person do? Well, both of them can have an impact on other people and on the company as a whole. The question is: what kind of impact do they – do we – want to have? IESE’s mission encourages managers and business people to try and achieve a positive, profound and long-lasting impact on people, companies and society.”

Canals insisted that “only those who dream of the impossible and work towards it will be able to achieve what, a priori, seemed impossible. Managers who conduct themselves in this way, who always trust “the better angels of our nature” (as Abraham Lincoln reminded the people of the United States while the country was in the midst of a civil war), are managers with direction and purpose, managers who help others find direction in their work too. This is the kind of impact I encourage you to dream of.”

Prof. Julia Prats, Academic Director of the Executive MBA program, reminded graduates that now was the time to respond. “Now it's time to continue with your commitments to your family, job and country, but now with even more responsibility,” she said. “In this new phase in your career, there will be times when you will have to respond (which is precisely the root of the word "responsibility"), report and contribute. And there will be more pressure to do so, given that you have received a great deal and therefore a great deal will be expected of you. In this new phase, I would like to offer you two pieces of advice. The first is that you should not lose perspective. The second piece of advice is this: be passionate about whatever you do.”

José Narbón and Lluis Quintana, presidents of the Executive MBA Class of 2013, ended proceedings with a review of their time at IESE. Narbón said that the graduates were leaving “with a feeling of having accomplished something important at this stage in our lives. However, receiving the excellent human and academic training offered by the Executive MBA also presents us with a great deal of responsibility to our loved ones and society, which is currently under such stress because of the crisis and the lack of values.”

Quintana said that “the blows of adversity can be very bitter, but we can't let them come to nothing. It is up to us to fight against them, possibly much more than we imagine. But we can only change things if we first change ourselves, and the EMBA we have completed today is certainly one more step in this direction.”

“Social Recommendations are the New PR”

Thu, 02 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“Social networks are not shop windows where you hang a product; they are telephones you can use to communicate and interact,” said Fernando Polo, CEO of Territorio Creativo, a speaker during the Continuous Education session “Social Networks,” organized by IESE’s Alumni Association and moderated by IESE Prof. Carlos García Pont.

Social networks will play a key role in the future of companies, panelists said during the event, which was widely followed on Twitter at #IESELive.

In the 21st century, open collaborative networks – as opposed to patents – will give companies the most leverage, said Polo.

He outlined four elements that should be a part of SMEs’ social business plans: collaboration, content, connections and social heart.
“Look for contexts, learn to develop content, work connections and think openly,” he advised.

Polo said that while social networks can offer opportunities for SMEs, they can be a headache for large companies.

José María Palomare, manager of Communication and Marketing at Telefónica, responded with this Tweet: “I very much agree about SMEs, but I think that they are also a great opportunity for large companies.”

Palomares described Telefónica’s digital strategy, which is “based in online and offline integration, differentiation and relevant content.” He added that “in line with the objectives of the company, we have to be capable of building a digital identity that will allow us to be a knowledge leader in the technology sector. The best way to create differential value is by using internal resources: our employees.”

The goals of the company are now to shift to a 2.0 organization in two aspects: “in the cultural sense, and also with the goal of expanding the communication strategy from a single department to the entire organization.”

“Social networks give you a level of closeness that was not imaginable before,” said Raimon Casals, consumer relationship manager at Gallina Blanca. He stressed the positive results that can come from “active and inspired” communication.

While Twitter initiatives have been successful, the firm has not been able to generate the desired conversation on Facebook “in spite of using basic strategies,” he said. However, the firm is not giving up: “a critical mass is lacking, among other things, but we have to keep working.”

One of his slides summed up the objective of social networks: “The great brands of the future will not just be those who tell the best stories about themselves, but those that tell the best stories.”

The Effect of Long-term Unemployment

Wed, 01 May 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The proportion of long-term unemployed is rising and this may have implications that will persist long after the economy recovers, says Prof. Núria Mas. Older workers may effectively drop out of the labour market while younger ones may emigrate or join the shadow economy. In Spain the long-term unemployed make up 40% of the total whereas in Germany they have mitigated the worst effects by reducing working hours rather than opt for wholesale redundancies.

International Economic Overview is an exclusive publication for members of the IESE Alumni Association.

Maximize your Board Potential

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Is the board an asset or a liability? Shareholders would like the board to be an asset. But this requires that it is established in the right way. The objective of a company is to create value in a sustained way. Shareholders have invested their resources in the company and expect the value of these resources to grow, and they would like to be able to recover the profits on their investment when they need them.

To create value a company needs continuous innovation, growth, correct investments, international deployment and to be able to benefit from opportunities that may appear (acquisitions, diversifications). All these things should happen within a solid financial framework that generates and uses cash while maintaining a solid financial structure. In turn, this means that the company has to be capable of making good use of all the options available in capital markets with all their alternatives (equity, venture capital, private equity, short-term debt, long-term debt, bonds, listing on the stock exchange).

The objective of a board is to make sure that all these things happen in the company in a sustained, balanced strategic way. The board may be under less day-to-day pressure than the management and can help to apply the necessary pressure on different areas at different times with a long-term perspective. The board can also assess the extent to which the management performs well and if at some point there is a need to develop, add or improve specific management skills.

Shareholders’ varied perspectives

There are different types of shareholders, however. The minority shareholders of listed companies, for instance, want total and immediate liquidity. If they need their money for another investment, for example, if they feel at a given moment that it may be better to invest in real estate, they want to be able to convert their shares into cash instantly. Other investors may have a longer-term perspective and may prefer to invest in funds that contain a basket of shares from listed companies. They trust the evolution of the basket in the medium term. But there are also shareholders of family-owned companies who may have a much longer time perspective, trusting in the accumulated value in the company that becomes the repository of the family’s wealth.

The bigger the shareholder’s commitment to the company, the greater the pressure on the company’s board. The members of the board of family-owned companies may have to answer detailed questions from the family and may need to adapt their decisions to the specific regulations established by the family with regard to access of family members to the company; to its management or governance; their succession, and distributing the wealth created or accumulated versus using it for business diversification. Compliance with family-specific expectations is not easy and some outstanding board members of listed companies have not performed so ably in well-known family-owned companies, and have had to leave the board.

For successful governance the board should include people with a variety of perspectives (industrial, international, family-owned companies, listed companies, entrepreneurial ventures, financial markets, understanding of the economy). It’s not necessary for all the board members to know everything. What’s important is the overall content of the board. As the company evolves, the board can be enriched as necessary through board member rotation. Experience has shown that a certain renovation of the board is required, but to carry this out may entail a regular professional assessment of the board and its members.

Fortunately, today we have a lot of knowledge about how to form a board, and its operation and assessment. The correct application of this knowledge can positively affect the board’s performance and, as a result, that of the corporation.

You can read the complete article by Prof. Pedro Nueno in the IESE Alumni Magazine, issue no. 129.

For more information, visit the Short Focused Program Maximize Your Board's Potential.

“Healthcare is a Great Asset”

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

In the context of the crisis of Western economies, healthcare, a fundamental part of the welfare state, is coming under scrutiny. The healthcare system has become a key question for developed countries, especially now, when they face deep economic, budgetary and social changes. Is the current system sustainable? In 30 years time will the national healthcare system be like the one we’ve known up to now?

The Continuous Education Program session “What can we learn from international experience?” took this as its theme at the meeting organized by the Alumni Association and addressed by IESE Prof. Núria Mas on April 25 on the Madrid campus.

“How are we going to be able to offer quality healthcare to a growing population at a cost that we can’t afford now?” she asked. In her view, patching up the system and partial solutions were of no use when what we face is a “structural challenge” under enormous “financial pressures.”

“As GDP per capita rises in a country, its inhabitants want to spend more on healthcare,” the professor said. This can be extrapolated to all the countries in the world, including emerging countries, which are leading world economic growth. But what is happening in Western countries, including Spain? Available resources will have to compete with pensions, and to this we have to take into account an aging population which is living longer all the time.

Join the Debate

In spite of the difficulties, the professor is in no doubt. “Healthcare is a great asset in Spain. It’s a sector in which we excel and which we could export.” However, she believes the only possible solution is to “rethink the healthcare system.” “We have to have this debate and accept that we have to talk about it,” she insists.

She doesn’t believe that spending cuts, copayment and revising the services offered by the public system can resolve this structural challenge. “The first thing we must do is look for ways to improve and from there understand what functions and why. It’s not a question of cuts. It’s fundamental to understand the process and we need to begin as soon as possible,” she said.

Her conclusion is clear: the only way to move forward and to improve is to have as much information as possible. “We can’t improve if we don’t know why it’s not working,” she pointed out. During the session, she produced a revealing fact. A report from the United States Institute of Medicine showed that 30% of health spending did not result in improved health.

Once areas for improvement have been identified, she said we should start to act “where it is most important,” such as in chronic patient care. This group of patients accounts for 80% of total health spending in the United States and Europe. Other essential factors are transparency and information as well as involving patients in prevention and self-management of their illness. “We all have to be involved in this debate: citizens, doctors, pharmaceutical companies and politicians. That is the only way we can find sustainable solutions for the system,” she said.

The Rise and Rise of the Mobile App

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Five years ago the mobile app market didn’t exist but by 2015 it will be worth $60 billion, says Prof. Javier Zamora. Mobile software exploits the contextual information the mobile can access, making it possible for employees or clients to make decisions in real time. Soon there will be 10 billion smart devices connected to the Internet and everything will get faster and more streamlined.

Watch video.

For more information, visit the Short Focused Program Achieve Business Excellence Through IT.

Necessity as the Mother of "Green" Inventions

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

In recent years, firms have been increasingly scrutinized for wrongdoing concerning the environment.

Investors discount share prices of polluting companies, governments introduce policies that place a cost on emissions, and consumers consider a company's environmental philosophy when purchasing products and services.

A possible response to these mounting pressures is environmental innovation - the development of products, processes and services aimed at reducing environmental harm.

In comparison with other practices, environmental innovation is riskier and requires greater financial commitment. But in the long term it usually accrues returns.

IESE Professor Pascual Berrone, along with Andrea Fosfuri, Liliana Gelabert and Luis R. Gomez-Mejia, studied the impact of institutional pressures on firms' environmental innovation in the paper "Necessity as the Mother of 'Green' Inventions: Institutional Pressures and Environmental Innovations," which was published in the Strategic Management Journal.

Read full article on the IESE Insight website.

A Certain Transformation

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“Insurance is a fundamental economic pillar and has come through the crisis well. That said, in five years the sector will be very different from today and there will be both winners and losers along the way,” José Miguel Andrés, president of Ernst&Young, told the 3rd Insurance Sector Meeting held last week on IESE’s Madrid campus. The event, coordinated by Prof. Jorge Soley, was jointly organized by the CIF-Center for International Finance del IESE and Ernst&Young.

The fall in household spending has had a direct effect on the insurance sector, in spite of which “it got through 2012 pretty well” according to the secretary general of UNESPA, María Aránzazu del Valle. “This is a crucial moment. In general the sector is doing well and making money but it has had to make some significant adjustments of its margins,” she said. Looking ahead to 2013, she said that most insurance companies expected business to grow by around 3% thanks, above all, to the increase in life insurance. This branch, along with health insurance, has weathered the storm better than others.

Challenges for the Sector

For IESE Prof. Jorge Soley the sector faces three challenges: the aging population, low interest rates and the need for efficient management.

“The current state pension system is not viable. It is necessary to take some unpopular measures which will have a significant social cost, but there’s no alternative,” he said.

Prof. Javier Díaz Giménez said that minimum and contributor pensions need to be completely separated. “We should see minimum pensions as an expression of our solidarity with the elderly. They must be funded out of the state budget and should be fixed according to the income and wealth of those receiving them,” he said.

He said that the Spanish pension system had been reformed six times in the past 27 years, each time “with the aim of reducing this size of public pensions.” He added that not even hypothetical economic growth would be a solution to this question.

Taking Care of the Insured

Miguel Ángel Zarandona, director of management of risks and insurance at El Corte Inglés, said that “we’re not going to get what we’re looking for unless we offer quality, confidence, stability and continuity.” He said that it is a moment of truth in the relationship between the insured and the insurer.

“We have to manage risks without forgetting that we have to offer the client value. We have to offer solutions faced with the demand for guaranteed returns. We have to bring our experience to bear in the management of commitment to long-term profitability and be able to offer to supplement state pensions,” said Jordi Arenillas, the deputy director of economics and finance at the VidaCaixa Grupo.

The Challenges for Companies

Antonio Huertas, the president of Mapfre, commented that internationalization had strengthened his company’s growth, with foreign operations now representing 63% of business. “The business is 10 times bigger than it was 20 years ago,” he said.

He believes that Mapfre’s success is based on their investments in Latin America, diversifying the business, flexibility in adapting to local markets and improving efficiency, among other aspects.

The CEO of Zurich España, Julián López Zaballos, said that “Zurich’s mission is to help clients to understand the risks and to protect them.” The company manages risk through integrated management to protect its capital base, strengthen value creation and defend its reputation and the brand.

The president of Pelayo Mutua, José Boada, said that “in recent years the sector has become more concentrated. The 10 big insurance companies cover 76% and 63% of life and non-life insurance respectively.” Furthermore, these 10 groups were the ones that had grown the most and were most profitable. “Companies that are more specialized in particular activities are performing better than the rest,” he insisted.

In his opinion, the trend is for insurance companies to make larger investments “but the risk is that the mistakes they make will also be bigger.” “What really matters is the ability to offer the client something different, regardless of size. This value differential is key,” he concluded.

Iñaki Ereño, CEO of Grupo Sanitas, admitted that being a big company helped them do business. “Size allows Sanitas to offer a business model that is unique in the world with healthcare. As a result we have managed to grow in an adverse climate,” he said.

Jaime Kirkpatrick, CEO of AEGON, said that “specialization and the ability to adapt” are more important than the size of the company. Kirkpatrick gave the example of his own company which specializes exclusively in life insurance and which has had to reinvent itself twice in less than 10 years because of, among other things, the disappearance of the savings bank model. “We’re a small but dynamic company when it comes to generating business,” he said.

There will also contributions from the Spanish Minister of pensions, María Flavia Rodríguez-Ponga; the director-general of CASER, Ignacio Eyries; the director-general of the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros, Sergio Álvarez Camiña; the director of Riesgos Patrimoniales at ENDESA, Juan Rincón; the manager of Riesgos Corporativos at Ferrovial, Daniel San Millán; and IESE professors José Luis Suárez and Juan José Toribio.

Webinar: How to Lead in Today's Cross-cultural Workplace

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

In an ever more global business world, the ability to interact effectively with people from different cultures is vital. To help executives strengthen their cross-cultural management abilities, IESE Business School will offer a complimentary webinar, led by Prof. Yih-teen Lee on Tuesday, April 30.

The seminar "Managing People Across Cultures" will take place at 5:00-5:45 p.m. (CEST in Europe) and 11:00-11:45 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time in the U.S.). To sign up for the free webinar, visit.

During the webinar, executives will discover how the workplace is influenced by cultural backgrounds, values, attitudes and behaviors and develop specific intercultural competencies for leading effectively in an internationally-connected world. Prof. Lee will draw from his research on intercultural leadership to present key learning points.

The webinar will also serve as an introduction for managers interested in participating in IESE's upcoming Short Focused Program, Managing People Across Cultures, which is set for June 18-20, 2013 on the school's Barcelona campus.

Managing People Across Cultures will offer participants practical insights to handle the cultural challenges of managing people in a globalized workplace. Among the cultures covered are Australia, China, Eastern Europe, France, Germany, India, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States. The 3-day intensive learning experience helps managers and leaders develop intercultural competencies so they can be more aware of their own culturally-based perceptions, norms and patterns of thinking and adapt their behaviors according to specific cultural contexts to achieve business objectives.

For more information, visit.

Spain: “More than Adjustments, Reforms are Needed”

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“Changes - not tweaks - in the rules of the game” are needed in Spain today, said IESE Prof. Antonio Argandoña, discussing reforms required for the country to adapt to the current social and economic environment.

IESE José Manuel González-Páramo said the reforms have become urgent because Spain did not implement the necessary measures for adjusting to a single currency, while other countries – such as Germany – did so.

Another reason for the urgency is the sheer complexity of the world as compared with a few decades ago, he said. Emerging countries currently produce 50 percent of the world’s GDP, and in 2050, four out of five of the most powerful countries in the world will be BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India and China).

The two IESE faculty members analyzed reforms and the role of companies in this context during a Continuous Education session titled, “Reconverting the Economy and Society: What Role Should Companies Play?,” organized by IESE’s Alumni Association on April 24 on the school’s Barcelona campus.

“The best way to carry out reforms is to generate an awareness of their necessity,” said Prof. González-Páramo.

Prof. Argandoña outlined various measures he views essential such as public sector austerity, reform of the financial sector and the application of taxes that are “equitable, fair, clear, simple and easy to apply.” The measures should also bolster efficiency, sustainability and transparency.

In the private sector, government policies should support competition and the reform of specific industries, as well as stimulate credit flows in order to strengthen the financial system, he said.

Also discussed was the importance of a healthy legal system that guarantees efficient and reliable regulating agencies, a separation of powers and legal safety.

“Technical competency is needed for the reforms; not only to identify problems, but also to be creative in finding alternatives for their solutions,” said González-Páramo, citing several obstacles that stand in the way, such as powerful special interest groups and poor government communication practices.

“In a crisis such as the current one, we need leaders who have the clarity to see what is happening and make necessary decisions; who know how to stand up to special interest groups and maintain a commitment to society and Europe,” he said. Anyone who wants to succeed in business should “understand that the situation is challenging, but also offers many opportunities.”

Prof. Argandoña concluded the session by recommending that business leaders “look after communication policies, identify alliances inside and outside the company, avoid overreacting, but also avoid losing time, and understand the changes that they will undergo,” not only in their own sectors, but in those that they may depend upon.

The True-to-Life Experience of an Investment Analyst

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The third edition of the IESE Private Equity Competition (IPEC) was held on April 19 on IESE’s Barcelona campus. This is the first time the competition, which is set up and organized entirely by IESE MBA students, was open to teams from other top European business schools.

Apart from IESE, this year’s participants were HEC Business School, INSEAD Business School, IE Business School and London Business School. Teams were selected by each school through an internal selection round. In the coming years the IPEC would strive to include participation from more schools.

The IPEC is unique in Europe as it replicates the "true-to-life" experience of a PE investment analyst, giving participants a unique insight into the buyout process. Teams of 5 from each participating business school acted in the role of a private equity fund – working on a real life MBO transaction, with the original transaction documents and alongside the actual persons involved in the deal, giving an exceptional level of authenticity to their task.

Each team first had negotiations with judges acting as the Investment Committee, the Lending Bank and the target Management Team. Thereafter, they had to present their investment proposal to a panel of top judges, which included Fernando Garcia Ferrer (Partner and Head of Markets & PE, KPMG), Marcus Brennecke (Head of EQT Equity in Germany), Chris Wildmoser (Partner, CVC), Marco Sebold (Director, Change Capital Partners), Norbert Steinke (CEO, Hallhuber), Beatriz Gonzalez García-Marqués (Senior Manager, KPMG), Sertac Yener (Director Project Development, Al Nowais Investments), Ammar Al-Rikabi (VP, Arch Investment Partners Limited), Magdalena Markiewicz (Senior Associate, Rothschild) and Carlos Robles (AD, The Carlyle Group).

As well as learning about the strategic and financial considerations of an investment, participants also got the chance to network with top private equity professionals. The judges were very impressed by the high quality of teams while the students benefitted appreciated the real-time feedback and the learning experince.

IESE Business School (Leonce Ano, Diego De Paula, Pietro Ceresa, Jakub Dzik and Luca Salvatore Marzano) won the IESE Private Equity Competition 2013. They were praised by the judges for their thoroughness and consideration of most of the key aspects in the deal. INSEAD Business School (Ghaleb Samara, Tarek Hegazy, Toby Chang, Yeshwant Holkar and Shehryar Kamruddin) was the runner up, with London Business School (Vladi Atanassov, Bernardo Cioni, Bill Hutchinson, Ruslan Mahhov and James Robinson) taking third place. The IPEC was organised by IESE students – Dumitru Furtuna, Stefano Charrey and Varun Dalal under the invaluable mentorship of Prof. Heinrich Liechtenstein. KPMG and Ermenegildo Zegna sponsored the event.

Choosing Between Acquisition or Joint Venture

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

International joint ventures (IJVs) are generally considered safer than acquisitions. Research suggests this is due to information barriers often inherent in the acquisition process.

IESE Prof. África Ariño joined Jeffrey J. Reuer (Krannert School of Management, Purdue University), Tony W. Tong (Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado) and Beverly B. Tyler (College of Management, North Carolina State University) to investigate how executives address information asymmetry and adverse selection surrounding international joint ventures (IJVs) and acquisitions.

Executives can address such hazards not only through their governance decisions, as prior research indicates, but also through their selection of exchange partners.

This research article, "Executive Preferences for Governance Modes and Exchange Partners: An Information Economics Perspective," complements prior research on firms' governance choices in three ways:

Read full article on the IESE Insight website.

Leadership Development in Miami

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Miami was the backdrop for a special session on the centrality of relationships for leadership and career development, led by IESE Prof. Marta Elvira on April 23.

During the session, organized by the IESE Alumni Association, Prof. Elvira discussed how to raise awareness of personal networks and the multiple sources of developmental support available in it. Participants also reflected on next steps for shaping their networks in light of career goals and their professional environment.

In her talk, she discussed a range of developmental relationship types, including allies, friends, sponsors and mentors. To strengthen their networks, executives should also think what value they add and giving back to the network. She also encouraged participants to take a long-term view of network-building and build relationships before you need them. She also warned them to avoid becoming overly dependent on a single mentor.

Multichannel Sales, the Future of Retailing

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Recessionary woes, coupled with the rise of e-commerce, have seen the demise of many traditional businesses, as the growing number of vacant, shuttered shops on the streets of many European cities attests.

In Spain, retail sales have dropped by 22 percent over the past four years. Conversely, during the first half of 2012, e-commerce registered sales of more than 5 billion euros.

Solving the problems of the retail sector involves implementing a multichannel strategy that integrates online, mobile and social channels, while at the same time reinventing physical stores, which remain cornerstones of the sector.

Buyer Trends

Consumer behavior is evolving in a fast and unpredictable manner. Consumers are leading and shaping multichannel commerce, with retailers trying to adapt their strategies accordingly. The major trends are as follows.

Read full article on the IESE Insight website.

Nestlé: Generating Competitive Gaps

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

José López, executive vice president of Global Operations at Nestlé, often tells people he is "responsible for anything that can go wrong at Nestlé."

And in today’s digital world, a single mistake can have enormous costs since any customer complaint will remain online indefinitely, López told IESE MBA students during a session held Monday on the school’s Barcelona campus. His presentation, "Managing the Supply Chain in a Global Company: The Case of Nestlé," was part of IESE’s MBA Global Leadership Series.

"If there was ever time we needed to go for zero defects, zero accidents, zero losses – now is the time," said López, who meets daily with the Nestlé’s quality manager, as well as its Digital Acceleration Team for updates on customer opinion.

López said he favors generating competitive gaps across the value chain, rather than the common approach of closing gaps to catch up with rivals.

"I think it’s a much better idea to create gaps," which Nestlé does by focusing on three areas, also referred to as the "three Cs": delight consumers, deliver competitive advantage and excel in compliance.

In its approach to CSR, Nestlé puts a spotlight on rural development, water and nutrition, he said. The three areas were chosen because they involved global problems that Nestlé – which seeks to be a leading company in nutrition, health and wellness - could effectively address, he said.

López said there is a lot of confusion in the world today about what it means to create value and what it means to create wealth. He recounted a recent trip to London where he met with the heads of various start-ups. Entrepreneurs generally fell into two types: those who sought to create real value for customers and others who were already focusing on a lucrative exit in the near future.

"At Nestlé value creation comes through work, not only money," he said. "It’s about creating a sustainable business model by engaging the hearts and the minds of all the Nestlé employees around the world, so that the company continues to be an engine for development and prosperity."

López also said that he believes "economies of scale are overrated," citing Nestlé’s relationships with some 690,000 farmers, many in emerging markets. Characterizing the company’s approach as "Hercules Meets Buddha," López said that he gained important insights on sustainability during nine years he spent working for Nestlé in Japan, where raw materials are scarce.

In Japan, he learned that "waste is not an option," he said.

How to Redesign Spain’s Pension System

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Spain’s pension system is obsolete, unsustainable and requires deep, immediate reform, IESE Prof. Javier Díaz-Giménez said during a Continuous Education session, held April 22 on IESE’s Madrid campus.

Prof. Díaz-Giménez discussed the system’s structural problems during an event titled, “The Serious Problem of Spanish Pensions and a Radical Proposal for its Solution.” The talk was organized by the IESE Alumni Association as part of the conference series “Economy and Society: Proposals for a Dynamic, Innovative and Fair Economy.”

“We have to double savings for retirement by redesigning the current distribution system and complementing it with capitalized plans,” said Díaz-Giménez. “We need another distribution system that is entirely contributory, with a contribution from the worker that is well-defined by law and is not capped.”

He reminded the audience that in just 27 years, Spain’s pension system has undergone six reforms. “The social security administration today does not provide precise information about future pensions,” he said. After criticizing public administrations for spending all the funds accumulated in their piggy bank, he called for a system based on “a mix of contributions, in which the contributory portion must be guaranteed.”

He pointed to Sweden, where contributors spend about 2.5 percent of their contribution on obligatory personal pension funds that are managed by a state agency.

“When you compare Spanish pensions with others around the world, you realize they couldn’t be worse,” he said. Obligatory pensions should be understood as a type of “forced savings for old age.”

“They are really like a deferred salary. Workers give part of their rights for the current GDP in exchange for rights to receive GDP in the future. But these future rights are uncertain. If there is no GDP, there are no pensions,” he warned.

"Minimum Pensions are Different"

“Today’s pension system problem has been caused by changing life spans, as well as issues related to demographics and the cost of managing savings in the long term. People are living longer, starting to work later, birth rates are dropping and the growth rate of young people and adults is flat. All these factors, in the long run, influence the sustainability of the system,” he said.

Díaz-Gimenez also argued for a clear separation of non-contributory from minimum contributory pensions, “which are something different.”

“Minimum pensions should be understood as an expression of our solidarity with older generations. They should be funded from the state budget and should be focused, that is, based on an income threshold and patrimony,” he said.

To carry all of these initiatives out, Díaz-Gimenez called for the creation of a Pensions Agency in Spain, centered solely on contributory pensions.

Changing Pharma Industry Offers Opportunities for MBAs

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The pharmaceutical industry still offers important opportunities for MBA graduates who want to make a difference in the everyday lives of people, concurred participants in a panel organized by IESE’s MBA Healthcare Club on April 19.

During the panel discussion, which formed part of Healthcare Day, invited speakers shared with IESE MBA students how their career paths have evolved, why they chose to work in pharma and skills that companies are looking for today.

As business models shift, firms are looking for professionals who have the capacity to learn, be flexible and "drive change," said Javier Girbau, director account management at Merck. Mar Guinot, senior manager of business planning & analysis at Amgen, said that as the industry transforms, new models and ways of thinking will be needed at many companies.

Sergio Serra, country manager at Tilliots Pharma Spain, said that there will be a growing number of alliances in the sector, as large "classic" companies partner with smaller biotech firms to provide new healthcare solutions. Among key trends that are set to impact the sector are: a focus on prevention, personalized medicine and home care, he said.

Pricing, however, will continue to be a central issue in the industry worldwide, said Jordi Fernandez, marketing director at Roche Diagnostics. Natalia Borniquel, director of portfolio management at GlaxoSmithKline, said that fast-growing emerging markets are becoming lead markets, moving ahead of the U.S. and Europe. In this context, the goal of firms will be to bring down costs as they improve products.

Despite challenges faced in the industry, participants described the sense of satisfaction they feel from working in an industry that focuses on innovation and seeks to improve people’s lives.

It is particularly gratifying to work in the sector today, said Borniquel, because it is not clear how business models are going to shift. "It’s exciting to be part of the change."

Tough at the Top: CEOs in a Volatile World

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

he annual meeting of IESE’s International Advisory Board ended today with a conference titled "How International CEOs See the Global Economy" which was introduced by Dean Jordi Canals. The conference was divided into two panel discussions, the first of which, "The World Economic Outlook," was moderated by Prof. Franz Heukamp.

Patricia Francis, of the International Trade Center, said that although we have a fairly predictable political landscape for the next couple of years, this has not been translated into confidence. "Any slowdown in China will affect countries selling into China, especially Australia and parts of Latin America," she added. She was followed by Toyoo Ghyoten of the Institute for International Monetary Affairs who discussed the bold steps the new Japanese government is taking to pull the country out of two decades of stagnation. "The stock market has gone up and business confidence has risen," he said. "The prime minister has changed a mind-set of defeatism into optimism, although there is no room for complacency."

Asked whether a similar approach could pull the eurozone out of its slump Ghyoten said: "Applying monetary easing is one option for the eurozone but the ECB is doing that. If you argue that it has to be more aggressive, you have ask in what way?"

Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys Technologies, said "we can only solve the problem of poverty by creating good jobs with good incomes and entrepreneurship is the only tool we have. This requires good ideas that are easy to communicate, a ready market and the willingness to make sacrifices today for a better tomorrow. The problem is not money, the problem is good ideas. Government needs to create an ecosystem so that entrepreneurship can thrive."

For his part, Stanley Motta of Motta International said he was concerned at how much money was being printed but added that "there is a common agenda in Latin America. We haven’t solved all our problems but we have a common outlook."

Andrea Christenson of the doll manufacturer Käthe Kruse Puppen said it was hard for small companies to survive. "We are too small to make mistakes and the question is how to find the right partners to expand into the Asian market," she said. "We have now found a German-Asian company that is also in the toy industry."

The second session, moderated by Prof. Eric Weber, was titled "Corporate Strategy in a Volatile World: The Role of the CEO." Hans-Jacob Bonnier of Bonnier AB talked about the digital revolution in the media before adding that "the role of the CEO is to guide managers through change. The CEO is the team coach who has to keep everyone happy because happy managers love to go to work."

He was followed by Franz Haniel of Franz Haniel & Co, who reminded the audience that the values that define the culture of a company are vital. With global teams it’s more vital than ever for CEOs to understand what makes each individual tick. "The single most important characteristic in a CEO is empathy," Haniel said.

Denise Kingsmill of IAG commented that CEO pay has shot up in recent years and shareholders are very concerned about this and are starting to flex their muscles. "The era of the CEO as super hero is ending," she said. Hans Ulrich Maerki, ABB, pointed out that under a new Swiss law shareholders will decide salaries of CEOs. "When we talk about corporate strategy it should be for the next four or five years, not reacting to every event. What a CEO needs to do is look from the outside in to judge the company’s capabilities."

The last contribution came from Kees Storm of Aegon who said "volatility means you need to be flexible." He added that many CEOs just want the board to agree with their proposals but believes the board needs to be more involved in strategy.

Innovation in Sales is More Important Then Ever

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Is it possible to go on innovating in sales? In an atmosphere of crisis, what strategies should a company adopt? What should a team leader do in the current situation? How can we get closer to today’s client? These were just some of the questions discussed at the 6th Sales and Marketing Officers Meeting that was held on April 17 on IESE’s Madrid campus.

The title of this year’s meeting, “Reinventing Yourself in Order to Advance: Innovation in Sales” was a declaration of intent. During three intense working sessions, the meeting, led by IESE professors Julián Villanueva and Cosimo Chiesa, discussed the importance innovation in the sales model, in management and the sales team.

Innovating in new markets (that is to say, operating in other countries), training programs for sales staff, new formats, new technological tools and improving the motivation of sales networks were some of the most important aspects presented in the 4th Study of Innovation in Sales Teams. Executives also saw the need to innovate and produce ideas, and to involve employees in the process. “Now is the time to introduce changes in the sales force, because there is much room for improvement,” said Prof. Villanueva, co-coordinator of the study with Prof. Chiesa.

The document also shows that only 15% of sectors had grown in sales volume and only 7% had raised their prices during the crisis. Regarding how to grow in the future, the study was quite clear: 43% of this growth must come from new clients and another 27% from maximizing existing clients. A high percentage of those questioned (66%) emphasized the importance of innovation in delivering value and another 65% highlighted the necessity to innovate in products and services.

Unstoppable Change

Cosimo Chiesa emphasized that “we are in the midst of an unstoppable process of change. The consumer, the product, technology and habits have all changed. Markets are more complex, confusing and competitive and it’s increasingly difficult to stand out,” although that is fundamental if you are to offer “value propositions” to the consumer. To survive in an increasingly uncertain future he said it was necessary to make decisions in three fields: creativity, beliefs and values (what he called the “inside game”) and interpersonal and intrapersonal qualities (“the outside game”).

“Some 80% of professional success depends on attitude,” he said. “Beliefs can be motivating or limiting, and the latter paralyze the attitudes of many sales people,” he added. What steps do you have to take to move from a limiting belief to one with more possibilities? “Have clear goals, question your beliefs and your excuses, get out of your comfort zone and accept challenges and decide whether you want to be the protagonist in your life or just a spectator. Be proactive,” he recommended.

Meeting New Demands

Angelo Ruggieri, Desigual sales manager in Europe, said that “we have to meet new market demands. Our philosophy has always been to look for something new. This is why we have set up DShop.” This is a new business concept for multibrand outlets in small and medium-sized cities. In these establishments, Desigual occupies between 80% and 100% of the sales area with its collection, furniture, lighting and logo in the shop window. The plan is to open 300 DShops in three years, which implies a strategic alignment throughout the company. So far, Desigual has opened 50 DShops in six months with a turnover of €6.5 million, 20% more than expected.

Miguel Giribet, country manager of Privalia in Spain, spoke about the importance of using new technologies in business development. Engagement is fundamental if you want to innovate, he said. For his business, “shopping on Facebook is a big part of our innovation.”

Javier Pijoán, head of sales and distribution for Heineken in central and eastern Europe, emphasized the importance of execution in competitive advantage. “Success comes from a combination of strategy and execution,” he said. In his opinion, aspects such as ambition, alignment through all departments of the company, covering all the market, focusing efforts and measuring performance of the sales team are key to understanding the success and expansion of the beer company in various European markets.

Effectiveness and Efficiency

Salvador Pons, director-general in Spain of Laboratorios Menarini, said that one of the main values of this pharmaceutical company was in its sales network. “We want to be more effective and more efficient. That requires strategic planning and sharing and internalizing this strategy across all departments and increasing the quality of visits because preparation is fundamental to our sales techniques,” he said.

“Anyone who is well-prepared has a future in spite of the crisis. Motivation, innovation, client relations, good incentive and compensation systems, all of these factors affect the well-being of companies. Although there is a long way to go, we need to advance with humility. Success is the fruit of values, dedication and hard work,” said Chiesa, winding up the meeting.

Building Companies that Generate Trust

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

A reflection upon the need to rebuild the vision of the companies and leadership that directly contribute to the development of a dynamic society.

The financial crisis that began in the summer of 2007 has escalated into a full-blown economic crisis without precedent in recent history, one that challenges the functioning of the economy and the political system in democratic societies.

This crisis has created a severe economic contraction attributable to the failure of governments to regulate the financial system; unsustainable public deficits; business misconduct; and a lack of corporate sensitivity toward unemployment and other social problems. As a result, the role of business and government, and their ability to build a prosperous and fair society, are in question.

In this context, governments appear to have succumbed to the lure of the short term, disregarding the longer-term interests of society. Their manifest failure to solve today’s problems, coupled with systematic neglect of the long term, have fueled a growing distrust among citizens. Many voices call for civil society to play a stronger role; yet in times of crisis few social actors have the capacity to mobilize collective efforts. Despite these difficulties, now more than ever it is vital to rebuild the reputation of companies, entrepreneurs and business leaders, not on the fragile foundation of public relations but through a renewed understanding of the firm’s mission in a dynamic society.

You can read the complete article by Prof. Jordi Canals in the IESE Alumni Magazine, issue no. 129.

Susana Monje Challenges the Crisis on Five Continents

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“A good leader has to be a collector of dreams, hopes and wishes. The bosses that I have had always have been like that, starting with my father. With the ability to have a dream, follow it and get all of us to follow and work to achieve it,” said Susana Monje, president and CEO of Grupo Essentium and the first female treasurer of F.C. Barcelona, in remarks about what makes a good executive.

Monje leads the family business Grupo Essentium, which was founded by her father Valentín Monje Tuñón and is a conglomerate that once led Spain’s construction sector. Three decades after it was established, the group has an annual turnover of 500 million euros. “The company is nothing like it was 10 years ago,” she said.

Following its global strategy, the group sold in 2006 its companies most closely related to the construction sector and diversified into various industries such as infrastructure, health, education, technology, energy and transportation. Now, amid the recession, the internationalized group carries out activities on five continents.

The business leader participated in the fourth edition of the IESE Alumnae Breakfast, organized by the International Center on Work and Family (ICWF) on IESE’s Barcelona campus. The session was moderated by IESE professors Nuria Chinchilla and Mireia las Heras, who questioned Monje about her leadership style.

“It’s a communicative, participative style. I’m interested in the opinions of the people on my team. I believe you need to know how to listen and that by discussing an issue you make better decisions,” said Monje, who said she faces challenges when it comes to managing her agenda. “When you are an executive, work tends to occupy all your available time and that increases with the more responsibilities you have. Work/family balance is a constant goal and also managing the guilt you feel when something doesn’t get done.”

She regrets that government cutbacks are affecting work/family balance policies today, but she is positive about the future: “I am a natural optimist and I believe that Spain will exit the crisis because there is a desire for this. It is true that in a globalized world this is more complicated because other countries now have cheaper labor, high-level technologies and raw materials. But we have other assets in Spain: human capital, entrepreneurial initiative and within Europe we are among the countries with the most tightly-adjusted wages. Today, no matter where companies are, their activities are diversified.”

She also stressed that one of the most important assets of her company is the people she manages: “the responsibility of a company is to provide working conditions that allow people to have as enjoyable a life as possible, with internal and external equity: internal, by offering a career within the company that allows the opportunity to progress; and external, with salaries that are adjusted to the markets where we have businesses and without gender differences,” said Monje, whose organization leads activities in countries such as India, Peru and Brazil.

Spreading Business Insight

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Three special "IESE Insight Sessions" are set to be held in Los Angeles, Santo Domingo and San Juan this week.

On April 18 in Los Angeles, IESE’s Prof. Ahmad Rahnema will lead the session "How Wall Street and See Other People’s Money." The event is being sponsored by Cinedigm. Cinedigm is the world’s leading distributor of digital content across both theatrical and digital platforms. Prof. Rahnema will discuss his case study based on the famous movie, "Other People’s Money." The case examines different approaches to pitching and competing against competitors for the same business. Prof. Rahnema will weave key management, finance and accounting issues from the film's storyline into a highly interactive discussion.

Also on April 18 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, IESE Prof. Javier Estrada will lead a session titled, "Blinded by Growth." During the event, sponsored by CESPM, Prof. Estrada will discuss growth from two perspectives - economic growth and earnings growth - and how these relate to the stock returns investors ultimately obtain. He will also demonstrate how evidence indicates that it is possible for investors to obtain low returns in high-growth environments, and high returns in low-growth environments. He will discuss the reasons behind this, the role that valuation plays in this story and the advantages of value investing over growth investing.

On April 19, Prof. Estrada will present the session with alumni and invited guests based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The event in San Juan will be sponsored by the Caribe Hilton.

The Quest for Competitiveness

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE graduates based in Portugal will gather for their yearly meeting on April 18 in Lisbon. The focus of the event will be reforms that the government, companies and society at large need to implement in order to cope with the persistent economic crisis in Europe and boost competitiveness.

The meeting will include a special session with the participation of IESE Prof. José Manuel Campa; João Talone, former special commissioner of the Government of Portugal; and António Vitorino, former minister of the Presidency and National Defense of Portugal. The discussion will be moderated by economic journalist Camilo Lourenço.

Organized by IESE's Alumni Association, the session will be followed by an optional guided visit to the Museum of the Orient and a welcome event hosted by José Gabriel Chimeno and Nuno Saraiva de Ponte, president and vice president, respectively, of IESE's Portuguese Regional Alumni Chapter.

April Edition: Eye on IESE

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE MBA students and professors traveled to Silicon Valley, 10th Retail Industry Meeting, IESE Prof. Africa Ariño is the new associate director of the publication "Academy of Management Discoveries". Don't miss: MBA Alumni Reunion with chef Ferran Adrià and Japanese architect Makoto Tanijiri, Prof. Marta Elvira in Effective Management of Professional Networks.

Experts Put a Price on the Expropriation of YPF

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

How much should the Argentine government pay to Repsol for the expropriation of YPF?

This is the question that IESE Prof. Pablo Fernández put to some 22,000 finance and economics professors, analysts, fund managers and business executives worldwide.

Of the nearly 2,000 responses received, 70 percent believed that YPF's own bylaws governing compensation to shareholders in the event of the State taking control of the company should be used to make the calculation.

There was some variation concerning the date on which to base the valuation: January 27, 2012, when rumors of the takeover bid first began to fly, or when the expropriation was officially announced on April 16, 2012. Depending on which date was chosen, this could result in a difference of nearly $2 billion.

In the end, the global average valuation was given at $10.3 billion.

Interestingly, the average price per share provided by Argentine experts ($50.2) hardly differs from that of the Spanish ($50.8).

Read full article on the IESE Insight website.

Facebook's Home Front

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

While many people thought Facebook would launch its own phone, rather than get into the hardware business it launched the Facebook Home app for Android phones, says Prof. Josep Valor. This allows you do to anything from the phone interface even when the phone is asleep, giving Facebook valuable information that will allow it to develop more targeted apps and monetise your phone use.

Watch video.

The Long Haul to Sustainability

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

There’s no room for short-term thinking in the infrastructure business because you have an investment window of 50 to 100 years, Francisco Reynés, CEO of Abertis, told MBA students on IESE’s Barcelona campus on April 12. The talk, titled “How a CEO Thinks About Strategy and Change: The Abertis Case” was part of the Global Leadership Series and was introduced by Dean Jordi Canals.

Reynés, who is also an IESE MBA alumnus, talked about how Abertis, market leader roads but which also operates airports and mobile phone infrastructures, has spent the past four years adapting to the new reality. He was a shareholder and a board member before he joined Abertis in 2009, becoming CEO a year later. The company had spent the boom years diversifying and when he took charge there was no money left to grow.

He said the company needed to be redefined strategically and had to grow internationally. First he changed the culture, “the hardest job I’ve ever done,” he said. The company had to shift from complexity to simplicity, from a national to an international outlook and from a focus on stability to being proactive to change. Strategically he opted for more partnerships, sector focalisation, selective growth and rationalization.

With the help of his team he optimized company on 5 fronts: technology, partners, talent review, streamlining the organization and cost controls and in the process saved €230m since 2010. Over 90% of the company’s income comes from motorways and so the life of the franchise is all important. Under Reynés Abertis extended the average life of its concessions to 2028. All of this has resulted in the share price performing at 30% above the Ibex (the Spanish stock exchange).

“Management is like conducting an orchestra,” he said. “You don’t have to know how to play all the instruments but you need to know about music and you need to pick the best musicians.”

Beyond Business as Usual

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

What can managers do to boost sales, once they have taken the "usual" measures of cost cutting, restructuring, adjusting prices and opening new markets? An upcoming event at IESE will answer this question by exploring new alternatives for sales strategy, as well as sales team management and leadership.

Set for April 17 in Madrid, the 6th Annual Sales and Marketing Officers Meeting is themed, "Reinventing Yourself to Move Forward: Sales Management Innovation." The meeting will specifically tackle how to find new customers today, what technological tools can help teams and what are the most suitable strategies in the current context.

Recent market research, led by IESE professors Cosimo Chiesa and Julián Villanueva, on the topics discussed in the different sessions will also be presented. Each participant in the meeting will receive a copy of the study's conclusions.

Invited speakers will present their views during three panels with the following titles 1) "New Scenarios, New Models: Sales Model Innovation" 2) "New Ways To Get Better Results: Sales Management Innovation" and 3) "Getting the Sales Team Involved: Sales Team Innovation."

A special session in which panelists, faculty members and participants will be able to exchange viewpoints and interact will also be a highlight of the meeting. The program has been designed for CEOs, sales managers and sales and marketing directors.

The New Multichannel Consumer

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

“The future has arrived. Online business is already a part of our lives and now is not the time to hesitate. The train is leaving and you have to run to catch it. Whoever doesn’t, will miss out on the market.” These words from IESE Prof. José Luis Nueno summarized perfectly the essence of the 10th Distribution Business Meeting that was held on April 10 and 11 on IESE’s Madrid campus. The theme of this year’s meeting spelt out it clearly: “The Decline of Shopping Streets and the Birth of the New Multichannel Model.” “Little by little, consumers are leaving the malls and a buying more from home or, via their smart phones, from wherever they are,” said Nueno.

The growing importance of e-commerce and m-commerce and the changes that they have brought about in consumer behavior were two questions that were discussed in depth in various sessions. In Spain, online business is the only sales channel that is growing, at 16.3%. “This is a very difficult moment in the consumer market but, in spite of everything, there continue to be opportunities and companies that continue to grow,” said IESE Prof. Julián Villanueva.

The meeting opened with the question: when will the consumer return? In this first session, IESE Prof. José Manuel Campa emphasized that Spanish exports are “growing at 25% more than before the crisis.” “Spain has also become more competitive although at the cost of a terrible rise in unemployment. Inequality in income and wealth is growing,” Campa lamented. He also drew attention to the fall in internal demand. “We will return to 2007 levels but it will take us some time to get back there,” he warned.

When Will the Consumer Return?

In spite of this difficult situation, Campa believes that in 2014 investment in machinery and plant will grow and exports will continue to grow as well. He said the public sector would undergo an adjustment but with less intensity and predicted a possible rise in taxes over the next few months with “a negative effect on consumption.” “Spain is increasingly a bimodal society, with one group of people who have stable and secure incomes and a growing number of people with less access to consumer goods,” he concluded.

Francisco Javier Campo, president of the AECOC, took a similar line. During his talk he mentioned the fall in Spanish GDP, the decline in consumer spending and retail sales and was critical of a possible tax increase which, he said, “would make the possibility of a recovery even more distant.” In his opinion, the consumer would return to the market when there were more jobs. At the same time, he said that the crisis had had a series of consequences on consumer behavior. “Prices have become the most important factor at the moment of purchase,” he said. He also mentioned the impact of the digital world as a key factor in consumption, as well as consumers’ increasing tendency to look for ways of saving money.

Faced with this situation, Campo encouraged businesses to innovate and to use new technologies, to look beyond their shores and to develop efficient and sustainable value chains. “Businesses have to adapt themselves to a different type of consumer,” he concluded. On this point, Prof. Nueno was clear: “Anything that offers the consumer value with new models will pay off.”

The Decline of Shopping Streets and the Emergence of the New Multichannel Model

During the meeting, Prof. Nueno presented the study “The Decline of Shopping Streets and the Emergence of the New Multichannel Model,” produced by AECOC. The study shows how e-commerce is consolidating as an alternative channel, saving the consumer the trouble of going to a shopping center and offering a better choice, lower prices and simpler refund processes.

Further evidence points to the differences between shops in Type A streets (the most commercial) and other streets, where more and more businesses are closing. “This should worry both the municipal authorities and the manufacturers,” said Nueno. He said to be a market leader it was no longer enough to open more shops. “To reach the consumer it is necessary to go multichannel,” he said.

Among the conclusions the report reaches is that “business with a physical presence is losing out during the recession at the same rate that e-commerce is developing with the dizzying speed.” “Anyone who doesn’t have virtual shops or doesn’t connect their inventories is missing out some unique opportunities,” he insisted. He added: “The e-commerce players that don’t have physical shops are not only showing lack of respect for consumers but to the fact that absolutely everyone buys in the street, and the great majority, much more in off-line than online shops.” The study also suggests that “supermarkets have to revise their fulfillment model.” And he offered various useful pieces of advice such as: “Choose a good model now so that you can change it tomorrow.”

The Rise of “A” Streets

The Spanish retail fashion trade is going through a slump with a loss of jobs and a fall in income, said Marc Onandia, CEO of European Fashion Brands. “Spain has gone from being a nouveau riche market to a market of the new poor,” said Luis Bodes, CEO of the men’s boutique Hannover 1998. Luis Sans, president of the boutique Santa Eulalia (Barcelona), said that “urban reform can accelerate or slow down trends but cannot create them.” “The premium or “A” streets are experiencing a boom around the world to the detriment of other streets and this tendency will continue,” he warned. This is partly caused by tourists who make up a large number of those with high purchasing power.

Julio Díaz-Freijó, CEO of Vilacaiz, and Enrique Martínez Laguna, director-general of CBRE Spain, believe that the difference between “A” streets and others is becoming increasingly polarized. Díaz-Freijó regretted that shops were closing down in secondary areas of cities due to the slump in consumer spending. “It’s a very worrying situation and I think it’s almost impossible for those zones to be revived,” he said. However he was optimistic about shops located in prime sites. In this regard, he said that Spain was a very attractive country for big international brands because of the large number of tourists and because, furthermore, the prices in “A” streets are the lowest in Europe.

“The successful streets adapt themselves to consumer behavior,” said Martínez Laguna. For him, the fall in consumer spending and the rise in e-commerce have had a direct impact both on the consumer and on shops. In spite of the crisis, he said Spain is the fourth most sought-after country in the world by retailers. “Real estate investment will return because retailers and big brands are interested in having a presence in the country,” he concluded.

Understanding the Consumer

For Juan Pedro Agustín, director of strategic projects at DIA Internacional, his company’s strategy is based on price and getting close to the client. “You have to know the client better. These days technology isn’t a brake,” said. The next challenge for this company, which has put its money on multi-channels and e-commerce, is m-commerce. “For the consumer, proximity is another way of saving,” said José María Bonmatí, director-general of AECOC.

The director of business relations at Mercadona, Ricard Cabedo, said his business model was based on “total quality, in which all of these components have to be satisfied: boss-worker-supplier-society-capital.” He expects 2013 to be “very difficult.” “We have to be very efficient to lower the price of the shopping basket and increase productivity, which is our touchstone,” he said. He admitted that multichannel is not a priority for Mercadona.

The director-general of Makro España, José María Cervera, said his food company’s outlets are newer and better organized than ever, thanks to his clients and the team of people that make up the company.

Other brands have gone for expansion in high-growth markets. This is the case of Pepe Jeans, whose international director, Bart Denolf, said that one of the keys to being successful in this type of expansion is to ally oneself with local partners in order to have access to technology, portfolios and capital. He was joined in the session by Cristina Galán, cofounder of Bitcarrier, who talked about projects launched by this small business based in technology, data quality and the ability to analyze that data.

Multichannel Is Here to Stay

Enric Ezquerra, director-general of Grupo Condis, said that his company recognized the importance of multichannel (mobile phones, the Internet, social networks) in its strategy. He said that to carry out a multichannel approach, it was important to redefine the roles and objectives of the channels, the development of a singular and a multichannel vision of each client, and the needs to develop actions and services that improve the client experience.

For Luis Buceta of BNP Paribas, multichannel is inescapable for food industry companies and he listed a number of factors necessary in order for the format to be successful: low-cost, little investment in capital and convenience. Meanwhile, Jamie Merriman of Sanford C. Bernstein, made it clear that it is important to invest in social networks and the Internet. E-commerce is here to stay, he said, “but every distributor must be clear about the impact of online shops in order to incorporate them, or not, in their business.” At the same time, he insisted that there is still space for physical shops, which have certain advantages over the Internet such as a sense of immediacy, the possibility of touching the product and the shopping experience.

Mobile Shopping

Fuenciscla Clemares, director of Google Spain, and Fernando Gracia, sales director at Facebook, discussed “The Outlook for Big e-commerce and Social Commerce Operators: Social Commerce in Collaboration with the Retailer.” “The mobile is here to stay but there is still a lot of ignorance in the sector,” Clemares said. She went further to add that “the retail world undervalues the potential of mobiles.” She said the mobile was a way of interacting with and getting to know clients.

After discussing the rise of m-commerce in countries such as United States, she said that in 2016 20% of purchases were made via mobile phone. Her advice to retailers was to develop a mobile site adapted to the needs of users on the move, to close as soon as possible the online/off-line loop and to facilitate conversion to multichannel and multi device. “The mobile opens up a whole new world of possibilities for marketing and publicity,” she said.

Fernando Gracia said that the consumer is changing the way they consume. “The mobile is disruptive. The big players have already taken on this change and are working with it,” he said. He pointed out how in a short period of time Facebook has revolutionized global communications and how it can be a tool to help solve retail challenges. “Having a presence on social networks is useful and brings returns,” he said. “You can connect with your real clients wherever they are. You can engage with them to generate loyalty. You can influence other consumers and build identity through various businesses,” he suggested.

Jaume Betrián, cofounder of Ofertia, and Eric Ubals, cofounder of Motobuykers, discussed the topic “E-commerce: Mobile, Social and Unavoidable.” The two entrepreneurs discussed the history of their respective companies, whose business is based on a exploiting the potential of the Internet and new technologies. “The smartphone is having a significant influence on shopping decisions,” said Betrián.

Ángel Herrero, director of Samsung’s business channel, said mobile devices have become even more influential thanks to the proliferation of tablets and smart phones. “The retail technology sector is going through a period of consolidation because of reduced margins,” commented.

Universal Technology

Universal access to technology has resulted in the user spending more and more time on their devices from which they have access to an enormous quantity of information. Ubals described the business model of Motobuykers, a shopping club for motorcyclists that offers discounts of between 30% and 70% each week. The business has grown in two years thanks, among other things, to the efficiency of the management of e-commerce and the development of a social APP for motorcyclists.

Isabel Mesa, director of WGSN in Spain and Portugal, believes it is time to rethink the retail experience from the point of view of the consumer, and not the other way round. She said that technology he has to be a keystone in retail strategies in order to extend sales areas. There also has to be innovation in physical stores that are vital for developing the business. Finally, Mar Morosse, of Sotheby’s International Realty, talked about the nature of luxury stores in New York and the ways in which they differ in different areas of the city.

IESE Professor Helps Spearhead New Journal

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE Prof. Africa Ariño has been appointed associate editor of a new online journal published by the Academy of Management (AoM). The publication, titled Academy of Management Discoveries, will debut in 2014.

"The mission of Academy of Management Discoveries (AMD) is to promote the creation and dissemination of new empirical evidence that strengthens understanding of important new or poorly understood phenomena relevant to management and organizations," according to the editorial statement.

The editor of the publication is Andrew H. Van de Ven, the Vernon H. Heath Professor of Organizational Innovation and Change in the Carlson School of the University of Minnesota.

Prof. Ariño is professor in the Department of Strategic Management and academic director of IESE’s Center for Globalization and Strategy. She holds a Ph.D. in Management from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), an MBA from IESE Business School and a degree in Economics and Business Administration from the University of Barcelona.

In addition to her work with AMD, she is an Associate Editor of the Global Strategy Journal, and has served in the editorial boards of the Journal of International Business Studies, the Journal of Management and the Strategic Management Journal. She has published numerous academic papers, many focusing on strategic alliances, and is the co-editor of two books. Among the books is Creating Value through International Strategy, which was co-edited with IESE professors Joan E. Ricart and Pankaj Ghemawat and published by Palgrave Macmillan.

IESE MBA’s Start-up Chosen by Wayra

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

The digital business Treeveo, founded by the second-year MBA student Jeroen Kemperman, is one of the new projects chosen in 2013 by Wayra to receive development funding. Wayra was established by Telefónica in 2011 to encourage the best business models in the IT field and help them to grow. Wayra currently operates in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Spain, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela and plans to expand in Europe is search of new ideas.

After being selected as one of the winning projects at "Wayra Week Barcelona 2013," held on Match 19, Treeveo will receive an initial investment of €40,000, a rent-free workspace in the Torre Telefónica in Barcelona for six months, mentoring and access to the platform’s network of investors. Treeveo is expected to become operational in early May.

A Hard Road to Travel

"The first I heard of Wayra was through IESE’s MBA Career Services," says Jeroen. "At the time I was a first year and wasn’t eligible but later I attended a presentation in class and saw that this could be a great opportunity for me and my project and so I registered for the 2013 competition."

Jeroen said it has been a long hard journey. "To begin with, 350 teams had to present the documentation behind our ideas from which Wayra chose 40 to go into the semi-final. In that round we had to explain our proposal to a group representing the platform who chose 16 that would go into the final phase. The last round was the decisive one as each team had only five minutes to present their project to a panel of specialists followed by a 10-minute Q&A. Our team had to work hard to get there but we knew the project so well and we had trained hard so we were well prepared for the selection phases."

IESE is a Unique Milieu in Which to Create Companies

Jeroen doesn’t believe that being an IESE student gave him a special advantage over the other teams but is convinced that if he hadn’t studied at IESE he wouldn’t have been able to present the project with the same guarantees. "What’s important isn’t so much the school’s prestige but the support you get to work on your project and the knowledge you acquire about entrepreneurship. Is this sense, IESE is a unique place for an entrepreneur. You acquire high quality knowledge, it opens the door to a huge network of contacts and, being a two-year program, it gives you – through the entrepreneurs’ club - time to propose and develop an entrepreneurial project. Furthermore, the professors are always on hand to help and, in my case, their support has been fundamental."

Entrepreneurship Beyond the Digital World

Treeveo is web tool designed to help companies involved in the merger process. The aim is to maximize the synergies between two merging companies and minimize any loss of efficiency during the process. "Before I came to IESE I went through a similar experience and there were no tools like this so I believed there was a demand for my project. I’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur, to develop my own company, grow it and through it contribute to society. And although I have a wife and two children, this is the right moment to try to do it while I’m in the perfect milieu to achieve it," Jeroen said.

"I don’t know if Treeveo will be a success but my idea is to manage it until it grows up. After that, we shall see what life brings, but I’m sure my career will always been linked to entrepreneurship. These days loads of new digital projects are appearing because it’s relatively cheap and the knowledge isn’t hard to acquire, but there are other paths to explore, such as health and medicine. I think the future will involve more interaction between business schools and technical universities in order to bring together academics and executives who can develop this type of project."

With An Eye on Silicon Valley

Like Jeroen, any entrepreneur carries Silicon Valley in their head as a point of reference which is why, when he arrived at IESE in 2011, he had the idea of organizing an annual visit of a group of professors and students to California to learn in situ from some of the world’s most successful companies.

In 2012, 20 MBA students took part in the first "IESE Meets the Valley" experience which included three events, meeting with 25 business people and visits to 20 companies. The 2013 trip took place from March 25-31 and students visited companies such as WhatsApp, Khosla Ventures, 500 Startups, Lemon, Dorsey & Whitney, Scale Venture Partners and Cisco Systems.

"It was a terrific experience. The quality of the visits and meetings exceeded our expectations and all the students came back feeling really satisfied. It was also interesting that a journalist from Poets & Quants came with us in order to write an article about the trip," says Jeroen.

Conveying Confidence through Leadership

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

"Leadership and, above all, confidence are necessary conditions for exiting the crisis", said Jaime Aguilera, president of Unilever Spain, during the Continuous Education session, "Creating the Company of 2020 and its Context," held on the Barcelona campus and organized by IESE’s Alumni Association. "If we don’t have confidence in the future, how can we convey it?" he asked.

The session, divided into two panel discussions, was opened by IESE Dean Jordi Canals, who stressed the importance of doing "what is characteristic of business leaders," which is focusing on the long term. He reminded the audience that companies will be the players to eventually lead the way out of the crisis.

The Vision of Companies

During a panel discussion focused on the perspective of businesses and moderated by Prof. Pedro Nueno, Marta Martínez, president of IBM for Spain, Portugal, Greece and Israel, highlighted the importance of technology now and in the future.

"It is an essential element for transforming business models," she said. "According to surveys, CEOs rank it number one among elements that will define the future of their companies, when six years ago they placed it in sixth place."

In addressing an exit from the crisis, Martínez, an IESE graduate, said: "We have successful cases and we should promote these. Sometimes we sell badly what we do well."

Innovation and creativity are critical for a successful recovery, said Aguilera, adding that greater competitiveness is also vital for boosting consumption. This applies beyond the private sector, he said, to the public sector and on an individual level.

Erwin Rauhe, vice president of BASF Spain, said that "over the next few months, there will be more opportunities for growth in Southern Europe than in Northern Europe. We must analyze how to sell not only products but solutions; to do the same things but more efficiently, using fewer resources," he said.

The Vision of Academics

IESE Prof. Antonio Argandoña moderated a panel that included faculty members Alfredo Pastor, Pedro Videla and Xavier Vives. Recovery in Europe "has already started," said Videla, in the wake of adjustments in the public and private sector, sanitation of the banks and consolidation of the euro. In spite of everything, "we have to be aware that the recovery will be slow, since there are not adjustment mechanisms with a single currency."

He compared the situation of Spain, for example, with that of a state in the U.S., such as Nevada. To confront the situation, Spain should incentivize labor mobility, improve work flexibility and fiscal policy, and – on a supranational level – promote greater banking and fiscal union, he said.

Pastor provided an overview of the situation, agreeing with the other speakers that recovery will be sluggish due to the minimal maneuvering allowed by the euro. However, social aspects of the situation should be put into perspective, since the markets will not get back on track by themselves in the short term.

Prof. Vives discussed the development of a banking union in the EU, noting that "the process toward a union is complex but has received strong support in moments of acute crisis. The goal of a transition toward a banking union that is reasonable, that functions and stabilizes the eurozone is to find a balance between moral risk and systematic risk in the policies that adapt it," he said. Prof. Argandoña closed the panel discussion with a warning: "No business sector is exempt from the responsibility of getting us out of the recession."

Read article on Prof. Antonio Argandoña’s blog.

Do We Need Economists?

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

This question has been asked more frequently in recent years. The same question was almost certainly asked about doctors during the Black Death. The analogy between the economist and the doctor can serve as a starting point in the search for an answer.

How do we judge that a doctor is competent? We expect them to be capable of correctly diagnosing the disease and prescribing the correct treatment. Most doctors know how to do both. On the other hand, if we ask an economist to cure a sick economy we often see that, after six months or even two years, the economy is in just as bad shape or even worse. Naturally we will conclude that economists are worthless and don’t know anything. Neither conclusion is correct.

To begin with, it is not difficult for a group of economists to diagnose an economy as sick because there is not a long list of illnesses. Nor would there be great differences between them when it comes to prescribing treatment. Certainly some economists, those of a naturopath persuasion, would say the best thing was to just let the patient rest and let it cure itself, while other more conventional ones would recommend some form of medicine. Some, of the homeopathic persuasion, would dare to recommend more public spending in order to cure the deficit. Others, however, would suggest more extreme measures such as amputation (this school is gaining followers in Spain). But if the economists put the patient’s interests first they will arrive at a treatment that perhaps contains an element of each of these, each applied during different phases of the illness.

So how can it be that the patient simply gets sicker? This is the fundamental difference between medical practice and the economist’s sad profession. The individual patient usually pays attention to the doctor’s recommendations and submits to the prescribed treatment even if it is unpleasant. They will swallow bitter pills, submit to injections and all form of physical manipulation. On the other hand, those responsible for a sick economy tend only to adopt those of the economist’s recommendations that are painless or are in their own personal interests, and call all the other measures into question. While the patient may recognize that their illness is often the result of their bad habits and promises to mend their ways, those responsible for the economy tend to blame everything on the previous government, an international conspiracy, on the bad harvest and in general on everybody except themselves. Moreover, they will do it with such virulence that it is not uncommon for the economist who insists that the medicine they have prescribed is indispensable to end up in jail or exile. The difference between the effectiveness of the doctor and the economist therefore does not reside so much in differences of knowledge, although they exist, as in the disposition of the patient.

Can economic data and arguments be of any use to ordinary people in their daily life? Of course. Economics after all, is a term that derives from home management, and this continues to be a good guide. A family with good habits usually has a solid economy. Bad economic habits in the family context have the same bad consequences when they are extrapolated across the entire country. If the national accounts don’t add up the same things happen as when the family budget doesn’t (although the disaster may take a long time to emerge). Economists can offer ordinary people two pieces of advice: firstly that they don’t let their government do what they wouldn’t do at home and secondly that they won’t let them make decisions that they don’t understand. Isn’t this useful advice?

Article by Prof. Alfredo Pastor published in the IESE Alumni Magazine #129.

Josep Piqué: “We Need to Adopt an Approach Based on Ethics”

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

"Spain’s economic crisis will come to an end sooner or later thanks to the adjustments made over recent years and through everyone’s hard work. However, there is another serious and worrying crisis: Spanish people are losing faith in their politicians their institutions. This will only change if we can offer society and approach based on ethics," said Josep Piqué, the president of Vueling airlines, in an address to IESE alumni in Barcelona on April 9. The session was titled "Values and Excellence in Management" and was organized by the Alumni Association and moderated by Prof. Joan E. Ricart.

Piqué said in his speech that it was essential the political class recover its prestige. "The stable bipartisan approach of recent decades is unthinkable now, given our politicians failure to represent the people. For this reason, beyond our economic problems, we have to be able to create a common strategic goal and communicate what it means to society so that people want to share and participate in it," he said.

He added that the entire process has to be guided by values. "We have to demand complete integrity from our leaders, business people and institutions. The only recipe for overcoming the present situation is to focus on ethics, exemplary behavior, coherence, hard work, respect and truth," Piqué concluded.

In Search of Excellence

Piqué was followed by Santiago Tarín, vice president of the Asociación para la Búsqueda de la Excelencia (Association for Excellence) and president of Master Consulting Grupo, an initiative that brings together representatives of various Spanish companies to foment the idea that values and excellence must form the basis of Spanish executive and institutional practice. "The association is pursuing a goal that is very easy to describe and very difficult to attain, that is, for society to produce better people. In order to do this, we wish to communicate that business success can and must be inseparable from high standards, rigor and commitment, as well as ethics, integrity and respect. If we are to create a more mature and just society, then young people must understand and follow this example," Tarín said.

What Makes a Good Executive?

During the early part of the session, Prof. Jaume Llopis discussed values and excellence in management by describing the career paths of successful executives from all over the world, careers that he has analyzed over eight years along with Prof. Ricart and from which emerged the book Qué hacen los buenos directivos: El reto del siglo XXI (What Makes a Good Executive? A 21st Century Challenge).

Among other aspects, Llopis revealed that executives who have achieved sustained success make a clear distinction between leading (vision and change) and directing (management). He added that they "tended to demand a lot of themselves, as well as being knowledgeable and honest. They also exhibited a spirit of service, an ability to manage conflict, a balanced personal life, passion and values. Good executives create the future in their heads and communicate it, design a business model and surround themselves with people who share their mission and aims."

Revitalizing the Economy

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE’s New York Center is hosting a Business Competitiveness Council (CEC) event today, April 10. Speakers at the event will be Ignacio Sánchez Galán, chairman of Iberdrola and Angel Ubide, Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute, who will deliver a session titled, "Spain: A Land of Opportunities."

The session will feature conclusions of a recent report describing adjustments made in the Spanish economy and the implementation of structural reforms that are set to contribute to revitalizing the economy. The study highlights a number of the country’s key attributes such as a highly educated workforce, quality infrastructure and positive geopolitical positioning. IESE professors José Manuel Campa, Alfredo Pastor and Juan José Toribio contributed to the report.

The CEC created in February 2011, is spearheaded by 15 major Spanish companies and the Instituto de Empresa Familiar (Spain's Family Firm Institute). CEC member companies employ 1.7 million people in Spain and their combined revenue accounts for 35 percent of Spanish GDP.

Among the leading companies that form part of the CEC are Inditex, Acciona, BBVA, Ferrovial, Iberdrola, Mango and Repsol. The council is currently presided by César Alierta, CEO of Telefónica.

Annual Flagship Meeting Draws IESE Graduates

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

IESE's UK Alumni Chapter held its "Annual Flagship Event" in London on Wednesday, April 3. The event included the participation of Baroness Denise Kingsmill, who delivered the presentation "Corporate Governance: The Role of the Board of Directors."

Also providing remarks during the meeting was IESE Dean Jordi Canals, who introduced the session. More than 120 IESE graduates and invited guests were in attendance at the event, which featured a Q&A session after the main presentations.

Baroness Denise Kingsmill CBE is a member of House of Lords and a member of IESE's International Advisory Board (IAB).

Her career has encompassed periods as a Deputy Chair of the UK Competition Commission (the UK´s principle anti-trust agency) and a director of PLC, private, not for profit and government boards. She headed two Government enquires in 2001 and 2003, into women´s pay and employment and the economic management of labour. In 2007 she led an enquiry into health of fashion models on behalf of the British fashion council and the Mayor of London.

Connected Stocks, Basis of a Good Investment Strategy

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 22:00:00 GMT

Some stock market values behave in very similar ways. These are what are called "connected stocks" which up until now were connected in terms of size, sector or the company's geographical location. But the fact that they also have shareholders in common also influences their behaviour, says IESE Prof. Miguel Antón, who encourages investors to keep an eye on this phenomenon in order to buy low and sell high.