Alberto Rubio
Giving recognition and visibility to Spanish managerial talent and boosting Spain’s image abroad are the main objectives of Conexión España, a new public-private platform that was presented yesterday at the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, in the presence of the Minister of Industry, Reyes Maroto.
The initiative also aims to facilitate the connection between Spanish executives, both expatriates and residents in the country, to promote the exchange of knowledge and experiences. The promoters of this public-private alliance are, in addition to the Chamber of Commerce, the Institute of Foreign Trade (ICEX), the Leading Brands of Spain Forum and the Spanish Confederation of Managers and Executives (CEDE).
During the presentation, the President of the Chamber of Commerce, José Luis Bonet, pointed out that the aim of Conexión España is to “bring together, help and accompany” Spanish executives abroad, as well as to promote alliances that result in greater productivity. In other words, as the CEO of ICEX, María Peña, emphasised, “to generate virtuous circles in our internationalisation”.
On behalf of the Leading Brands Forum, its president, Ignacio Osborne, stressed that this project should improve “the competitiveness of our companies and the visibility of the Spain Brand“. Ramón Adell, Vice-President of the CEDE Foundation, went on to say that “this is a good way to show the world the talent of Spanish managers” and suggested that it is important to promote “as a matter of state” the training of managers in Spain.
During the closing ceremony, the Minister of Industry, Reyes Maroto, stressed that “Spain exports talent”, as demonstrated by the fact that human capital is precisely “one of our great strengths, which international investors value enormously”.
The platform also has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as an institutional partner. By filling in a simple form, both Spanish and foreign managers from anywhere in the world can join the platform. It currently has 405 members in 58 countries, four of whom participated in the presentation by video conference. Conexión España aims to be, as its leaders define it, “the bridge that connects Spanish management talent around the world”.
