Avenida Diagonal is one of the main arteries in the heart of Barcelona, conceived by Ildefons Cerdà. Its diagonal traverse of the city goes from the Fòrum park to the entrance of Esplugues de Llobregat, passing through Meridiana, Gran Via, Paseo de Sant Joan or Paseo de Gràcia, among others. They say that on Diagonal, the economic, cultural, and social present and future of Barcelona are defined. That is why we have titled this series of articles Por La Diagonal. The objective of this section is to explain what is brewing behind the scenes of Diagonal and also a little beyond. Let's begin.
Seeing Ferran Adrià (El Bulli Foundation) and Martina Puigvert (Les Cols) working in tandem at IESE during the first Pimec Joves congress is not to be missed. Ferran Adrià started working as a dishwasher because he wanted to earn money to travel to Ibiza and in a few years he became the best chef in the world. "I have spent one day with Steve Jobs, two days with Amancio Ortega and three days with Bill Gates," jokes the chef. He says that El Bulli did not close due to a money issue but due to physical and mental exhaustion and adds that being an entrepreneur is looking for problems, but that he still wants to learn.
Someone we surely could have learned from is the economist Vicenç Oller, who was the first Minister of Industry of the Generalitat and had a great impact on Catalan political and business life at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. As an anecdote, Oller would summon everyone to talk at the Casal de Santa Amèlia. It was not Santa Amèlia, but the Palau Macaya that hosted The tribute to Vicenç Oller – Catalonia 1980-2024: From (de) to reindustrialization organized by Intermedia and La Fundación La Caixa and which brought together Jordi Hereu, Minister of Industry, Miquel Sàmper, Minister of Business and Work, or Jordi Pujol, President of the Generalitat (1980-2003), among others.
Although talking about structural reforms may not seem "politically correct," Jordi Gual (IESE) and Jaume Guardiola (Círculo de Economía) already launched a first warning from Macaya: "Our economy is in decline compared to the economies around us." The delay in productivity and competitiveness is flagrant, and researching companies is "essential." Josep Sánchez Llibre (Foment del Treball) insists that conditions can be met for Catalonia to have an industrial GDP of 25% by 2030, although the current reality is around 18%. They say all roads lead to Rome, and the Italians Enrico Letta and Mario Draghi have already set Europe's path on single market and competitiveness issues. The president of Foment warns that it is worth taking seriously if we do not want "Europe to be the spa for the world's retirees." His reindustrialization recipe includes public-private collaboration, business friendly policies, innovation, affordable energy, and competitive taxation, among others.
"Do you care about those who care about you?" asked Ninna Torres, president of the Círculo Cecot de Jóvenes during the 29th Business Night of the Vallès employers' association held at the Auditori de Barcelona, which awarded the personality of Joan Planes Villa (Fluidra) and the centenary trajectory of Editorial Clie, Casas, and Companyia General Càrnia, among others. Time tests business resilience.
In this regard, the president of Cecot, Xavier Panés, called for an urgent reform of the Administration, which is "excessive and inefficient," while highlighting the crisis of confidence as a brake on growth and progress and insisting on the importance of social dialogue. "There cannot be a good country without a good administration, and it makes no sense to spend more time filling out forms than producing or selling," he added. The president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, picked up the employers' message and responded in terms of professionalization: "Public administration needs good managers, well-trained and well-paid."
At the end of this November, a multitudinous event of the Civil Society Agreement of the Public Administration Reform Forum (FERA) will be held at the Llotja de Mar with the aim of disseminating a unitary message about the urgency of administrative reform. Bureaucracy reduction, professionalization of public management, and more efficient transparency and digitalization are FERA's main demands. More in-depth discussion will follow very soon.
The recently appointed Nobel laureates in Economics, Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson, argue in their famous book Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty that the strength of institutions fully impacts the prosperity of countries. They are not wrong. Professor Xavier Sala-i-Martin has been quoting this pair of economists for years and their theory, about which he asserts that "inclusive countries progress because everyone has opportunities to progress, learn, and implement ideas. Extractive countries fail." Between inclusion and extraction lies the difference in prosperity.
Eloi Planes insisted that culture needs support in the form of a "strong and clear" legislative framework.Without intending to give any spoilers, Xavier Panés also insisted on the importance of approving the Catalan patronage law as soon as possible. Coincidence or not, the 10th anniversary gala of the Fundació Catalunya Culturawas held at the Teatre Lliure just hours after Cecot's Business Night. The President of the Parliament, Josep Rull, said he wants to pass the Patronage Law during this legislature and the president of the Foundation and of Fluidra,Eloi Planes, insisted that culture needs support in the form of a "strong and clear" legislative framework. Fighting for a reform of the patronage law at the state level also seemed impossible, but it was achieved. Now the Catalan case remains pending and, as a good example, we already have the French case. The Fundació Catalunya Cultura emerged from a first meeting in 2014 with minister Ferran Mascarell and that day will be 10 years ago. We celebrate the transformative and social power of culture and all those companies that are committed to the cultural world. Definitely, ensuring that culture, business and society occupy the place they deserve is a matter of country.
During the XXIII Conference of the Gresol Foundation, I was able to share a public colloquium in Mediterranean style with Carlos Puig de Travy, dean of the College of Economists and president of audit and consulting at Crowe in Spain. We talked about flexibility, resilience, sustainability and innovation, but also about regional financing and public-private collaboration. The dean argues that the financing system must be reviewed to have greater territorial autonomy and achieve a strategic use of resources that benefits society as a whole. Among the main challenges for Catalonia, he places immigration and demographic growth, infrastructure, mobility and transport, and the aforementioned Public Administration Reform.
Right there I was able to hear the story of Mediapro told by one of its founders Tatxo Benet now that 30 years have passed since the largest production company in Spain and leader in the European audiovisual market began its journey from Barcelona. "We are a rara avis in the audiovisual ecosystem. We saw that if we wanted to do something important, we shouldn't specialize in anything specific. We surrounded ourselves with very good people," he explains. Mediapro today bills more than 1.3 billion euros and has more than 7,000 employees worldwide. Tatxo Benet admits that as a journalist he never imagined creating a company, but that the desire for freedom and independence led him to undertake. "Wanting to be your own boss, taking responsibility and not giving explanations. Being the owner of your shares," he reflects. According to Benet, "leadership is a constant commitment to talent and innovation, but without good leadership, talent is lost. Starting a company doesn't exist, things come from your knowledge."
By the way, it is worth revisiting the speech given by Nobel Peace Prize winner, Mikhail Gorbachev, at the Gresol Conference, presented by Antoni Pont, honorary president of Borges and the Gresol Foundation. That was a little over 20 years ago, but a legacy remains that we should never forget: the art of negotiation. The art of negotiation is more necessary than ever in times of geopolitical uncertainty. Where important issues have surely been discussed and negotiated is in the popularly known civet of "concord" organized by businessman Luis Conde and with the attendance of a broad representation of Catalan civil society at the Masía de Fonteta. They say that singular financing and BBVA's takeover bid for Banc Sabadell occupied a place of honor on the menu.
Before finishing and without losing sight of the OPA, it is worth mentioning the recent movements that have taken place in the La Caixa universe. One of the best strongholds to gauge how Catalan business is progressing. CriteriaCaixa is the investment holding company of the La Caixa Foundation, chaired by Isidre Fainé and directed by Àngel Simón. Both from Manresa. Criteria continues its particular path of industrial reconquest with important operations in Telefónica, ACS, Colonial or Puig, among others. The most recent news has been the transfer of shares that Criteria held in Saba to the Belgian company Interparking in exchange for 18% of the multinational's capital. The objective is for Saba to be Interparking's headquarters in Southern Europe and to create "the largest parking group in Europe" with this operation.
The last-minute news that has caught more than one by surprise is the change in the presidency of CaixaBank: a Catalan for a BasqueThe last-minute news that has caught more than one by surprise is the change in the presidency of CaixaBank with the entry ofTomàs Muniesaand the exit ofJosé Ignacio Goirigolzarri. A Catalan for a Basque, awaiting definition in the coming weeks and months of what the entity's strategic plan will be for the coming years. A good way to turn the page on the CaixaBank and Bankia merger that filled a large part of the economic headlines of 2021, also following the recommendations of the European Central Bank (ECB) on non-executive presidencies of financial entities. Muniesa, who joined Caja de Pensiones in 1976, is one of the symbols of La Caixa's Masía, with extensive experience in the insurance sector and who has Fainé's full confidence.
Finally, Foment del Treball canceled the celebration of the XVII Carles Ferrer Salat Awards as a sign of condolence with the victims of DANA. We remain alert to the collapse and tragedy of the floods. The Barcelona City Council will give 300,000 euros and will hold a solidarity concert to help the areas affected by DANA in Valencia. In moments like these, I believe that above all, planning, vision, and trust are needed. What political scientist Francis Fukuyama describes in its broadest sense as technical knowledge, experience, capacity, critical spirit, and impartiality when deciding.
See you very soon on La Diagonal.