Mar Alarcón: "Learning can be a difficult gift to unwrap"

Mar Alarcónis an entrepreneur. With a Law degree and PDD from IESE, she worked as a lawyer at Cuatrecasas and trained in London and Beijing. Her dream was to be a judge and she was the shadow of the Nobel Peace Prize winner,Muhammad Yunus. At Grameen Bank, she learned that "social businesses are possible." She is passionate about social entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainability. She has (co)founded SocialEnergy, SocialCar, 19N Strategies, and Terap. Her great partner and life companion isFrancesc Queralt. Alarcón is also vice-president of Foment del Treball, is on the board of Tech Barcelona, is a director of Fira de Barcelona and an ambassador for Barcelona Health Hub, among others. Dedicate herself to politics? She has been proposed it, but says she doesn't have thick enough skin and prefers to do public service from the private sector and civil society. Always with dialogue. "It's not the end if it's not a good end," she concludes. Let's go back to the beginning.--- Her dream was to be a judge.I had always wanted to be an architect until math got in my way. In my family, everyone is an entrepreneur or a doctor. I have a very keen sense of justice, and this led me to study Law.--- All for a matter of right.I finished my degree and didn't see myself locked up reciting topics. I joined Cuatrecasas' tax and commercial department because that's where there was the most demand. Taxes didn't passionate me, and I was very interested in civil law, especially family and inheritance law. I was there for five years and did a master's in taxation.--- A legal vision.--- With great human quality. I also did many due diligence, restructuring and absorption of companies, IPOs, taxes, account closings, inspections… Exciting. These are knowledge that have always accompanied me when creating and building a company. Being a jurist and having a legal vision of both the economy and the company.--- It was found on "Groundhog Day".I lived on Calvet street, I took the bus to go to the Deutsche Bank building ---now Casa Seat--- and I remember that every day was the same. I needed to move. I couldn't keep earning merits until I became a partner at the firm, look back and then see that my whole life had already passed me by. It was hard for my family to understand that I left Cuatrecasas, but I wanted to make a change.--- A change of job and country?I did a master's degree in international law and taxation at the University of London. I was very interested in China and studied all of Deng Xiaoping's economic and legal reforms to open up to the world. I also started studying the country's history and learned Chinese. I even got a fold-out from the Musée de Orsay about Chinese history: Opium Wars, People's Republic, Mao Zedong... And what did I decide? To goand to China. My partner, Francesc Queralt, was doing a leadership job and had to follow a leader and he just happened to have Muhammad Yunus's email.

--- The last time you worked for someone else was at Muhammad Yunus' Grameen Bank.

--- We were very interested in social finance and microcredits. Muhammad Yunus was in Dhaka, Bangladesh and told us he had a program for foreigners that we could access. We wanted to be his shadow and do ashadowing projectThe country was poor and had high density, a lot of corruption, and many floods. A drama.--- How is the experience of being the shadow of a Nobel Peace Prize winner?Brutal! Yunus gives off superhuman energy. He seemed like an alien. We traveled with him to different branches of Grameen Bank and everyone received him as if he were the Pope. We also went to dorecruitingof women below the poverty line. It was very striking to see what worried them, while their restless husbands waited outside to see what was happening.--- And what was happening?The women were not allowed to touch money and Yunus gave them credits. I also remember a day when they paid him tribute as if he were God in a sports center at over 40 degrees or a board meeting where he acted as our translator for all the topics discussed. I have not seen anyone with more charisma, humility, and greatness than him.

"I have not seen anyone with more charisma, humility, and greatness than Muhammad Yunus"

--- He then learned that "social businesses are possible."

--- Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) must be part of a company's DNA and have a positive impact on the planet. Businesses that pollute the planet and then do a facelift are not valid. Today, the same thing happens with sustainability. I still remember in 2000 when the startupssounded like a refreshing drink. We participated with Francesc in the first contest ofstartupsorganized by Mckinsey and IESE and we won with the Social Bank project. Now, the younger the better and before, the younger the worse.--- The young victory of microcredits!The banks didn't believe it then, but afterwards they all launched their microcredit model. Now, the concept of social business is much more mature. Before, they would ask you if you were crazy giving money to the poor. Imagine a business with its profit and loss statement that generates an impact on society. --- The seed of Social Energy was born with her husband in China.Amadeu Jansanafrom Casa Asia informed me that there was a scholarship from the ICO Foundation, we applied and they gave it to us. If you put your mind to it, everything works out. At first, I couldn't quite believe I was in China, but I adapted and got into a routine within a pre-Olympic Beijing where everyone was very competitive and didn't help you much.

"Businesses that pollute the planet and then do a facelift are not valid"

--- Is love a good business?

--- We created Social Energy taking advantage of the regulatory moment and the impulse of renewable energies in Spain. Unfortunately, the regulation wiped out the sector in one fell swoop. Francesc and I have always been together and have done everything together, from business to life decisions. Now we are starting to have some separate things.--- The key to good coexistence?--- Accept the other and support each other. Celebrate their successes. We have always considered ourselves very different, but we are actually very similar: creative, curious, not afraid of risk…--- Now it's exactly a decade since they took a risk together with SocialCar.We have transformed mobility with a collaborative economy platform, but we have had to row a lot. Evangelization is very hard. Doing something new, explaining it, making an effort and having the will... To work your skin off to communicate a message that you know has a positive impact on your pocket, sustainability and innovation. In fact, insurers innovated thanks to us. SocialCar dragged the other platforms because we had the best regulatory approach.--- The evangelization of a new mobility.The worst part? The effort to disseminate, convince, and change behaviors. It has been a titanic task. The best part? The awards, the recognitions, and the transformation of the sector. Many people have won and many have thought about the need to own a vehicle.

"Evangelization and convincing people of the benefits of innovation are titanic tasks"

--- And the need for the collaborative economy?--- We founded 19N Strategies with ÀngelMesado

El presidente de la República, Gabriel Boric, se refirió este lunes a la conmemoración de los 50 años del golpe de Estado, que se cumplirá el próximo 11 de septiembre, y a la polémica que se ha generado en torno a la fecha.

En ese contexto, el Mandatario hizo un llamado a “no empatar las responsabilidades” y a “no falsear la historia”.

“No es aceptable que se falsee la historia, que se relativicen o se justifiquen violaciones a los derechos humanos, o que se empaten las responsabilidades entre quienes fueron víctimas y victimarios”, dijo Boric en un acto en el Palacio de La Moneda.

El jefe de Estado también se refirió a la propuesta de algunos sectores de la oposición de firmar una declaración conjunta con el oficialismo, en la que se condene el golpe de Estado y se valore la democracia.

Al respecto, Boric señaló que “no es el momento de buscar acuerdos mínimos, sino de avanzar en la construcción de una memoria compartida que nos permita mirar el futuro con esperanza”.

“No se trata de imponer una verdad oficial, sino de reconocer los hechos tal como ocurrieron, de condenar las violaciones a los derechos humanos y de valorar la democracia como el único camino para resolver nuestras diferencias”, agregó.

El Presidente Boric también hizo un llamado a la unidad y a la reflexión, y a “no caer en la tentación de la polarización y la división”.

“Chile es un país que ha sabido levantarse de sus tragedias, y estoy seguro de que esta vez no será la excepción”, concluyó.

We had worked hard to defend the collaborative economy, which later became the platform economy. We evangelized a new concept of the economy. Àngel was clear that he wanted to create a consultancy and did not want to work for anyone else. I encouraged him, and we became partners. Our playbook is companies that have a disruptive and innovative business model, bringing a groundbreaking value proposition to the market. --- To change the market, one must dialogue.It is essential to have a dialogue with the public administration, the regulator, institutions, and even traditional companies. You have to show what you do and what impact it has. Another titanic task: to convince of the benefits of innovation. There are thebelieversand thehaters.

--- Is the administration a believer or a hater?

--- It depends on the person you have on the other side of the table. The interlocutor is key. We think about dialogue and sharing a table, but you'd be amazed how many times there are people who don't want to sit down and talk. --- Is more and better public-private collaboration needed?---There is a lot of public-private collaboration, but it needs to be a winning one. It doesn't have to be for budget or just for the sake of doing. There is a lot of public budget allocated to concepts that will never work and only serve to plant a flag.

--- Plant a flag?

--- We need to have an objective, activity, and dialogue. What do we want to do? Not just to plant a flag or flex muscles. For example, Barcelona Activa has been a transformative agent for entrepreneurship and SMEs in the Catalan capital. There are projects that can only be understood through public-private collaboration like Fira de Barcelona to position the city as an economic engine.

"There is a lot of public budget allocated to planting a flag. We need to have an objective, activity, and dialogue"

--- How do you see Barcelona?

--- Barcelona is a privileged and resilient city. Now everyone says Madrid is beautiful, but we've also had Barcelona beautiful!--- And now no longer?It's circular: there are ups and downs. In Barcelona we have the sea and we have been merchants since the Middle Ages. We have many ingredients that make us privileged and from there it depends on how we work it.--- And how do we work on it?We can take care of or mistreat the city, and in fact, there's a bit of everything. The great advantage Barcelona has is the civil society that takes care of it and feels proud. If we want to take care of the city, we have to do it for real. It bothers me a lot when I hear thisrun runthat Barcelona is so bad because sometimes the verb is worse than the action. We do ourselves no good as a city by spreading thisrun run.--- The rumor in the streets…The refrain must be changed.

"The great advantage Barcelona has is the civil society that takes care of it and feels proud"

--- Threats and opportunities?

--- I will not talk about Barcelona airport. We must not rest on our laurels and we must always keep our eyes wide open and see where progress is going and what other cities are doing. Brexit was a very good opportunity for European cities and, for example, the Netherlands has positioned itself as the best country to study. I understand that it is not as easy as it seems because public and private agents have to agree and not everyone rows in the same direction. --- Between the south and the north... Which is the direction?The direction is about talent and people. The Barcelona Health Hub has found a great opportunity and has positioned itself in the Hospital de Sant Pau. We have the basic ingredients and there is no need to convince anyone to invest in Barcelona, but when investing, one must find a suitable environment. Sometimes we ourselves are our worst threat. --- A recipe for mental health and emotional well-being?There is a great need for accompaniment in certain life experiences. In September 2021, I co-founded Terap, which is a software and platform that provides tools and content on mental health. You can find the professional who best suits you and not just the one recommended by word-of-mouth. We all have to take care of our mental health, just as we go to the gym. At any point in life, you may need help due to a job change, a house move, an illness, or a bereavement. Or perhaps simply because you are not well.--- What can we do to be well?--- Read articles, watch videos, buy books, do therapy or a group session. Terap destigmatizes mental health and democratizes access to its professionals.

"We must destigmatize mental health and democratize access to its professionals"

--- Do companies also do therapy?

--- More and more companies are fortunately concerned about the mental health of their workers. The highest rates of sick leave in Spain are due to depression and anxiety. We don't have to be a parent to the worker, but since we talk so much about putting them at the center, we can at least offer them support. This is already done with acoach, it can also be done with a mental health professional. And confidentiality is very important.--- Have you ever thought about going into politics?It won't be for lack of proposals... But, I have a suicidal vocation for public service and I am much more useful from the private sector and civil society. With 19N we also work for the administration. I don't know if I have thick enough skin to dedicate myself to politics and I see it more for the end of my career. Being a politician is a great responsibility and you have to do it well.--- What does it mean to do well in politics?To have no other interest than the vocation of public service. This must be the only engine that drives a politician.--- What should a good leader have?--- Capacity to transform. It sounds a bit spiritual, but one must not be rooted in things and must flow more. We need people who flow and make others flow. One must learn to let go of leadership. Sometimes we want to keep the helm, but it's worth knowing how to pass it on. Each moment needs a different leadership. A good leader needs to transform, let go, know how to flow, and know how to pass the helm when necessary.

"The only engine that drives a politician must be the vocation of public service"

--- The previous interviewee of Persona a persona, Manel del Castillo, asks you the following question: "Can one learn and benefit from negative experiences?"

--- Without a doubt. Negative experiences make you evolve as a person and are difficult gifts to unwrap. First, you have a bad time, you suffer, and you feel like throwing in the towel, but then you peel back layers and in the end, a gift arrives, which is the learning you keep in your backpack. --- A piece of advice for falling and getting back up again?Have patience. Don't want to rush. Everything comes. It's not the end if it's not a good end.-Good ending.

---

SEVEN LIVES

1. Referent: Helena Guardans
2. Book: Perfume by Patrick Suskind
3. Movie: Braveheart by Mel Gibson
4. Song: Roar by Katy Perry
5. Favorite spot: Simatai (The Great Wall)
6. Life motto: Every day the sun rises
7. Dream: Never stop dreaming

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