CEOE together with Faculta Group, they start the First Spanish Study of Organizational Capacity for Change Management. The Organizational Capacity for Change Management is the set of competencies that an organization presents. This capacity is actually one of the most important indicators to know the possibilities that a company has to be competitive in a business environment, which is characterized by increasingly rapid and disruptive changes.

STUDY CONTENT

To carry out this study, from CEOE Y Empowers A questionnaire has been prepared that companies must answer and that includes different aspects such as:

• Socialization
• Standardization
• Leadership

In this way, it is possible to know, among other things, the level of knowledge that exists within companies, of the value that change management brings and if the organization has an executive leader who promotes the construction of the organizational capacity to manage the change. Companies that have a strong ability to manage change become outstanding organizations and transform change into a competitive advantage.

So much Empowers how CEOE they hope to have a large number of companies participating in this study, which will allow us to know first-hand what is the path they have taken to undertake change management.

For Javier Calderón, Director of Companies and Organizations of CEOE, "We want this first Change Management Study in Spain to become a sure predictor of the chances of success of organizational transformation initiatives. In a volatile, uncertain and ambiguous business environment, companies are immersed in transformation processes to achieve success. It is precisely this capacity that we want to measure with this study”.

In the words of Roberto Konigs, Founding Partner of Faculta Group, "At a time when companies in our country have to respond to the challenges that the environment presents them, having a solid capacity to manage change is essential. This study aims to become an X-ray that will allow us to understand the reality of the ability to manage change in Spanish companies. We hope to have a large number of companies that provide us with their opinion and experience ”.

CEOE President Antonio Garamendi highlighted the importance of physical, digital and human infrastructures in the post-Covid stage, during the CAF 2020 virtual conference, held under the slogan “Europe-Latin America Relations, an alliance for economic recovery ”. At the event, inaugurated by the executive president of CAF, Luis Carranza and the Secretary of State for Economy and Business Support of Spain, Ana de la Cueva, prominent authorities and senior representatives of institutions, business organizations and companies from both regions participated . The meeting, organized by CAF, in collaboration with CEOE and Casa de América, was divided into two panels, which addressed, on the one hand, the bi-regional vision for economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic; and on the other, investment in physical and digital infrastructure as an engine for recovery in the Region.

The Ibero-American Secretary General, Rebeca Grynspan; the Ministers of Economy and Finance of Uruguay, Azucena Arbeleche, and of Ecuador, Mauricio Pozo; the Secretary of State for the Economy and Business Support of Spain, Ana de la Cueva; the European Commissioner for International Associations; Jutta Urpilainen; the executive president of CAF, Luis Carranza; European representative of the Bank, José Antonio García Belaunde; CAF's vice president of Infrastructure, Antonio Silveira; the Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Emma Navarro; the general director of CEOE Internacional and permanent secretary of CEIB, Narciso Casado; the executive director of ProPanamá, Carmen Gisela Vergara; the general director of Casa de América, Antonio Pérez-Hernández; Alstom's Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Philippe Delleur; the CEO of Infrastructures of Acciona; Luis Castilla; and the correspondent for the International Economy of El País, Alicia González.

Infrastructures, training, public-private collaboration and sustainability

CEOE president, Antonio Garamendi, highlighted in his speech the importance of physical and digital infrastructure; but, above all, the best infrastructures that a country has, which are people and social dialogue. For the future of Latin America in the post-Covid era, he opted for unity of action, market freedom, multilateralism and public-private collaboration. He also assured that "digitization is globalization and needs to be accompanied by both innovation and training, both fundamental factors to achieve the goals that we set". Another priority, which will become a milestone of the 21st century, he stressed, is sustainability, which had its origin in energy and the circular economy; and that it will also depend on another indispensable element, industry, which is the engine that drives the rest of the economy. These challenges that Latin America has to face, he pointed out, should also be seen as opportunities to face economic recovery, "they are not challenges for a few, but for everyone as a whole, so we must overcome them together." For this reason, he added, to advance in these areas, CAF's work is key, especially to provide support to SMEs, which are the nucleus of economies; and assured that the Development Bank of Latin America has been a strategic partner of the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs (CEIB) and CEOE for years.

Garamendi made a series of recommendations, as a roadmap to follow, to achieve progress in Latin America. It opted for legal security, to generate credibility and attract investment; by consensus and social dialogue, to reach agreements; for a more flexible regulatory framework adapted to changes; and for public-private collaboration, to improve efficiency and quality in the provision of public services, both in the field of education and health, and in infrastructure. Likewise, it considered essential the conservation of the productive fabric, through measures that are already working, such as guarantee lines or ERTEs; reindustrialization to generate quality and better paid employment; innovation and digitization of the productive fabric, of SMEs and public administrations; and equal opportunities and inclusive growth, through training and education. "This game we are going to win together, but we have to play game by game," he said.

Europe, a strategic partner

CAF's executive president, Luis Carranza, highlighted the need to forge strategic alliances with the European Union. In this sense, he highlighted the excellent relations that the Bank has maintained with Spain for more than 18 years, not only in the intense public-private collaboration that it maintains in the field of infrastructure, but also because of the support that has been channeled in the Region through different instruments in sectors such as innovation, water, agribusiness, and the common challenge they share to help SMEs and to develop a true industrial framework that allows establishing a regional value chain.

The Secretary of State for the Economy and Business Support of Spain, Ana de la Cueva, advocated promoting the growth of a sustainable economy in Latin America, which will not be possible without infrastructure as a backbone. To make this possible, "it is essential to strengthen multilateralism if we want to get out of the crisis." He also highlighted the role of banks to mobilize unprecedented resources that can help countries, and the importance of combining efforts from the public and private sectors to come out of this situation together. He also stressed the need for more effective regional and bilateral cooperation. "A global crisis requires global responses," he said.

Towards economic recovery after the pandemic: a bi-regional vision

The Ibero-American Secretary General, Rebeca Grynspan, spoke in the first panel of the day, moderated by the correspondent for the International Economy of El País, Alicia González. During the same, he assured that the pre-Covid structural conditions have interacted with the pandemic, and have accentuated the pre-existing gaps. He also considered that the way out of this crisis will be uneven depending on the regions and, in the case of Latin America, it cannot get out of this delicate situation alone, it will need the help of multilateral financial organizations and urged the G20 to demonstrate in favor of the Region. Europe has to be a fundamental partner to help Latin America emerge from this crisis, since, lacking the necessary tools, its recovery will be slower.

The Ministers of Economy and Finance of Ecuador, Mauricio Pozo and of Uruguay, Azucena Arbeleche; as well as the Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Emma Navarro, highlighted that Latin America will not be able to face the recovery in the Region without the support of the international community and financial organizations. "The role of the multilateral and cooperation is crucial to advance in the context of the pandemic," they stressed.

Investment in physical and digital infrastructure, engine for economic recovery

The permanent secretary of CEIB and general director of CEOE Internacional, Narciso Casado, presented the second panel of the day on the importance of physical and digital infrastructures, since they are the engine of recovery in the Region. In this sense, he assured that infrastructures are a dynamic element of economic growth, through the improvement of productivity and as a consolidation of social development, through the reduction of poverty and the promotion of the middle class. "In Latin America there is a great need for investment that allows us to promote equity, the development of city environments, social and educational development and institutional development," he said. The concept of physical infrastructure as such, he reported, emerged at the last Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government, which was held in La Antigua, Guatemala, in 2018, and in which it was recognized that transportation infrastructure in Latin America it showed a general lag in relation to current and future needs, especially when compared to other regions with similar incomes. Development in Latin America, in his opinion, is strongly affected by the lack of investment in infrastructure, and therefore, the efforts made in this regard by governments and multilateral financing organizations will be fundamental especially in the post-Covid stage.

With regard to innovation and digital transformation, he assured that both factors are essential to face the recovery, physical infrastructures are not enough. Casado stressed that digitization is not an option, but absolutely necessary and has come to stay. In addition, he pointed out, it facilitates opportunities for interaction, reinvention of systems, work protocols and professional relationships. "Latin America has a huge opportunity in digital transformation to improve its productivity, this being one of the great challenges for companies in the Region," he insisted. On the other hand, he opted for an inclusive digital transformation, having access to technology is key to addressing production gaps. Entrepreneurship, education and innovation are three indisputable pillars to tackle the challenge of transformation, to which should be added the ability to collaborate; and the interrelation between investment, innovation and productivity is the most appropriate formula for Ibero-American development, he concluded.

Sustainable planning and infrastructure

CAF's Vice President of Infrastructure, Antonio Silveira, assured that, in the face of economic recovery through infrastructures, it must be analyzed strategically, seeing the actions that are necessary in the short term and developing adequate planning and a plan of long-term sustained financing. Simple schemes are needed that can mobilize the population and generate income immediately. It would be necessary to carry out, he explained, maintenance programs, rapid execution, integrated mobility projects, and generate the digital capacity that passes through the infrastructure and human capital. In this sense, he assured that, according to the IMF, 40,000 jobs are created for every 1,000 million dollars.

The executive director of ProPanamá, for her part, reported on the projects that are being carried out in the area, and reported that Central America is betting on the construction of roads, trains, water treatment plants or power plants. The region contemplates the development of infrastructure, he stressed, not only in the short term, but also looking to the future, in order for it to influence the improvement of competitiveness and productivity at the regional level. This area is one of the most important for the government of Panama, he explained, and a national plan has been developed that focuses on two pillars: construction and attraction of foreign direct investment. The infrastructure sector is essential to promote trade and tourism, which have been hit hard by the pandemic, he said.

ACCIONA's CEO of Infrastructure, Luis Castilla, in turn, recommended not to paralyze the activities of execution and maintenance of infrastructure, since they will be essential for the speed of return in society. After the initial shock, he said, infrastructure projects have shown that they are capable of living with the pandemic, as long as there is good collaboration between the public and private sectors, workers are protected, and activity can be maintained. Well-organized activities can complement each other, he added. Likewise, he urged those present to make a deep reflection on the contractual models that we have at the moment, since the majority started with legal models from the 20th century, even from the 19th century. "For faster returns, you need faster and more flexible environments so that everything works better," he said. In addition, the planning and development of sustainable infrastructures are essential for exiting the crisis, he concluded.

Alstom's Vice President of Public Affairs, Phillippe Delleur, was convinced that the crisis has presented a great opportunity to be optimistic, thanks to the money that has been allocated to recovery plans, development banks have proven to have a very important role . "This is a fantastic time to accelerate sustainability, especially in the mobility sector," he said. Delleur also opted for supporting itself with technology that comes from Latin America, through projects that encompass technology, incorporating it in the way of bidding for projects. "Continuity is key to the success of projects," he stressed. In this sense, he stressed the importance of mobility, transport is arriving very late and has to accelerate. Another priority factor to take into account, he insisted, is legal security for investments, favorable conditions must be generated for trade and investment. To do this, he advocated following international legal frameworks, maintaining continuity in projects, promoting green technologies and giving these technologies an advantage.

Human infrastructure and social dialogue

To conclude this last panel, the permanent secretary of CEIB, Narciso Casado, highlighted the importance of other infrastructures such as human infrastructure, which is one that is oriented towards people, citizens, and especially towards young people, who are the future of Ibero-America, in addition to being the best-trained generation we have ever had, he considered. In this sense, he highlighted training, education and, above all, the retention of talent. And another of the infrastructures that he mentioned, and to which the CEOE president, Antonio Garamendi, already referred, is social dialogue, which constitutes the best infrastructure in a country.

By way of closing, the CAF representative in Europe, José Antonio García Belaunde, agreed with other speakers by pointing out that the effects of Covid are being suffered by all of us, and the gains of these years in Latin America can turn into losses. For this reason, he assured that, in order to move forward and not slow down progress, integration and inclusion must be promoted, and this cannot be achieved without the necessary development of infrastructures, not only physical ones, but also digital ones. Belaunde mentioned that the Bank has numerous projects planned to launch in the Region, but they cannot be carried out without the unconditional support of Europe.

In the work, 30 presidents, CEOs and professors from eight Ibero-American countries participated as co-authors, including Botín, Álvarez-Pallete, Garamendi, Huertas, Fainé and Galán.

• Justo Villafañe: "The reputation of organizations and their ability to generate trust will be key to social and economic recovery"; "Good companies have reputations and therefore offer trust."
• Antonio Garamendi, president of the CEOE: “We are facing a growing importance of the intangible in the company; with reputation you get the confidence in the business world that society needs, and this dictionary speaks of all this ”.
• Antonio Huertas, President of Mapfre: "Ethical aspects are essential to understand that companies are part of the solution and it is essential to think that everything has to be done from public-private collaboration".

Villafañe & Asociados has presented, in an online meeting, "The Dictionary of Reputation and business intangibles", the first published worldwide. The webinar had the participation of Justo Villafañe, president of the consultancy; Antonio Garamendi, president of the CEOE; and Antonio Huertas, President of Mapfre.

The Dictionary of Reputation and business intangibles, which is already available to buy, contains more than 200 definitions and is a choral work in which 30 presidents, CEOs and academics from eight Ibero-American countries have participated. It is a work directed by Justo Villafañe, who is also a Professor at the Complutense University of Madrid.

Executives such as José Mª Álvarez-Pallete (Telefónica), Ana Botín (Banco Santander), Isidre Fainé (Fundación “La Caixa”), Ignacio Galán (Iberdrola), Antonio Huertas (Mapfre), Benito Berceruelo (Estudio de Communication) and Emilio Ontiveros (AFI), among others.

At the online meeting, which had hundreds of attendees from Spain and several Latin American countries, Justo Villafañe explained that "the Dictionary has been prepared with the intention of collecting terms related to reputational and business management." In his opinion, “the reputation of organizations and their ability to generate trust will be key to social and economic recovery. For this, companies and institutions that want to make a difference need to rely on reputation management and measurement to improve their performance and the recognition of their stakeholders ”.

The book includes definitions of broad concepts around the intangibles of the business world. Villafañe believes that companies are essential to face the great challenges of the world and that it is necessary for these companies to have tools to analyze and measure their performance. To do this, “there is enough knowledge in the business world to lay the foundation for what a good company should be. Good companies are a public good, and they must have a reputation and, therefore, offer trust ”.

Villafañe assures that, precisely, "a good reputation is the basis of trust, an especially important concept in times of great uncertainty, such as those we now live in, because it provides security".

Concepts such as business activism, competition, trust, social dividend, circular economy, social progress, country brand, tolerance or reputational transfer, are for Justo Villafañe essential in reputation and must also be “the rules of this new capitalism that must tend towards determining forms of inclusion tending to a common good if we want the planet and humanity to have a future with progress ”.

In the opinion of Antonio Huertas, President of Mapfre, in these moments of great uncertainty that we are living, generated by the crisis derived from the Covid pandemic, “companies must be able to transmit and generate trust, not only with their clients, but with the society and the environment as a whole ”.

Huertas – who has called the Dictionary "magnificent" and who has appreciated the opportunity to participate in it, has indicated that his company wants to contribute their experience because "companies are going to continue helping since we are the engines of the economy." In his opinion "this dictionary gives us the opportunity to convince ourselves that ethical aspects are essential to understand that companies are part of the solution and it is essential to think that everything must be done from public-private collaboration". And he concluded: "It is essential to resist, we have to be optimistic, and this is one of the gains that we are going to have with the management of intangibles and thus we can win for the future."

For his part, Antonio Garamendi, president of the CEOE and author of the book's foreword, argues that “when we talk about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which are fundamental in the world's social and economic environment, there is a very important part that affects them, which is reputation. We are facing a growing importance of the intangible in the company, and with the reputation the trust in the business world that society needs is achieved, and this dictionary speaks of all this ”.

To end the presentation, Garamendi indicated that "optimism is necessary for society as a whole to come out of the complicated situation we are experiencing". And he closed the meeting by emphasizing that this book – which he considers to be a header and a reflection – should mark a path of optimism for the company, which needs enthusiasm and effort. And he concluded: "We are going to win this game."

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The Ambassador of Costa Rica in Spain, Ana Helena Chacón and the former Ambassador of the Republic of Chile in Italy, Fernando Ayala, also participated.

The effects of the pandemic in Latin America and how the 2030 Agenda and the necessary public-private collaboration can provide answers to this situation were analyzed.

The general director of CEOE Internacional and permanent secretary of the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs (CEIB), Narciso Casado, spoke yesterday the 13th in the Dialogues of the Business Observatory for the Achievement of the 2030 Agenda, organized by the Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Andalusia (CEA) in collaboration with Unicaja. On this occasion, the debate was held under the slogan: “The 2030 Agenda in Latin America after COVID-19. Public-private collaboration ”, and participated, in addition to the representative of CEOE, the ambassador of Costa Rica in Spain, Ana Helena Chacón and the former ambassador of the Republic of Chile in Italy, Fernando Ayala. During the discussion, moderated by the director of OECA, Manuel Bellido, the effects of the pandemic in Latin America and how the 2030 Agenda and the necessary public-private collaboration can provide answers to the current context in the Region were analyzed.

The Business Observatory for the Achievement of the 2030 Agenda is an economic, business and social Observatory, promoted by the CEA, in collaboration with Unicaja, which is in charge of coordinating actions to comply with the 2030 Agenda of the private sector. Its objective is to promote the best sustainable future for the planet through the SDGs. To this end, it is intended to involve companies as constructive partners and forge alliances with national and European public and private institutions, as well as with other international organizations, thus underlining the social function of the company. Within the framework of this Observatory, a series of debates are held periodically that contribute to making the 2030 Agenda a reality, prioritizing key issues in this area.

The permanent secretary of CEIB, Narciso Casado, assured that the best answer to face the recovery in the post-Covid stage is resilience. While resistance refers to stoic endurance and a certain passivity, resilience is the ability to move forward in the face of adversity, and this has been a widely used concept in this pandemic and that serves to inspire future actions.

The problem, according to Casado, recalling a phrase from the Ibero-American secretary general, Rebeca Grynspan, is that "when we thought we had all the answers, all the questions changed." Due to the crisis generated by the Covid, Latin America will have to face informality and the increase in unemployment, as well as the high levels of poverty, which affect about 30 million people. "This would translate into a setback of almost two decades in social terms," ​​he said.

For this reason, Casado considered that Latin America should promote sustainable policies in business models and supply chains, valuing productivity, innovation, digitization, creative economies and public-private alliances, to guarantee growth long-term sustainable. In this sense, it opted for the permanent exchange of information between organizations, promoting training and dialogue activities to alleviate this "crisis of great isolation."

Multilateralism must be strengthened, he stressed, as the best tool to face global crises, promoting changes that are for the better and in a sustainable way, always in line with the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda. Another of the main lessons learned in these months, he added , has been the need to support the liquidity of SMEs, promoting the safety and health of workers and maintaining productive activity.

It also opted for the implementation of measures that promote the digital transformation of companies and administrations, since it is still a pending issue and a clear priority for its development. The education and training system is another of the great challenges facing the region, he stressed, which requires a boost in regional mobility and new programs that adapt to the needs of the labor market. Casado highlighted the importance of the foreign sector. "The diversification and internationalization of companies will be priority aspects for a rapid recovery," he stated.

In short, in the post-pandemic stage, consensus, legal certainty, dialogue, more flexible regulatory frameworks, efforts in innovation, digitization, sustainability, integration and inclusion will be demanded, all aspects reflected in the SDGs. "We have to feel more like a Region and bet on Latin America," he said.

Women, youth, integration, solidarity and public-private collaboration

During the discussion, the CEOE International CEO highlighted the importance of both women and young people, claiming that they should be at the center of many things and, therefore, they are very present in the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda. In this line, she explained that, from CEOE, numerous projects focused on these groups have been launched, such as the Promociona Project, which with 6 editions continues to bet on strengthening and developing skills so that women reach senior management positions in the companies (it has been exported to other countries such as Chile); or the Progresa project, which, although it has been launched less time ago, aspires to strengthen the skills necessary to lead projects or teams.

For young people, he added, the Campus Plus project, Ibero-American Project for Education for Employment, has been developed in collaboration with SEGIB, designed to develop knowledge and soft skills of young Ibero-Americans who are in the second half of a career in an accredited institution in the region that has official exchange programs. In the field of small and medium-sized enterprises, Casado referred to the CEPYME 500 project, an initiative of the Confederation of Small and Medium Enterprises (CEPYME, a member of CEOE) that identifies, selects and promotes the set of 500 Spanish companies that are leaders in business growth, to enhance their development and grant them recognition and projection, in order to promote and facilitate their internationalization process.

These are just some of the examples, Casado highlighted, showing that business organizations are more coordinated and cohesive than ever, thus betting on promoting a more solid, fair and inclusive Ibero-America. "We will surely come out of this crisis strengthened, if we continue to believe in dialogue, defend multilateralism and work for the people," he said.

Regional integration and international investments are key, said Casado, for companies to acquire more scale and competitiveness and, for this, once again, education, training and retention of talent are essential requirements to increase the weight of the Region and ensure a better future. To achieve these goals, he added, governments, organizations and companies, academia and citizens as a whole, must come together to get out of this pandemic, always in line with the SDGs. "Public-private collaboration is more necessary than ever and, therefore, we all have to row together in the same direction," he concluded.

Post-pandemic context

The ambassador of Costa Rica in Spain. Ana Helena Chacón, assured that the 2030 Agenda is an issue that brings us all together, it is time to unite, to forge alliances with the business community and to align with the SDGs. To achieve this, he insisted, it is essential to establish a synergy between productivity and the generation of decent employment and the governance of the countries. "We have to think as a Region, think as a country more than as political parties, and base ourselves on the realities we have today in order to comply with the SDGs," he said.

Chacón also explained that the situation in Latin America was already difficult before the pandemic, since when we talk about poverty and hunger, 80% are women and children under 14 years of age. Therefore, in the new reality, it is necessary to try to see how to include women in this process, it is not possible to leave out 50% of the workforce and potential consumers. When women enter the formal labor market, GDP and purchasing power will increase.

"If the pandemic has taught us something, it is how vulnerable we are and how united we must be," said Chacón; who added that this situation has affected us all and we have to lean on each other to get out of it.

The former ambassador of the Republic of Chile in Italy. Fernando Ayala, highlighted that there are countries that have taken the SDGs very seriously, but not all have faced this issue in the same way. The crisis has exposed inequalities, he stressed, that is why we must continue making efforts to reduce them, alleviate hunger and poverty. We are experiencing the fourth industrial revolution, and this is fundamentally digital, which, in his opinion, will generate huge gaps in terms of work. "We are in the hands of a very great uncertainty regarding the future," he said.

The pandemic caught Latin America at a bad political moment for the Region, despite the fact that it had come a long way. Ayala reported that the coordinating policy bodies have been fragmented and the crisis has been devastating in economic terms. He also recalled that "when large markets suffer, we suffer, there are countries that depend a lot on tourism, a fundamental sector." However, the former Chilean ambassador also wanted to convey a message of optimism for the future, betting on multilateralism, resilience and public-private collaboration, which, without a doubt, are key to getting out of the crisis.

The director of CSR of Unicaja Banco, José María López, assured, to close the act, that "the States alone cannot get out of this crisis" and that, to achieve financial governance, it is first necessary to achieve global political governance. He also launched a message of optimism and hope, in line with the rest of the speakers.