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The unique Poble Espanyol Hivernacle in Barcelona was the venue for the EADA Annual Meeting 2017, a particularly special edition of the yearly EADA alumni event coinciding with the institution’s 60th anniversary celebration. A total of 1,500 people attended, including alumni from each decade of EADA’s long history, current EADA students, members of the Board and the Management Committee as well as well-known economic, political and social figures, including representatives from other business schools.

The master of ceremonies was once again EADA alumnus Albert Mikkelsen, one of the dreamers from the Imagine Silicon Valley 2014 edition with extensive knowledge of the entrepreneurial world. After a highly emotional opening video based on the institution’s 60-year history, Mikkelsen handed the microphone over to David Parcerisas, Chairman of the EADA Foundation Board. Mr Parcerisas began by congratulating the 120,000 alumni from 87 countries who had studied at EADA over the last six decades, “who are currently managers, entrepreneurs and inspirational figures in the business, organisational or institutional world”.

Mr Parcerisas had some very special words for his mother, Irene Vázquez, who co-founded EADA alongside Arturo Alsina: “Both Irene and Arturo planted the first seed over 60 years ago, giving rise to Barcelona’s first business school – and today we have EADA”. The Chairman of the Board also spoke about his experience at EADA: “Working in the education sector is a privilege because you’re in constant contact with people who want to prosper and streamline companies and organisations”. He added, “Education is not just teaching, because you also learn values and intellectual rigour, which have a dual impact on students’ personal and professional lives”.

During his speech, David Parcerisas emphasised the internationalisation of the institution in recent years, the recognition by the main accreditation organisations, EADA’s position among the world’s top business schools, the new international agreements with prestigious institutions and the remodelling of the Barcelona City Centre Campus. “At EADA, we currently have the most professional team in the school’s history, ready to face any challenge in the upcoming years,” he concluded.

Mr Parcerisas was followed by Barcelona Deputy Mayor Gerardo Pisarello, who spoke of the values that the city shared with EADA such as a commitment to hard work and innovation. Mr Pisarello emphasised EADA’s role as a pioneer in teaching excellence, applied research and the transfer of knowledge. He also made special mention of co-founder Irene Vázquez, referring to her as “a brave woman who made waves in a predominantly male-oriented business world”. In his opinion, “she was an example of perseverance for all businesswomen, because she fought for equal opportunities in the business world”.

Mr Pisarello said that it was no coincidence that EADA is currently one of the top 50 business schools in the world. He attributed this success to factors such as the capacity to innovate and adapt to social and economic changes, a global vision and drive to meet the needs of diverse companies, the courage to take on major challenges and reinvent the institution, the international commitment to human values, ethics, sustainability and social responsibility. He closed by thanking EADA for “helping to make Barcelona a city of people and institutions that can get the best out of themselves”.

Best Project Awards 2016-17

As in the Annual Meeting every year, the Best Project Awards were handed out for the MBA, International Master’s and Executive Education projects. The Best Executive MBA Project Award went to Eco & Fast, an innovative cleaning and maintenance business for recreational yachts based on fast service and respect for the environment. Carlos Vico, who formed part of the winning group, recognised the project as an opportunity for growth. “Over the course of 14 months, we’ve undergone individual and group growth, and improved our leadership skills,” he said. “There were many hours of working together, intense emotions, debates, creativity and, above all, great hope”.

The Best MBA Project Award went to La Cloture, a company based on consumption trends and dedicated to responsible, sustainable consumption. Team member Nuria Besora thanked EADA professors for “imparting their knowledge and passion” throughout the programme.

In the International Master’s category, QREM received the Best Project Award. QREM is based on regenerative technology and is a medical start-up that developed an innovative treatment to reduce cartilage degeneration for osteoarthritis of the knee. Bix Max was awarded the prize for Best Executive Master Project. Bix Max is an immediate loading implantology service for dental clinics, offered by pioneering bimaxillar surgical teams and backed by efficiency studies and with a proven success rate of 98.6%. Team spokeswoman Rosa Navarro explained, “our dream came true and you are all part of it”.

For the second consecutive year, an honorary distinction was awarded for the project with the most positive social impact. The distinction is awarded by the charitable organisation Barcelona Càritas Diocesana. This year’s winning project, Aguacates Don Carlos, aimed to help Colombian farmers improve their precarious position after the country’s history of armed conflict. Corporate Services manager at Barcelona Càritas Diocesana Cristina García presented the award and highlighted the importance of socially responsible managers in leading social change.

Six decades training the best professionals

The awards were followed by a look at EADA’s 60-year history with alumni from different graduating classes. Joan Ribas, from the 1965 class of Industrial Accounting and Taxation, represented the 60s. He explained that EADA had paved the way towards a new stage in his life in Braun and Gillette, where he spent the next 33 years of his professional life. “I started in industrial accounting and ended as CEO, first in Mexico and then in Spain, including a business venture in Canada,” he said. 

Next, Luis Pardo, Executive MBA graduate from the class of 1999, shared his experience. Mr Pardo is the author of ‘El ABC del autónomo’ (The ABC of Freelancing) and CEO and managing director of Sage Iberia: “For me, the E in EADA represents Emotion and Energy, which I found in all of my professors there – they had a bigger impact on my life than they could have ever imagined”. After mentioning a few historical milestones from the 80s –TV series, major music groups and the video game boom– Mr Pardo recommended that all those in attendance continue growing by tapping into “the energy and emotion that EADA conveys”. He also mentioned the important role of new technologies in growth: “You can access these this energy and emotion right from your mobiles or tablets, and they allow you to revolutionise any business and change the world”.

The next speaker, Simone Reeves, graduated from the International MBA in 2003. She is now an HR Consultant, Leadership & Team Coach, and she remembered well her master’s thesis on diversity, “an issue not limited to geography or to national culture, but encompassing social inclusion”. Ms Reeves remarked on the emergence of a new leadership style. “We now need inclusive leaders, engaged with society, with ethical and sustainable values, cultural intelligence and collaboration capacities,” she reminded the audience.

Ms Reeves was followed by alumna Raquel Rubio, from the Executive Master in Human Resources class of 2003. She is currently the Manager of Global Leadership Development at the Intercontinental Hotels Group, and she started her speech by saying that one day she decided to be a global citizen, which led her to travel around the world. During her time at EADA, she took the first step on this journey. “I was exposed to coaching as a client for the first time, having the chance to ask open, unprejudiced questions, to self-reflect and make my own decisions,” she said. After Barcelona, Raquel travelled in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. “I discovered that, to be a global leader, you don’t need a passport full of stamps, but instead an inclusive mentality, respecting differences, listening to others, having a sense of community and constantly learning,” she said. 

The final alumnus represented the current decade. International Master in Management alumnus Yannick Kpodar graduated in 2012, and, since August 2017, has been working as a Global Product Marketing Manager at LinkedIn. Me Kpodar had some inspiring words for attendees. “Be proactive in approaching disruptive digitalisation, dream big, don’t be scared of setting ambitious targets, learn from those who’ve achieved your dream, continue training and challenging yourselves,” he urged. “I’m not giving you this advice to impress you, but to inspire you to take action”.

Jordi Pursals, Vice-President of the EADA Foundation Board, closed the event by praising “the commitment of EADA and the International Advisory Board to its more than 120,000 alumni, the thousands of companies that have trained their teams in EADA, the lecturers and staff increasingly focused on internationalisation, and the new technologies that bring with them new opportunities”.