Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United Kingdom

Tag: Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain

Human Capital Forum: first and second editions

For 2018, the Spanish Chamber of Commerce has been delighted to introduce a brand new events series: the Human Capital Forum. The forum aims to create a space for learning and discussing relevant topics in the areas of organisational development, leadership, change management and talent. Meeting every three months, the event is open to representatives of member companies who are responsible for HR and its related fields and professions. The forum is chaired by Mónica Hernanz, Managing Director at The Client Academy and Adjunct Professor of Organisational Behaviour at IE Business School.

The first meeting of the series took place at the Chamber’s offices on Wednesday 25^th April, with the topic being: “positive psychology in the workplace: is it possible (and desirable) to be truly happy at work?” The guest speaker on this occasion was Vanessa King, a positive psychology, happiness and resilience expert. A board member for Action for Happiness and author of the book “10 Keys to Happier Living”, she regularly speaks and carries out workshops both nationally and internationally on the subject of well-being, resilience and workplace creativity.

Vanessa began the seminar by exploring the definition of happiness, explaining that it has two forms: hedonic and eudaimonic and how it compares to the notions of wellbeing and resilience. She went on to explain what determines happiness of work and the ways in which it can benefit employers if their staff are kept happy. She then proposed the discussion of what employers can do to increase the happiness of their employees and what their main advice for doing this would be.

The second edition of the Human Capital Forum took place on the 4^th July, this time to discuss the topic of “the human challenge of digitalisation: how are companies’ cultures changing them for a digital future?”. Also chaired by Monica Hernanz, this edition welcomed two guest speakers from IBM’s Talent and Engagement Practice from the London and Madrid teams: Isaac Cantalejo Fuentes and Sunaya Sahans.

The session began with all of the participants introducing themselves and describing the main challenges of digitalisation faced by their companies, of which a variety were suggested owing to the various sectors that were represented. They spoke in particular about the changing face of recruitment owed to digitalisation, with the industry being more online and fast paced than ever before. The speakers then went on to discuss the key digital transformation trends that HR Directors should be mindful of, as well as what can be learnt from companies both leading and struggling in the journey to create a more digital organisational culture. Following the presentation, participants of the forum discussed where they believed the priorities for investment should be for HR Directors in the wake of an increasingly digitalised world. Over a networking breakfast following the forum, participants expressed their views of the session; expressing how they had found it both relevant and thought provoking.

The next edition of the forum is scheduled to meet in November, with the topic being ‘the #MeToo movement in the office: how have sexual harassment and gender politics changed in the workplace in 2018 as a result of societal change?”. Towards the end of the year, members of the forum will also have the opportunity to suggest the topics of future forums in 2019.

The Human Capital Forum’s ultimate aim is to highlight the strategic value of all company’s greatest assets- their workforce. If you are interested in finding out more about this initiative, please contact Hannah.sanders@spanishchamber.co.uk

16/07/2018
ANNUAL PATRONS’ DINNER 2018

On Tuesday 20^th March the Spanish Chamber organised the Annual Patrons’ Dinner. The event was held at the Spanish Embassy and H.E. the Ambassador of Spain Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües was our exceptional host for the evening.

Our guests were welcomed with a selection of canapés that they could enjoy while tasting the selection of cava and wine, which was kindly sponsored by our Patron Raventós Codorníu, as well as beers kindly provided by our Patron Mahou-San Miguel during the pre-dinner reception. This was the perfect opportunity for new Patrons to introduce themselves and get acquainted with the rest of representatives in attendance.

After the reception, Patrons proceeded to the dining area to take their seats and get ready to enjoy a three-course dinner which consisted of pumpkin risotto with chestnut pesto, grilled sirloin steak with braised pork cheek and dauphinoise and mascarpone cheesecake with peanut butter.

Before dinner was served Mr. Javier San Basilio, President of the Spanish Chamber, opened the evening with a special speech expressing his gratitude for the support that Patrons provide to this institution and warmly thanked the Ambassador for kindly welcoming the Patrons on his first event with the Spanish Chamber.

He also mentioned the new Patrons that the Chamber has gained since the last year’s dinner which were: DLA Piper, Trison, Ibérica Restaurants and Sacyr.

After the President, it was the turn of H.E. the Ambassador Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües, who began his speech by thanking the Spanish Chamber for the organisation and gave an overview of the current economic and political situation in the UK and Spain in the context of Brexit.

After the speeches, it was time for guests to enjoy the dinner and later to move on to the main reception room, where coffee and petit fours were served. Attendees enjoyed thus the end of the event in a comfortable atmosphere and could exchange impressions with the Ambassador and the President of the Chamber. This was the perfect closure for this exclusive gathering.

We would like to thank our Patron Raventós Codorníu for their generous support providing the wines and cava served during the event and also special thanks to our Patron Mahou-San Miguel for kindly sponsoring the beer and water at this special evening.

Finally, we are grateful to our Patrons for their attendance and we look forward to seeing them at the next Patrons’Event.

To see the complete pictures of the evening, please click here.

If you would like to be updated on forthcoming activities, do not hesitate to sign up for our weekly newsletter. Alternatively, you can also check out our event in the UPCOMING EVENTS section within our website.

02/07/2018
STEVENS & BOLTON | NEW BENEFACTOR OF THE CHAMBER

We would like to welcome Stevens & Bolton as new Benefactor of the Spanish Chamber.

Stevens & Bolton LLP is a leading full service top 100 UK law firm with a single office in Guildford, just outside London. They advise a number of the top 100 and other UK FTSE companies, as well as many other substantial international groups and entrepreneurs, working with businesses and lawyers all around the world including various clients and other contacts in Spain.

They are expert in all the legal areas any business needs to consider when setting up or operating in the UK, having close relations with other professional advisors, and providing a full range of services, from advising on points of law through to providing full project management for a start-up business in the UK.

They are also a recommended partner firm in the Department for International Trade Advisory Network.

Should you want to learn more about our new Benefactor, please visit their website: www.stevens-bolton.com

13/06/2018
“Using social media data for business growth” seminar

On the 23^rd May 2018 we teamed up with social media marketing software provider and Chamber member Audiense to hold a seminar on how social media can contribute to business growth and development. This greatly popular seminar, which welcomed participants from both member and non-member companies and representing a variety of sectors, demonstrated the great value of social media to all businesses.

The talk was led by Carlos Serra, Chief Operating Officer of Audiense. He began by explaining very briefly what the presentation would cover, including the key difference between engagement vs. presence on social media, the various social selling pillars and invaluable advice on how to successfully manipulate data received from social channels.

An important tip that Carlos highlighted was that of the basic social stack, in which he included 4 stages which utilise different (and mostly free) platforms: monitoring (using HootSuite and Ritetag), publishing content (using Buffer and Bitly), market research (using Facebook and Audiense) and promoting content to the right audience by use of Twitter advertisements and LinkedIn; for example. He recommended the use of RiteTag for instant hashtag suggestions for images and texts, which are based on real time hashtag engagement.

He went on to describe a new approach to influencer marketing. This process has four key stages: to IDENTIFY the relevant domain and its audience, SEGMENT the audience in to smaller communities, ENGAGE at scale organically through advertising to create awareness and to go on to build an ‘influencer panel’ to UNDERSTAND the content and behaviours to tailor companies’ messages and develop campaigns.

The presentation was both highly engaging and insightful, and throughout Carlos used the example of the social media channels of Forma 5; another member of the Chamber. He used their feeds to exemplify the hidden data which should be used to underpin company’s social media strategies, and more importantly, where to find this (mentioning Facebook ads and Twitter lists).

The event was well received by all who attended, who enjoyed the opportunity to be actively engaged in the seminar. Following Carlos’ presentation, participants were able to ask any questions they had to clarify any doubts and to receive extra advice. After this, everyone had the chance to network and exchange opinions of the seminar over coffee and breakfast. It was clear that all had found it interesting and eye opening, and left inspired about how they could improve their social media marketing strategies.

We would like to thank Audiense very much for collaborating with us on this seminar.

To find out about further seminars and other networking events held by the Spanish Chamber, we encourage you to visit the Upcoming Events section of our website and also sign up to our fortnightly newsletter to keep informed about future Chamber activities.

29/05/2018
Elevator Pitch XXXIV Edition
The latest edition of our popular Elevator Pitch networking events was held on Tuesday 16^th May at our patron Ibérica’s beautiful flagship London restaurant in Marylebone.

On this occasion the event moderator was Abel Plasencia, International Trade Manager of the Spanish Chamber. After the guests had arrived and briefly met each other, before grabbing a coffee and taking their seats, Abel welcomed all participants to the event and explained the event format. As always, this is as follows:
- Participation is limited to one representative per company and a maximum of 16 companies can take part in each edition.
- Only two companies of the same sector can register for the event.
- Each attendee has two minutes to explain the work of his company to the other participants. Following this, everyone can ask questions to their fellow participants about their companies. They then have the opportunity to network more informally and without the previous time constraints over a late breakfast.
- Everyone leaves with a business card of each person who took part.
This edition saw 12 companies from a variety of sectors taking part, both members and none members of the Spanish Chamber. These were the Mandeville Hotel (hotels and accommodation), Crescender (business consultancy services), Forma 5 (furniture manufacturers), Synergym (leisure and sports management), Ibérica (bar, restaurant and catering services), Continental Insurance & Mortgage Consultants (insurance), Jobandtalent (recruitment agency), Graziano Longo (banking and financial services), Trade Advisors Ltd (business consultancy services), C & C Bespoke Events (event management), Hacienda Villarta (wines and other alcoholic beverages), IE Business School (education, training and learning) and a freelance translator and marketer.

The dialogue flowed very well in this event with many questions being asked, discussions which continued after the end of the Q&A session over the delicious breakfast provided by Ibérica, including popular Spanish dishes such as pan con tomate and tortilla.

We would like to thank all attendees who took part in this edition of the Elevator Pitch and hope that they found it profitable and as enjoyable as we did. We would also like to extend a very big thank you to our Patron member Ibérica for kindly hosting the event on this occasion and for providing such delectable catering, as always!

If you have not yet participated in an Elevator Pitch event and are interested in doing so, we encourage you to keep an eye on our newsletter (released twice a month) as well as the UPCOMING EVENTS section of our website for information about the next one.
21/05/2018
ANNUAL GOLDEN AWARD 2018 | CAF

The Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain celebrated its Annual Golden Award on the 12^TH April at the Spanish Embassy in London. This is one of the main corporate events that the Chamber organises each year and acknowledges the significant commercial activity of a Spanish company in the United Kingdom during the previous year.

This year the company who received the award was CAF, Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, a leader in the railway industry with a workforce of approximately 8,500 people. Mr. Andrés Arizkorreta, President of CAF, received the award on behalf of the company and express his gratitude for this recognition.

The event began with the Ambassador H.E. Mr. Carlos Bastarreche, who is also the Honorary President of the Spanish Chamber, welcoming the attendees and congratulating CAF for their outstanding activity in the UK.

Following his speech, the President of the Chamber, Mr. Javier San Basilio, introduced the awarded company and provided further information about the achievements of CAF in the UK, which began in 1994 when they won the contract to manufacture Heathrow Express trains. Since then they have worked on large scale projects such as the diesel trains for Northern Ireland Railways and the tram networks in Edinburgh and Birmingham.

Mr. Arizkorreta shared with attendees his feelings of gratitude for receiving such an important recognition for the outstanding work of CAF and its international strategy, which has led up to them currently working with Arriva, First Group, Serco and West Midland Trains for the provision and maintenance of new trains that will operate on various routes covering the north of the country.

He recounted that last year CAF acquired the prestigious British engineering firm BWB Consulting, which has enabled them to establish their presence in the UK as a trusted provider within the transport sector.

Approximately 200 guests were present at the event, representing member companies from both Spain and the UK. This was a great opportunity for all of them to expand their networks and meet new professionals from the Anglo-Spanish business community in an environment as the Embassy.

We take this opportunity to thank our kind sponsors on this special occasion. We are grateful to our patrons Ibérica Restaurants and Raventós Codorníu for providing the ibérico ham and the cava; to benefactor Estrella Galicia for the beers served at the event and finally, to our member Marqués de Cáceres for providing the wines.

Finally, we would also like to thank our members for joining us on this very special occasion.

We encourage you to browse the UPCOMING EVENTS section of our website in order to keep up to date with future Spanish Chamber corporate events, seminars and other activities.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

23/04/2018
COMING SOON: OUR 131ST ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

We are pleased to announce that our 131^stAnnual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 5^th July at the exclusive One Great George Street, located in the centre of Westminster.

This corporate event is one of the most important annual activities organised by the Spanish Chamber and is attended by leading representatives from a wide range of British and Spanish companies. As tradition dictates, the event will be presided by H.E. the Ambassador of Spain, Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües.

We are furthermore delighted to welcome The Rt. Hon David Lidington CBE MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster as our Guest of Honour for the occasion and would like to take this opportunity to introduce him and the Cabinet he represents.

Mr. David Lidington studied History at Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge. He was elected Member of Parliament for Aylesbury in 1992 and has held a number of prominent positions including Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2003 to 2007 and Shadow Minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from 2007 to 2010. He also served as Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) from May 2010 until July 2016. Mr. Lidington was Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council from July 2016 to June 2017.

He went on to become Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice from June 2017 to January 2018, when he was appointed Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duty of Lancaster. Outside from politics, he has worked for BP and RioTinto – Zinc Corporation (RTZ) before spending 3 years as Special Adviser to Douglas Hurd in the Home Office and Foreign Office.

The Minister for the Cabinet Office is responsible for the policy and work of the department, and attends Cabinet. His responsibilities include advising the Prime Minister on developing and implement government policy, chairing and deputy chairing Cabinet committees, realising task forces and overseeing the consequences of devolution of Britain’s exit from the EU.

With such a distinguished Guest of Honour, we are certain that attendees will enjoy this opportunity to meet Mr. David Lidington and to hear his views over the course of the evening. This is one of our most eminent annual events and it is anticipated that over 200 leading representatives from Spanish and British companies will be in attendance, providing an excellent opportunity to network and meet new Chamber members.

Please remember that places for this event are limited, so do not forget to book yours in advance to avoid disappointment. For further information on this event and how to submit your booking, please click here.

If you are interested in sponsoring this event please contact hannah.sanders@spanishchamber.co.uk

16/04/2018
II ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON ENTREPRENEURIAL TALENT EDUCATION

This month we had the pleasure of participating for the second time in the “II Annual Conference on Entrepreneurial Talent Education” event organised by the Vicente Cañada Blanch Spanish School, which aims to promote entrepreneurship outside of higher education.

The event took place on Tuesday 6th at the school’s premises. Our Secretary General, Mr. Igor Urra, along with the school’s director, Ms. Carmen Pinilla and the Head of the Spanish Embassy Education Office in the U.K., Mr. Gonzalo Capellán, welcomed the students and gave them a brief summary of the history of the Chamber and the various services it provides.

He also encouraged the students to think outside the box and reminded that they had a lot to offer employers given their dual Spanish and British background.

After this introduction the event continued with a series of speeches about the labour market given by representatives from some of our member companies. The participants included: Ms. Nuria Corominas from Román y Asociados PR Consultants, Mr. David Lucas from Bluefin Group, Ms. Raquel Barrera and Ms. Mar Gayá from Diversitas Institute, Ms. Patricia Témes from Forma 5, Mr. Juan Carlos Machuca from Uría Menéndez, Mr. Mikel Lotina from IDOM UK and Mr. Nacho Morais from Frank Consulting.

On Thursday 8th March, some of the students from the Vicente Cañada Blanch school visited the Chamber’s offices to learn more about our activities and meet some of our staff. Nerea Esgueva, Head of Corporate Relations and Abel Plasencia, Foreign Trade Manager, discussed their career paths with the students and what the main responsibilities of their current roles.

They went on to speak about the wide range of job opportunities that London can offer to young people and they both agreed on the great value of being fluent in English. Finally, they encouraged the students to always do their best and to find what they are passionate about.

The students then went on to visit the Spanish Tourism Office where the Head of the Office, Mr. Javier Piñares, explained the main responsibilities of the Office and the vital importance of tourism to the Spanish economy. He discussed with them the main differences between Spanish and British tourists and the future prospects for this sector.

We would like to thank the Vicente Cañada Blanch Spanish School for organising such an insightful and interesting event and for including the Spanish Chamber in its organisation. We sincerely hope that the event was helpful for all of the participating students and has shed some light on their future prospects.

We encourage you to check the Upcoming Events section of our website to keep up to date with future Spanish Chamber events, seminars and other activities.

29/03/2018
CAF WILL RECEIVE THE ANNUAL GOLDEN AWARD 2018

On Tuesday 12th April the Spanish Chamber of Commerce will hold its Annual Golden Award event at the Spanish Embassy.

The Annual Golden Award is one of our most important corporate events of the year which identifies a Spanish company with a presence in the UK whose performance in the previous year has been outstanding. This year CAF will receive this recognition for their remarkable achievements over the course of 2017. Mr. Andrés Arizkorreta, President of the company, will be present at the event to receive the award.

With over 100 years since its establishment, CAF has been operating in the UK since 1994 when it won the contract to manufacture Heathrow Express trains. Since then they have worked on large scale projects such as the diesel trains for the NIR and the tram networks in Edinburgh and Birmingham. The firm is currently working with Arriva, First Group, Serco and West Midland Trains for the provision and maintenance of new trains that will operate on various routes covering the north of the country.

Last year CAF acquired the prestigious British engineering firm BWB Consulting, which has enabled them to establish their presence in the UK as a trusted provider within the transport sector. They are currently building a new factory in Newport (Wales) which will begin operations later this year.

CAF is a multinational firm which manufactures trains and conducts feasibility studies, civil works, electrification, signalising and maintenance and system operations. The company boasts a workforce of 8,500 people across their main factories in Beasáin, Zaragoza Irún, Castejón and Linares; as well as others in the USA, Mexico, Brazil, France and the UK.

In addition, CAF’s sales reached 1,447 million euros in 2017 and they achieved a net profit of 42.5 million euros. Moreover, the firm has undertaken projects in over 35 countries including providing metro units in Washington, Rome, Mexico City, Bucharest and Sao Paulo; as well as trams in Belgrade, Edinburgh, Nantes, Sydney and Stockholm. They have also fabricated diesel and commuter trains in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia and the USA and high speed trains in Turkey and Norway.

Finally, in Spain CAF is one of the most prominent providers within the Red Nacional de Ferrocarriles Españoles (RENFE), providing metro units, trams and the latest innovative trains to cities including Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Bilbao, Zaragoza, Vitoria, Palma de Mallorca, Malaga and Granada.

We would like to thank our Patron Ibérica Restaurants and our Benefactor Estrella Galicia for kindly providing the ibérico ham and the beer that will be enjoyed during the ceremony.

This event is exclusively for members of the Spanish Chamber. For further information about this award and to find out more about the activities that we organise for Chamber members, we encourage you to visit the UPCOMING EVENTS section of our website and our WordPress blog.

26/03/2018
IBÉRICA RESTAURANTS | NEW PATRON OF THE CHAMBER

We would like to welcome Ibérica Restaurants as a new Patron of the Spanish Chamber.

Ibérica are a family of modern, authentic Spanish tapas restaurants, inspired and guided by Michelin-starred Executive Chef, Nacho Manzano. Ten years ago Ibérica set out to bring the true spirit of Spain to the UK, inviting the guests who walk through their doors to join the restaurant in celebrating their roots and homeland. Their passion lies in bringing great-quality and great-tasting dishes to your table, by working with some of the best producers of food and wine that Spain has to offer.

Spanish architect Lázaro Rosa Violán has designed all of their restaurants with a look and feel that transports you to Spain when you visit. From tiling that resembles the tapas bars of Andalucía to vintage maps, paintings and pots to celebrate Asturian Celtic heritage, he’s put outstanding dedication in giving each Ibérica its own unique character.

Today there are seven restaurants in the family; Marylebone – the first and now flag ship, Canary Wharf, Farringdon, Victoria, Manchester, Leeds and Glasgow. La Terraza, Iberica’s outside wine bar, opens for the spring and summer months opposite their main Canary Wharf restaurant and is a popular spot for city workers to enjoy a drink after work.

Ibérica offers private and semi-private dining and event spaces in many of their restaurants, for any occasion. Exclusive hire of the whole restaurant is also possible. They offer a range of group dining and canape menus, as well as being able to provide some theatre, if desired, with ham carving, cider pouring and wine tasting.

Ibérica welcomes not only diners, but guests who would just like to sit at the bar and enjoy a drink – perhaps a glass of wine from one of the boutique Spanish wineries Ibérica works with and not available anywhere else in the UK. Pinchos are served in the bars in the early evenings and the surroundings and friendly staff provide a relaxed setting in which to unwind.

Should you want to know more about our new Patron, please visit their website:

www.ibericarestaurants.com/

05/02/2018

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