EPUNTO Interim Management at the 2017 e-volución Conference on Business and Digital Transformation

Last Thursday, 5 October, Valladolid became the capital of Business and Digital Transformation with the holding of the e-volución 2017 Conference. Organised by El Norte de Castilla, it proved, as expected, to be an eye-opening event that brought such relevant topics as the future of our societies in the age of Artificial Intelligence, e-schooling and the sharing economy into the city’s natural discourse.

Twenty-one experts and digital enthusiasts from companies and organisations across Spain and internationally – including Google, Wallapop, LinkedIn, INCIBE, BlaBlaCar, Grupo Sothis, Tutellus, PepsiCo, Telefónica Educación Digital, the Data Economy Initiative and EPUNTO Interim Management, amongst others, took to the stage to share their insights and experience on the subject, leaving the audience spellbound with the latest developments in AI and other proposals for social innovation.

The conference was hosted by the entertaining Ángel Encinas, who wore a Real Valladolid shirt, and featured magic shows and a special appearance by Álvaro Nadal, Minister for Energy, Tourism and the Digital Agenda.

Emilio del Prado, Managing Partner of EPUNTO Interim Management, at the e-volución 2017 Conference

Emilio del Prado’s messages during the e-volución 2017 Conference, as recounted by you: the audience

EPUNTO Interim Management had a great ambassador at the e-volución 2017 Conference, as our Managing Partner, Emilio del Prado, was a speaker at the event and shared some thoughts on the Digital Economy, digital transformation and interim management.

Here’s what the active Twitter audience considered most important!

“Companies can’t afford to have a permanent executive on their payroll. They need Team A” #InterimManagement @emiliodelprado@epunto #e_congreso pic.twitter.com/faZLJaGHi8

— Alfonso Gadea (@gadeaalfonso) 5 October 2017

The four pillars of industrial restructuring @emiliodelprado: policy, technology, suppliers and executives #e_congreso https://t.co/47gJjhMNhj

— e-volución (@e_volucion) 5 October 2017

“Not all companies can hire someone for digital transformation” @emiliodelprado #e_congreso https://t.co/17uyAUMkUi

— e-volución (@e_volucion) 5 October 2017

White papers talk about things that won’t happen. Let’s write a ‘grey paper’ on Industry 4.0! Absolutely @emiliodelprado! @epunto #e_congreso pic.twitter.com/n69yI0BNIk

— Rafael Juan (@rafjuan) 5 October 2017

#e_congreso “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic” Arthur C. Clarke, @emiliodelprado #DataEconomy pic.twitter.com/wjOeQcKvmU

— María José I. A. (@ingagumj) 5 October 2017

Check out the full talk on SlideShare!

The e-conference from the perspective of our Partners and Interim Managers

We are a fortunate company for several reasons, and one of the things we are most proud of is our team’s commitment and curiosity.

Five partners and interim managers attended the e-volución 2017 conference: Emilio Del Prado, as a speaker; Tomás González Caballero, Managing Director of Veratya Estrategias Corporativas; Fernando Burgos, as a Partner and Interim Manager; Juan Carlos Ramírez, as an Interim Manager; and Zaqueo Azcona, as Managing Partner of EPUNTO Interim Management in Asturias.

Partners and Interim Managers at EPUNTO Interim Management: Tomás González Caballero, Emilio del Prado, Juan Carlos Ramírez and Fernando Burgos.

Over to them!

Emilio del Prado, Managing Partner of EPUNTO Interim Management

“With prestigious speakers, meticulous organisation and excellent publicity, the e-volucion conference has served as a highly effective platform for conveying our dual message on the Data Economy and the management of associated strategies. All of this was rounded off by high-quality networking and the multiplier effect generated by the support and presence of the Minister for the Digital Agenda.”

Tomás González Caballero, Managing Director of Veratya Corporate Strategies

“I cannot help but feel proud to have been, for yet another year, in the right place at the right time. This is the feeling I’ve had whilst listening to so many brilliant leaders of the digital transformation and the so-called ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ – a historic milestone that we are fortunate enough to be living through. It has been fascinating to hear from the professionals and entrepreneurs who took part in the fifth edition of the e-volución 2017 Congress – exceptionally clear-sighted individuals with extraordinary strategic vision. This was certainly true of Luis Martín, CEO of Barrabés Bizz, and Víctor Fernández, CEO of Room Mate – a company that constantly focuses on what to do to meet its customers’ needs, rather than simply how to do things. “Putting customers at the heart of our strategy is the only way to move forward into the future,” stated Víctor Fernández. I was particularly impressed by Jaime Rodríguez, General Manager for Spain & Portugal at BlaBlaCar, a world-leading company in the field of the sharing economy, and Juan Luis González, founder and managing director of Orange 3, a person brimming with life, capable of inspiring enthusiasm and positivity in anyone wishing to embark on a project as unique as his own. But I also heard statements that should concern us all, such as that made by Alberto Gómez Barahona, Vice-Chancellor of the Isabel I online university, who stated that Spanish universities are lagging behind the digital transformation rather than leading it. Other equally worrying issues were raised by several speakers, who argued that Europe is falling behind due to its over-regulatory zeal. ‘Whilst others are researching and developing, in Europe we regulate and stifle progress, which is why we will never lead the way in the digital sphere,’ stated Raúl Suárez, Head of Corporate Business at LinkedIn, echoing the views of other speakers on this issue. Personally, if I had to choose between the different panels, I would undoubtedly pick the one featuring Emilio del Prado, president of the Data Economy Initiative and managing director of EPUNTO Interim Management, and Catalina Jiménez, director of UNE Consultancy and Information Systems at the Sothis Group. Perhaps because strategic marketing is one of the professional specialisms I have practised most throughout my career, I find everything to do with technologies relating to the use of Big Data and Business Intelligence particularly appealing. Of course, the fact that my company, Veratya Estrategias Corporativas, plays an active role in the Data Economy Initiative is also a particular source of motivation for me in this regard. Catalina Jiménez delivered a highly technical presentation in which she highlighted to the audience the urgent need for companies, regardless of their size, to regard Big Data as essential to the survival and competitiveness of their organisations. For his part, Emilio del Prado structured his presentation around an intriguing narrative that straddled the line between fiction and reality, between what might be and what already exists in our society. The “Fourth Industrial Revolution”, its consequences and the transitional parallels with other revolutions in economic history formed the central theme of this remarkable presentation, which emerged from one of the most lucid and qualified minds currently working in the field of the Data Economy. Emilio del Prado lamented the slow pace at which Big Data is being implemented in Spain, and, speaking from the stage at the e-volución 2017 Conference, put forward key ideas for understanding the revolution that is already upon us: ‘In the Fourth Industrial Revolution, very cheap labour carries less weight. The companies that will come out on top will be those that are close to their consumers.” This and other statements, drawn from Emilio del Prado’s day-to-day experience in the field of digital transformation, as well as the originality of his presentation, made his talk one of the most brilliant of the event. To conclude this brief account of my impressions of the conference, I must mention the closing address delivered by Álvaro Nadal, Minister for Energy, Tourism and the Digital Agenda. I was pleasantly surprised by his mastery of the subject matter and the passion with which he outlined the national landscape regarding digital strategy. Minister Nadal highlighted, amongst other issues, the severe shortage of professionals in Spain’s ICT sector – a truly worrying fact in a country with unemployment figures that are more than concerning. The minister brought the conference to a close with some good news: the approval of 50,000 million euros by the Council of Ministers on Friday 6 October, to bring the internet to those areas of Spain that are still lacking the infrastructure to make this possible.

I couldn’t attend the e-conference!

Don’t worry, that’s what this article is for – and here are the resources!

• A summary of the event by its organiser, El Norte de Castilla
• The live discussions that took place on Twitter
• Photos from the event

Acknowledgements

We can’t end without expressing our gratitude:

To El Norte de Castilla, thank you for your trust and the opportunity to collaborate on such an interesting and relevant platform as the e-volución 2017 Conference.

To the audience, thank you very much for all your kind and admiring comments and your thought-provoking questions. We were delighted to see so many familiar faces in the audience and so many new ones that promise great experiences in the future.

To our fellow panellists, thank you for your warmth and kindness, and for all the experience, insights and knowledge you brought together under one roof on a day of great anticipation.

To our team, both those present and those who couldn’t make it – as those unable to attend have left us messages of support on our internal communication and organisation platform, Liquid.

We look forward to seeing you all next year!

A lovely moment with our colleagues from the e-volución 2017 Conference