Economic diplomacy at the service of new global needs

We have celebrated the II Seminar on Economic Diplomacy, organized by CEI International Affairs with the collaboration of the British Chamber of Commerce in Spain.

For this, we have counted with the direction of Professor Raül Blanco, organizer of the cycle of Seminar of Economic Diplomacy. This edition has been about the geopolitical changes experienced in recent years and how these are influencing the international investment decisions of companies.Through the introductory presentations of Mrs. Evada Prada and Mr. Bill Murray, they have done special emphasis on the Brexit case.

Mr. Murray, Ms. Eva Prada, Mr. Millet and Mr. Rosàs

On one hand, Ms. Prada, Director of the British Chamber of Commerce in Spain, spoke about the importance of the work of Chambers of Commerce, and how they are at the service of companies, especially in cases of great uncertainty such as Brexit. The Director of the British Chamber of Commerce in Spain has stated that, in recent months, one of the most important tasks has been to convey as much information as possible to British companies established or investing in Spain. 

After that, Mr. Murray, director of the economic and public policy section of the British Embassy in Spain, approached us his vision of diplomacy in uncertain times, making a special reference to Brexit. For Murray, the next months will be the key, especially in the March European Council, since the idea is finding free-trade agreements, which for Murray must be halfway between the case of Canada and Norway.

The second part of the Seminar was structured in a round table focusing on the influence of geopolitical changes on trade and international investment, for which it had Mr. Manuel Egea, Ms. Ana Ruiz Jiménez and Mr. Francesc Subirada.

Ms. Ruiz Jiménez, Mr. Egea, Mr. Subirada and Mr. Blanco

Egea, an expert in corporate diplomacy and professor at the UCAM, gave an exposition about the concept of “corporate diplomacy” reflecting on the growing role of large companies. For Egea, in a changing environments like the current one, it is increasingly important to have instruments and expert profiles in corporate diplomacy, since current events are moving in tables of ministers, politicians and company directors, that is the reason why the managers of big companies must assume institutional and political roles.

For Egea companies must set a foreign policy if they want to integrate corporate diplomacy into its strategy. 

Ms. Ana Ruiz Jiménez, General Director of TD & T, explained the success story of a Spanish SME that has managed to lead major infrastructure projects in the United States, with its ventilation system for road and rail tunnels. For Ruiz Jiménez, the key to success is always to focus and specialize to the maximum.

Finally, Mr. Francesc Subirada, General Director of Research of the Generalitat of Catalonia, spoke to us about the importance of the creation of large companies at the national level, as they are those who pay taxes and do research in their countries of origin. Subirada dealt with the case of the European Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine that has been planned in Hospitalet de Llobregat.