The new (and bizarre) career shift of former Ciutadans leader Albert Rivera
Businessman Vicenç Pedret will be proposed as an independent director of Enagás
BarcelonaFollowing the collapse of Ciudadanos, its founder, Albert Rivera, has made several moves in the private sector. His latest is at Empresas Mágicas de España, a new venture where he will serve as an advisor. Meanwhile, businessman Vicenç Pedret, linked to Oriol Junqueras, will be nominated as a board member of Enagás, and ACAVe will have a new board after elections that gave the victory to the most radical candidate, ousting the status quo. These are the week's most notable appointments.
Albert Rivera joins Empresas Mágicas de España as a founding advisor
The Magic Companies of Spain initiative has appointed Albert Rivera, former leader of Ciudadanos (Cs) and former member of Congress, as a project advisor. This initiative is dedicated to "promoting a new business model connected to the local area, committed to positive impact, and actively involved in the country's transformation from the local level," as they describe themselves. According to the initiative, the appointment responds to the need to strengthen its strategic dimension and its capacity to forge alliances between the business community and the local area. Magic Companies of Spain, part of the Magic Ecosystem of Spain project, aims to "transform corporate commitment into structural projects that are sustainable over time and have a measurable economic, social, and environmental impact," they explain. The official launch of Magic Companies of Spain will take place on March 12 in Madrid, at an event for business leaders, sector organizations, and institutional representatives, where the initiative's model and upcoming lines of action will be presented.
Rivera (Barcelona, 1979) holds a law degree and is a former politician. He was the founder of Ciutadans, the well-known orange party that, since its inception in Catalonia in 2006, grew rapidly until winning the Catalan elections in 2017, the year of the independence referendum, securing 37 seats. In 2015, Rivera was replaced by Inés Arrimadas as the party's candidate for the presidency of the Generalitat (Catalan government), and Rivera then became the lead candidate in the Spanish general elections, the first time Ciudadanos had run. The party won 40 seats and became the fourth largest force in the Congress of Deputies. In April 2019, Ciudadanos (Cs) reached its electoral peak, winning a total of 57 seats in Congress, but in the second elections that year, in November 2019, it plummeted to just 10 seats, at which point Rivera resigned as party president and announced his retirement from politics. Rise and fall in just six months.
His professional career, now as a former politician, has been quite diverse. Between 2020 and 2022, he worked at the law firm Martínez-Echevarría, followed by another controversial departure, accused by the firm of "low productivity and zero performance." He then decided to create his own consulting firm, RV+, with José Manuel Villegas, a company he still runs.
Vicenç Pedret will join Enagás as an independent director
Enagás will propose to the general shareholders' meeting on March 26 the appointment of Barcelona businessman Vicenç Pedret as a new independent director, as reported by the company through the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV).
Enagás, the gas network operator in Spain, in which SEPI, the Spanish government's investment arm, holds a 5% stake, will also propose the reelection of several members of its current board of directors. In any case, Pedret's appointment would reduce the board to fifteen members, meaning one director would leave. Pedret is a chemical engineer, currently the president of the executive committee of the Montserrat Mountain Trust, and has close ties to the leader of ERC, Oriol Junqueras. He is also president of the family business Ramon Clemente Glass, a glass manufacturing company, and president of the board of trustees of the IQS Foundation.
Rafael Serra, elected new president of ACAVE
The Corporate Association of Specialized Travel Agencies (ACAVE) – the national employers' association for travel agencies headquartered in Catalonia – held elections this week to choose its new board of directors, the organization's governing body. Two candidates ran: the incumbent president, Jordi Martí, and Rafael Serra (Tiempo de Ocio), who won the election and will serve as president for a four-year term.
The new president of ACAVE, in his proposal, advocated for a profound change in the way the association is understood, focusing on a shared leadership model that addresses the most urgent challenges facing agencies. The greatest of these challenges, according to the association, is digitalization and the new opportunities and threats presented by AI. The winning team consists of Rosó Morlà (RACC Travel), Carlos Carrión (Kareba), Montse Bea (Kaluma), Jordi Viñolas (Viajes Viñolas), Edu Kirchner (Cicloturismo), and Josep Sala (Tarawa).
In-Store Media appoints Rachel Gómez as director of data analytics.
In-Store Media, a Spanish multinational specializing in omnichannel Retail Media, is reinforcing its commitment to data analysis with the addition of Rachel Gómez as the group's new corporate director of data and analytics, a position from which she will lead the company's data strategy and the evolution of its analytical capabilities applied to the business.
With over 20 years of experience in multinational consumer goods and distribution environments, Rachel Gómez has a solid track record in business intelligencebusiness strategy and transformation date-drivenWith an MBA from ESSEC Business School (Paris) and participation in Esade's Promociona Project executive program—aimed at women in senior management—she has led multidisciplinary teams and transformation projects in companies such as Cofares, Maxxium Spain, and L'Oréal, promoting data-driven management models focused on improving profitability.
Moventis appoints Jordi Castells as its new CEO
Moventis, the collective mobility division of Moventia, announced at its Annual Meeting the appointment of Jordi Castells as the company's new CEO. Castells succeeds Juan Giménez, who will now serve as an advisor to the CEO and the board of directors of Moventia, after more than three decades with the company.
Castells holds degrees in civil engineering and industrial engineering from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) and an Executive MBA from IESE Business School. Since joining Moventis in 2009, he has progressed through positions of responsibility in operations, business development, and general management across various companies within the group, while also driving internal initiatives related to innovation and technology. In recent years, he has led Moventis' B2B and B2C divisions, overseeing corporate mobility, tourism services, and end-customer operations.