Keynote speaker on Green transition and resilience: Raimon Puigjaner (29th September)
He is Master in International Relations - with a specialization in Environmental Political Economy by the Institut Barcelona d'Estudis Internacionals - IBEI) and holds a degree in Business Administration by the Universitat Pompeu Fabra - UPF.
He has more than fifteen years of professional experience in the evaluation, analysis and development of sustainable (impact focus), innovative and competitive business strategies, working for organizations such as F. C. Barcelona (club and foundation), Danone, Aigües de Barcelona, Camper, Ferrer, Buff, Sorigué, Holaluz, GBfoods or Grupo Consorcio, among many others. In addition, through R4S, he is partner of GEAcounting since 2015, a non-profit economic interest group created with the purpose of developing social accounting systems that objectify and monetize the social value of organizations.
He also offers advisory services to the International Water Association (IWA) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) since 2015 and 2012, respectively (IDB: multilateral funding provider and technical support instruments for the reduction of poverty and inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean; IWA: the main knowledge hub for the water sector worldwide). He has co-developed for them international systems for evaluating the overall performance of companies and institutions that manage water and sanitation (AquaRating) and urban solid waste services, and supports its implementation and further development.
He also is a degree professor of inclusive business at the School of International Trade (ESCI) of UPF, as well as collaborates with several business schools (ESADE, EADA, Universidad Complutense and UPF) offering corporate sustainability strategies integration master classes.
Keynote speaker on Digital transition and resilience: Mr. Luc Sirois (29th September)
Mr. Luc Sirois holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from McGill University and an MBA from Harvard University. Recognized in Canada and around the world for his creative approach to innovation, Mr. Sirois is a leader and entrepreneur in digital technology, with investments in numerous startups and non-profit organizations focused on youth, health, science and education.
He co-founded the health innovation movement Hacking Health as well as its digital health accelerator and pre-seed fund. He is co-founder of Resonant Medical, now Elekta Canada, a leading manufacturer in the field of radiation oncology and image-guided treatments. He has also served as Vice President of Consumer Health at TELUS Health, Telesystem and Nightingale, and as Manager at McKinsey & Company with offices in Montreal, Toronto, Zurich and Paris. Until recently, he was Managing Director of Prompt, a not-for-profit organization that facilitates R&D partnerships between the industry and research institutions to improve the competitiveness of companies in the ICT, artificial intelligence and other digital technology markets.
Mr. Sirois is also strategic advisor to the Minister of the Economy and Innovation of the Quebec government. As such, he currently works on deploying new tech transfer models, on the culture of innovation in institutions, on issues of business creation and scientific entrepreneurship, as well as on the transfer of social innovations and their adoption in society. In December 2020, he was appointed Chief Innovator of Quebec and Director General of the newly created Quebec Innovation Council.
Keynote speaker on Resilience: Alberto Pezzi (30th September)
Alberto Pezzi is currently leading the competitive strategy unit at the Directorate General for Industry of the Government of Catalonia. He has over 25 years of experience in competitive strategy and cluster development working both in international consultancy firms (McKinsey & Co, Competitiveness Group, etc.) and in the public sector. During this period, Mr. Pezzi has leaded and participated in over fifty cluster development initiatives in more than twenty different industries.
In the last decade, Mr. Pezzi has been actively involved in different advisory groups at European and international level such as TACTICS, the European Forum for Clusters and Emerging Industries, the European Cluster Collaboration Platform and the European Cluster Observatory. In September 2019, he has been appointed as member of the European Expert Group on Clusters in charge of providing recommendations, advice, and expertise to the European Commission, Member States and regions on how to better use clusters as a strategic tool of industrial policy, interregional collaboration and for integrating SMEs into EU and global value chains. As cluster expert, he has also collaborated with other international organizations like the World Bank and UNIDO.
Mr. Pezzi is the co-author of different books, articles and business cases on cluster policy and practice and he is regularly invited to talk in international forums dedicated to clusters and regional competitiveness.
Mr. Pezzi is eager about sharing his experience and, despite not being an academic, he has always collaborated with various with academic and training institutions. Since 2013 he is member of faculty of the European Foundation for Cluster Excellence and he has intervened, as guest speaker, at IESE Business School, University of Deusto, Venice International University, Emory University, ENA- École National d’Administration, and Université de Strasbourg among others.
As part of his professional pro-bono activity, Mr. Pezzi has been among the promoters of TCI Network (the leading global network of cluster practitioners, tci-network.org) and after having served in the Board of Directors as secretary, treasurer and president he has recently appointed as member of the Board of Advisors.
Mr. Pezzi holds a BSc in Economics by the Università di Bologna, a master in European Law and Economics from the European College of Parma and a postgraduate diploma in Economic History and Institutions from the Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona.
