Gonzalo Gortazar highlighted that “leading companies have a responsibility to be leaders in driving diversity” at the presentation of the 2023 CaixaBank Women in Business Awards

Acknowledgement of business excellence and female talent

• CaixaBank’s Chief Executive Officer, Gonzalo Gortazar said, “the CaixaBank Women in Business Awards are a very exciting project for the bank, as they combine two major priorities for the Group. On the one hand, supporting and always remaining close to companies, and on the other, being a benchmark in driving diversity”.
• The national winner of the CaixaBank 2023 Women in Business Award, María José Cascajo, was one of the Spanish businesswomen honoured at this year’s IWEC Awards, held in Turin, Italy from 5 to 7 November.

Gonzalo Gortazar, Chief Executive Officer of CaixaBank, highlighted “that leading companies have a responsibility to be leaders in driving diversity” and pointed out that “it is crucial that we all get involved in the fight to combat inequality in order to balance the scales and hasten the reduction of the current gap”.

This was the statement made by the Chief Executive Officer of CaixaBank during the 2023 CaixaBank Women in Business Awards ceremony, an event that brought together the national winner, María José Cascajo, founder and CFO of the pharmaceutical company HC Clover, and the regional winners of the awards (now in their seventh year) at the CaixaBank all-in-one in Madrid.

During the ceremony, which was also attended by several representatives of CaixaBank’s management team, Gortazar highlighted the excellent quality of the nominations for this year’s awards, which have gained a solid reputation in recent years for their recognition of business excellence and for their contribution to fostering gender equality in Spanish society. “The CaixaBank Women in Business Awards are a very exciting project for the bank, as they combine two of its major priorities. On the one hand, supporting and always remaining close to companies, and on the other, being a benchmark in driving diversity” he stated.

The executive made reference to the bank’s various diversity initiatives, such as the WONNOW awards, and recalled: “CaixaBank is comprised of 57% women and 43% female executives. The figure is growing steadily, confirming that although there is still a long way to go, we are heading in the right direction”.

At the event, the female executives were also invited to take part in the CaixaBank Women in Business Community, which operates through LinkedIn as a meeting point for forging professional links between the winners of the seven editions of the awards, and as a platform for sharing knowledge, ideas and experiences. The Community also offers access to exclusive experiences, such as forums, debates, conferences, and domestic and international events, with which it aims to contribute to the development and leadership of women in the business world.

The winners of the 7th edition of the CaixaBank Women in Business Awards

• National winner: María José Cascajo, founder and CFO of C.Clover Productos y Servicios, a company operating in the pharmaceutical sector.
• Andalusia: María Dolores Morales Vicente, CEO of Biosabor, a company working in the agri-food sector.
• Balearic Islands: Begoña Amengual, General Manager of MAC Hotels, a company in the hospitality sector.
• Barcelona: Elena Massot Puey, vice-president and CEO of Vertix Grupo Inmobiliario, a company dedicated to real estate development.
• Canary Islands: Yukonda Esparragoza, owner of Lavandería Romeral, a company specialising in the industrial laundry sector.
• Castile-La Mancha and Extremadura: Carmen López Serrano, CEO of Vegenat, a company operating in the agri-food sector.
• Castile-Leon: María Eugenia Clemente, CEO of Alestis Aerospace, a company specialising in the aeronautics sector.
• Catalonia: Sonia Plana, CEO of Exquisitarium SL, a company specialising in the hospitality sector.
• Valencian Community: Maite Marín, CEO of Mas Camarena School.
• Ebro (Aragon, La Rioja and Navarre): María Mariné, CFO of Quality Corn Grain, a company engaged in the agro-industrial sector.
• Madrid: Benita Martín, CEO of Copladur, a company in the construction sector (ex aequo with María José Cascajo, the national winner).
• Murcia: Encarna Ortiz, CEO of Grupo Vigilant, a company specialising in private security.
• North (Asturias, Cantabria, Galicia and Basque Country): Adriana Domínguez, Executive Chairwoman of Adolfo Domínguez, a group in the fashion industry.

The CaixaBank Women in Business Awards

The "CaixaBank Women in Business Awards" have been consolidated in recent years for their recognition of business excellence and contribution to promoting gender equality in Spanish society.

The jury for the awards, comprising a group of CaixaBank executives and directors, selects a regional winner for each of the bank’s Territorial Divisions, and then, in a second round, chooses the national winner who, as such, is also one of the Spanish businesswomen honoured at the international IWEC Awards, which were held this year in the city of Turin (Italy) between 5 and 7 November.

In over fifteen years of history, IWEC has awarded 538 businesswomen representing 47 countries. The companies led by these entrepreneurs collectively have a combined workforce of more than 410,000 employees and an annual turnover of $49.7 billion.

CaixaBank's commitment to diversity and business excellence

The "CaixaBank Women in Business Awards" fall within the Wengage diversity programme, a CaixaBank-wide project developed by people from all areas of the bank based on meritocracy and promoting equal opportunities, striving to encourage and implement diversity in all its dimensions: cultural, racial, religious, age, gender, sexual orientation and disability.

Wengage includes internal measures to foster flexibility and work-life balance, raise awareness of diversity and enhance the role of women in the bank; as well as external initiatives for customers and society, focused on promoting diversity and equal opportunities along four lines of action: leadership and entrepreneurship, innovation and education, sport and rural settings.

CaixaBank is comprised of 42.9% women in managerial positions and 40% women on the Board of Directors. This commitment has made CaixaBank one of the three leading companies in the world in the Bloomberg 2023 Gender Equality Index.

The project is also promoted by the CaixaBank Business division. The bank has consolidated its stance as a leading bank for the business fabric thanks to its specialisation model, with products and services tailored to the specific needs of this customer segment. CaixaBank Business provides its services through 220 specialised centres and branches throughout every region of Spain, staffed by 2,200 highly qualified professionals with a solid reputation in business consulting. The company has specialists in financing, foreign trade, treasury, tourism, real estate and SMEs, who offer a personalised service beyond financing to support and promote the corporate sector. 

Internationally, CaixaBank supports its corporate customers with various operational solutions that provide effective access to 127 markets in different countries, and it offers the best guidance for their operations abroad.