Leading up to the trip to Spain, the two of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions that I was most looking forward to experiencing was power distance and uncertainty avoidance.

The Hierarchal Business Model Was Very Prevalent In Spain

According to Hofstede, power distance refers to “the fact that all individuals in societies are not equal – it expresses the attitude of the culture towards these inequalities among us.” During the site visit to Hewlett Packard I really started notice the hierarchy in the workplace. The guest speakers made it known that they encourage a bottom up style of business hoping this leads to more idea generation. However, during the presentation the speakers spoke for about 5 minutes about the actual hierarchy and order in which you move up through the company. They had the typical flow chart map with the highest ups at the top and branches flowing downward that they manage. It seemed like they talked about this for a long time but because of the prior knowledge we learned in the classroom, I knew business in Spain is reliant on the hierarchical approach so I enjoyed hearing their words about it.

Uncertainty Avoidance Causes A Lower Number of Entrepreneurs In Spain

The other big cultural dimension that was prevalent in the site visits is uncertainty avoidance. Hofstede mentions “uncertainty avoidance has to do with the way that a society deals with the fact that the future can never be known.” Spain comes in very high on this scale with a score of 86, the United States of America is only at 46. This means that in Spain the people may feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations. In terms of the business side of things, this high level of avoidance causes lower numbers of entrepreneurs throughout Spain. As Pau Virgilli mentioned in his presentation, entrepreneurship is a very tumultuous way of life and may not be the best fit for everyone. You need to be a risk taker and with such a high uncertainty avoidance, Spanish entrepreneurs aren’t as common than here in America. But, Tetuan Valley is trying to change this narrative.

Tetuan Valley is trying to be a leader by starting a entrepreneurship mindset in Spain

Tetuan Valley is the one place we went to that is the opposite in terms of their company culture. They are trying to be an innovative company that promotes people with ideas for startup companies. I really enjoyed this site visit because it got us involved and thinking about ways to make certain ideas come to life. I thought our presentations there was the highlight of the site visit because we could bring in everything we learned throughout the semester into a presentation at a company abroad.

Before this trip, I viewed it as more of a vacation than a class. I wasn’t really sure how much classroom work we would be doing so I didn’t see myself learning that much. I am very happy to say that I was completely wrong about this one. So much of my learning happened in a natural way of immersing myself into the culture of Spain. I am very glad that I can say I got the whole global experience and more in just 2 short weeks of travel.  

The Chaos Of Abroad Led Me To Some Great Friends

Coming into this trip I thought of myself as someone who was very self-aware. I quickly learned this was not the case. I found out that I was only self-aware when I was in environments that were comfortable. As soon as I got to Madrid I realized I was not accustomed to being an outsider and I did not like it all. Going through Puerto del Sol was very nerve-racking for me. There were so much people and general chaos I wasn’t sure what to do with myself. I had never experienced this kind of anxiety before. It was during this time I realized I needed to rely on my classmates to help me navigate it all. I am glad this happened though because this is what helped me meet such amazing friends.

Traveling Abroad Helped Me Learn To Open Up To Trying New Things

When I applying for this study abroad class a couple months ago I did not want to go alone so one of my best friends and I applied together. I was accepted, he was not. At the time I was very upset and I can vividly remember being scared about going away for 2 weeks with people I didn’t know at all. However, my friend not being accepted turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me as this increased cultural curiosity. Typically, I am someone who does not like change. I like the simple foods, normal clothing, and not being overly adventurous. This all changed as a result of my new friends. Within a couple of days I was trying paella, walking through the downtown streets of Madrid way too late into the night, and buying clothes that I never thought I would put on. By the end of the trip and now having been back home for a couple of days, I can definitely notice myself having little fear going into different cultures that I once was afraid of.

An Increase In Empathy Is My Greatest Take Away From The Trip

Half way through the trip I found myself caring about the group I was with and making sure they were enjoying themselves more than I was. I didn’t really anticipate this happening because I hardly new them just a week ago but I very glad it did. I learned that I like to be a leader during social situations and found that the greatest thing was stories the next day of how much fun everyone had. I would say this was my biggest area of personal growth from the abroad experience. I really felt like my ability to identify with others feelings and relate to them got better each day we were abroad and that it thanks to putting myself out there in uncomfortable situations.

Before going to Spain, the biggest advice I heard was to plan out your free days on the weekends. At the time I thought this was great advice and so I did with great site visits to local attractions around the cities. However, like Pau Virgili quoted Mike Tyson in his presentation to our class, “everyone has a plan until you get punched in the face”. This may be a little extreme for this instance but things definitely did not go according to plan and honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

I Learned the Most When I Wasn’t Trying To

The day I learned the most about Barcelona was a day in which I planned on learning nothing. I woke up relatively early around 9 a.m. and decided to go for a run before it got super-hot. While running I saw the Arc de Triomf which has become one of the city’s iconic landmarks. The monument is classical in shape and features ground-breaking sculptural finishes full of symbolism. It is also a very freeing feeling to run underneath and something I highly recommend to future students. 

After the Arc, I ventured across the city to the breath-taking views on top of Montjuic. This all-around view of the entire city of Barcelona was one of my favorite things I saw. However, this is also where my day got interesting because my phone died. I thought I knew where I was in regards to the hotel so I assumed I would be able to get back with no problems. I was wrong. After wandering the streets helplessly for an hour, I ended up near the beach. I then remembered that some of my classmates mentioned they were going to the beach today so I decided to try and find them.

The Beach Is Packed and It Is Not Easy To Find Your Friends

It turns out trying to find someone on the Barcelona beach on sunny day is the same as trying to find a needle in a haystack. So, I decided to lay down for a bit to rest as I have been literally running around for 3 hours. Another tip to future students, don’t fall asleep on the beach without sunscreen! I learned this the hard way. You might as well have called me a lobster for the rest of the trip because I was burned. It is safe to say that the walk back to the hotel was not pleasant as I got lost again. I had to rely on the little Spanish I remembered from high school and some nice locals’ direction to make it back to the hotel about an hour later. This adventure back to hotel also proved to me that Hofstede was correct about how much of collectivist society Spain is. Every local I talked to was more than willing to help out, which I am very grateful for.

Be Open To Change, It Will Better Your Experience

In conclusion, this day of adventure all started out because I got lost without a phone in a city I had never been to before. I ended up touring most of the city on my own because of how lost I was and got to eat in a very good local taco restaurant that I never would have found otherwise. So, it is great to have plans and you should plan as much as possible but, it will not go according to those plans. So be open to this and it will turn out better than you ever could’ve imagined.

There is no need to be nervous

Being a relatively inexperienced wine drinker, I tend to get a little nervous when thinking about going to wine tastings in Spain. I wonder what the crowds will be like, how serious the atmosphere will be, and whether I will be looked at weird for being a foreigner? However, when I came across Madrid Uncorked all those worries went away.

Madrid Uncorked is all about the consumer and wants you to have the best experience possible

The reason I want to go to this wine tasting venue is because I know I won’t feel nervous. Madrid Uncorked is all about the experience and that is what I love. You don’t have to be a big wine connoisseur to do this. It doesn’t matter if you love wine, want to love wine, or couldn’t care less about wine. If you like to hang out in a bar and have some fun, Madrid Uncorked is the place for you. Another reason for its strong first impression is that it won’t break the bank, Madrid Uncorked is only 20 euros per person! This also leads into my only concern with this place. The price is cheaper than other wine tasting experiences so it makes me question the quality of the wine and the experience in its entirety. With that being said, I feel that the overall lightheartedness and expertise of the wine expert will prove to make it a great time.

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Uncorked is very close to the hotel

With just an 11-minute drive via taxi, which picks you up directly from the lobby of the hotel, Madrid Uncorked is so close it would be a shame to miss. A short drive means a low taxi charge and with a decent sized group you can even split the taxi amongst each other with Venmo. This makes for a very low-cost night while tasting a great variety of wine with friends.

What you need to bring

• €20 in cash
• Your palate
• Extra cash if you’d like to buy bottles of wine
• A great attitude and a willingness to try new things

RSVP is very important

Being that it is a social group, reserving your spot is crucial. The sign-up process is very easy and free of charge. You simply have to make an account with your name and email. Then all you have to do is click on which event you want and it will show the time that it is at. Once you are all signed up you are ready to go. Also, you pay the 20 euros at the door so there is no cancellation fee. Madrid Uncorked orders the amount of wine and tapas based on the amount of people that are signed up so make sure you get your name in. This is beneficial because you get to see the group that will be there before you actually get there. Personally, I like this a lot because it gives an idea of how many people will be in attendance and the demographics that you will be hanging out with.

The Abertis vision is to be the leading worldwide operator in infrastructure management serving mobility and communications

Since 2012, Abertis has had integrations in Brazil, Chile, Asia, Italy, and created Emovis, a subsidiary dedicated to the development of electric toll technology.
Headquartered in Madrid, Abertis Infrastructure is a worldwide leading corporation in toll road management. In total, the company runs over 8,600 kilometers of toll road all around the world. Abertis has followed a three-way approach of growth, internationalization and profitability.

Almost half of all employees are based in Spain and net profits are up 15%

The evolution of Abertis is constant. However, in terms of their HR department the number of employees has been steadily decreasing over the past 6 years. They currently have 14,119 employees, 3000 fewer than in 2013. In terms of the number employees in Spain vs around the world, Spain hosts almost half (41%) of all geographical workers. This movement of workers into Spain has paid off greatly. With increases in all of its main financial figures, Abertis reports €1,681 million net profit, up 15% from last year. The high jump in net profit is due in large part to the 34% sale of Cellnex Telecom and an increase of €605 million in capital gains. Additionally, Abertis had 3 shareholders (Atlantia, ACS and Hochtief) to join the group to cap off the year.

The Abertis Foundation enters the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration Group

Appointed on April 11, 2019 during the 27th biannual meeting of the United Nations (UN), Abertis became the first infrastructure company to join the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration Group. The UN praised the Abertis group’s work to improve road safety, in particular its commitment to United Nations’ road safety goals. These road safety goals have been proved true as Abertis has reduced accident rates to 6.4% and morality rates fell 10% in the past year. They have brought awareness to road safety regulations through education programs in all of the countries they operate in and forums in the major cities of these countries that 7,500 people showed up to in 2018.

Abertis reaches agreement with Red Eléctrica

Abertis Telecom Satélites, a subsidary of Abertis, reached an agreement with Red Eléctrica Corporación to sell its 89.7% stake in Hispasat for €949 million. Expected to go through during the first half of this year, the deal will help prepay the short-term bridge to the debt facility drawn in the acquisition of Abertis. Once the deal goes through, Abertis will have no stake in Hispasat, keeping the company’s strategy to become a pure toll road operator. 

5 Questions

• Do you see yourself continuing to decrease you total number of employees?
• Why did you see leaving Hispasat was beneficial?
• Do you see yourself continuing to expand throughout Europe?
• How beneficial was the three new shareholders in terms of the growth in net profit?
• Have you been actively trying to get more infrastructure companies to join the UN Committee?

My name is Brady Rudrud and when I am in Spain I really want to go to an FC Barcelona soccer game.

Strawberry fields, prostitution, voided contracts, and rape grouped together is something I never thought would happen in a million years. In southern Spain, sadly, these 4 all come together to form a VERY sad and disturbing story.

The strawberry industry is one of the main exports keeping Spain afloat during their economic crisis. To help harvest these strawberries some 20,000 Moroccan women will be brought in to get these so coveted berries to the European supermarkets like Germany, France and the UK. To the Spaniards these strawberries are so important “red gold” is their new name. Maybe not to everyone, but to me, referencing a berry to gold is moronic even if it is the last berry on Earth. Especially with the devastating reality of the strawberry business ruining women’s lives.

The Truth Behind Strawberries

Samira Ahmad, a mother from Morocco, left her homeland to what she thought was going to be best for her family going forward. She had the highest of aspirations as she thought that Spain, being the “rich” country that it is, could no way be worse than what she was going through. Little did she know that what was waiting for her on the other side was an extremely high power distance society with a hierarchical approach. Meaning that the higher ups in business, politics, and most importantly in this case, the courts, could not care less about the welfare of the people who get the nation’s biggest export ready for shipment.

Fast forward a year and Samira Ahmad lives in hiding with nine other women who have all been a part of sexual assault and human trafficking and has no hope of salvation as the courts have essentially just disregarded the case. The fact the judicial system in Spain cannot step up and stop this is astonishing. Ahmad states that her biggest mistake was not going to Spain, but actually going to the authorities in Spain about the mistreatment of herself and others. With realities like “working in permanently crouched positions with a single break of 30 minutes a day” and being “pressured into having sex in exchange for food and water“, no one should ever feel like going to the authorities was the mistake.

Moving Forward Towards Possible Hope

Just this year the Spanish government announced that it will increase controls and inspections of farms. Last week the government granted the women temporary work visas, which allows them to find work and support themselves. I hope they are able to do so in a way that allows to be able to go back to Morocco and their families as quickly as possible. Because Ahmad says to the women coming now, “Please don’t come. If bad things happen nobody will help you. Go home to your families”.