Next Monday, April 23 is the Sant Jordi holiday in Catalonia as well as World Book Day. Over the past academic year, various ESADE faculty members have written books in which they reflect on major challenges such as the digital transformation of business, entrepreneurship, globalisation, leadership and the world of law applied to new paradigms in the legal sector.

One of the school’s top picks is ¡Quiero esta marca!, written by Oriol Iglesias, Associate Professor in the Department of Marketing at ESADE, and his co-author, the consultant Nicholas Ind. The book explores the importance of desire in relation to consumers. The authors analyse the main factors that drive the construction of a desirable brand and explore how brands use these factors to attract customers.

Also on the topic of marketing, ESADE faculty member Joan Riera and his co-author Tomás Soler published a book called Impulso, which argues that the impact of new technologies and globalisation is forcing companies to adapt to an increasingly fast-changing environment. The book explores the topic of intrapreneurship – in other words, the application of entrepreneurial principles within business structures with the aim of adapting companies and making them more innovative and agile.

Data and consumers

Josep Francesc Valls, Professor of Marketing Management at ESADE, recently published Big data: atrapando al consumidor. In this book, Prof. Valls discusses the huge impact of consumer-generated data on business strategies. He argues that companies must manage these data properly in order to gain an accurate understanding of customers’ needs and be able to adapt to them.

New professional challenges

Due to the economic crisis and globalisation, more and more people are moving for work-related reasons. Much has been said about the causes of this movement, but very little about people’s attitudes towards this change. ESADE Lecturer Mercedes Segura published ¡Me voy!, which shares the experiences and anecdotes of several people who have been through this process. With humour and sincerity, she tackles the subject of how to adapt to a new reality in a foreign country.

On the topic of law, Xavier Felip has written El abogado en sala. This five-volume set, intended as a tool for lawyers, describes various real-life situations in which professionals might find themselves. In clear, practical prose, the book offers clarifications, suggestions and guidance – solutions that are hard to come by in classic procedural literature.

Recommended books:

¡Quiero esta marca!: Cómo construir marcas deseables

Authors: Nicholas Ind and Oriol Iglesias

Publisher: Libros de Cabecera

Impulso

Authors: Joan Riera and Tomás Soler

Publisher: LID

Big data: atrapando al consumidor

Author: Josep Francesc Valls

Publisher: Bresca (Profit Editorial)

¡Me voy!

Author: Mercedes Segura Amat

Publisher: Ediciones B

El abogado en sala (five-volume set)

Author: Xavier Felip

Publisher: Tirant lo Blanch

Libertad, igualdad, solidaridad: tres principios, una democracia; la liberal

Authors: Enric Bartlett and Maria Dolores Bardají

Publisher: José Maria Bosch Editor

Veranderen van maatschappelijke organisaties

Authors: Jaap Boonstra, Hans Vermaak, Yvonne Burger, Rob van Es, et al.

Publisher: Business Contact

Brand Desire: How to Create Consumer Involvement and Inspiration

Authors: Oriol Iglesias and Nicholas Ind

Publisher: Bloomsbury

El contrato: apuntes para una revisión. Principios y reglas ante el mercado, la política y el conflicto

Authors: Beatriz Añoveros and Sergio Llebaría

Publisher: Aranzadi

El empleo público en España: desafíos para un estado democrático más eficaz

Authors: Carlos Losada, Adrià Albareda, Francisco Longo and Manuel Férez

Publisher: Instituto de Estudios Económicos