Mario Lara has been appointed Director of ESADE Madrid, replacing Enrique Verdeguer, who, after four years in the position, is moving to Brussels to serve as Chief Economic Advisor of Spain’s Permanent Representation to the European Union. Mr. Lara has served as Co-director of ESADE’s Programme for Directors since 2016. Specialised in the third sector and corporate governance, he has more than 30 years of experience as an advisor to major national and international groups as well as publicly listed companies.

Mr. Lara’s appointment as head of the Madrid campus is in keeping with various goals set by ESADE’s executive team: strengthening the school’s presence in Madrid, where it has maintained a campus for 20 years; promoting ESADE’s global brand as a leader in executive education; and strengthening the school’s relationships with companies, institutions and alumni.

Mr. Lara commented: “ESADE Madrid remains committed to being a leading executive training centre. We will continue to update and adapt our portfolio and academic methodology to the new challenges faced by companies and professionals, and we remain fundamentally committed to digitalisation and innovation. In this new stage, we will also strengthen ESADE’s commitment to talent by expanding our scholarship projects and pursuing partnerships and international collaborations.”

Expert in corporate governance, human capital and the third sector

The new Director of ESADE Madrid has spent much of his career at PwC, where he was hired in 1997 and made partner in 2005. During his tenure at PwC, he has had various responsibilities in different divisions of the consulting firm. He served as Managing Partner for Human Capital and CSR from 2006 to 2013 and as Director of the Tax and Legal Services Division from 2013 to 2015. He served as Managing Partner for the Board of Directors Programme from 2007 to 2016 and Managing Partner for the Third Sector from 2015 to 2016. He was also Head of Consulting for the Services Sector at PwC and served on the board of the PwC Foundation from 2007 to 2016.

Mr. Lara’s current post is Senior Advisor in Corporate Governance and for the Third Sector at PwC. He collaborates with the boards area at Boyden and is a senior advisor to Georgeson Spain. He has also served as an advisor to Ashoka and sits on the advisory board of various social enterprises. Mr. Lara holds a degree in law with a specialisation in business consulting from Comillas Pontifical University in Madrid, as well as an Executive MBA from Houston University.