Over 320 Catalan SMEs to train at ESADE and Campus BBVA as part of the Yo Soy Empleo Programme

SMEs also take risks in times of crisis. Despite the complexity of the current economic climate, over 230 Catalan companies will be taking part in the Yo Soy Empleo training programme, delivered by Campus BBVA and ESADE in Barcelona. This BBVA initiative aims to help Spanish SMEs to create 10,000 jobs through a direct cash injection to create jobs and provide training in addition to a full selection and placement service.

Since launching the Yo Soy Empleo programme, 70 Catalan companies have taken part in ESADE training courses in Barcelona. Given the high rate of unemployment in Spain, Marc Correa, professor and academic director of the ESADE programme, believes that: "Training becomes a key ally for any business or entrepreneur, regardless of their nature, as it makes it possible to obtain the necessary knowledge through which to become more competitive, more profitable and, as a result, increase the recruitment levels".

During the presentation of the second edition of the training programme in Barcelona, Toni Ballabriga, Global Director of Corporate Responsibility and Reputation for BBVA, had this to say: "This initiative offers SMEs direct economic support as well as placement services and training; training designed to provide growth and an entrepreneurial outlook, as well as the internationalisation of SMEs, and, ultimately, to support them through generating employment in their environments."

Training versus unemployment
Although training will be provided for more than 320 SMEs, over 200 companies – mainly from the service sector, consulting and technology – have already applied for the eight training courses to be held in Barcelona between now and next year. These companies currently employ 5,000 people and it has been estimated that Yo Soy Empleo will help create about 1,500 new jobs in Catalonia alone. The aim of the programme is to create up to 10,000 new jobs nationwide.

With a participation rate of 10%, Barcelona is the second city with the most SME participants in the Yo Soy Empleo programme, coming after Madrid, with 21% and followed by Seville and Valladolid, both with 5%. Since launching the programme just over three months ago, 74% of the jobs created in the entire country have been permanent contracts, while 26% come under the category of other types of contract.

1,600 applications in Catalonia
During the weekend, about 40 participants, including managers, small business owners, entrepreneurs and self-employed workers, will attend classes on ESADE's Campus in Barcelona delivered by faculty members from the School. The aim is for participants to quickly attain the skills needed to modernise their businesses and achieve sustained job creation.

Over 3,000 companies have signed up for the various modules offered by Yo Soy Empleo: direct grants of up to 3,000 euros, training and job placement services. Over 21,000 unemployed people have applied to sign up for the programme in an effort to find work; and of these 1,600 in Catalonia.

ESADE, along with other major business schools in Spain, such as Instituto de Empresa, Deusto Business School and Instituto Internacional de San Telmo, has joined the project by developing a special training programme run by Campus BBVA aimed at managers and business owners from up to 2,000 SMEs as well as self-employed workers. 450 small and medium-sized enterprises have taken the courses delivered in Madrid, Seville, Bilbao, Las Palmas, Barcelona, Valencia, Valladolid, Malaga, Santander and La Coruña. Over 35,000 people are employed by the companies taking part in the training programme.

Growth plan
The programme will address both strategic and operational issues, essential for properly managing all kinds of businesses. Being taught will be subjects related to corporate strategies for growth, business models, the use of new digital marketing tools, analysis and financial decision making, strategy design to compete in complex environments, key factors for internationalisation, in addition to management and leadership.

This syllabus is intended, in turn, to provide the necessary knowledge to enable participants to put together their own business growth plan as they make their way through the sessions.

Similarly, the training course facilitates networking among the participating companies, promoting a real ecosystem to support SMEs in creating jobs, something that is greatly appreciated by all the participants.

About Yo Soy Empleo
BBVA intends for this initiative to create 10,000 jobs by providing financial support to SMEs and self-employed workers who offer jobs to people in Spain: up to 3,000 euros per unemployed person hired indefinitely and up to 1,500 euros for each unemployed person hired in other types of contract with a minimum of one-year. To date, nearly 1,400 SMEs have requested this aid, which have resulted in 965 permanent contracts. The rest are in process or pending documentation.

In addition to training at ESADE, the project will offer advice from a team of recruitment consultants who will manage recruitment processes for those companies requiring this service. Job offers and requests will be channelled through the www.yosoyempleo.es website, where companies or individuals can sign up to participate in the initiative. It is worth pointing out that Barcelona is the Spanish city to  have submitted the most web-based applications.