Parangon Partners

LUIS DE UGARTE
President - Founder

As a Managing Partner of Parangon Partners, he specialises in advising Senior Management, Boards of Directors and international Executive Searches for Spanish companies investing around the world, particularly in the industrial, construction, pharma, and professional services sectors, among others.

He has developed his career in major Spanish and international companies, in which he has held positions of responsibility such as managing director, CEO and Chairman.

He is an experienced corporate strategy consultant, from which perspective he has led and guided the acquisition, merging, restructuring and development of many companies.

He is currently a Board Member of leading Spanish and multinational companies. A graduate in mining engineering from the Escuela Superior de Minas in Madrid, he has a degree in Senior Management from the IESE Business School (Universidad de Navarra) and an MBA from the Instituto de Empresa.

NAGORE DE UGARTE
Senior Partner

Partner at Parangon Partners, Executive Director in 2 Companies, and member of 2 Investment Committees.
Nagore holds over twenty years of experience working with Senior Management, Boards of Directors, and Corporate Governance in numerous strategic projects for IBEX 35 companies, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises in both public and private sector, including startups and Executive & Board member talent searches.

Her career began with a strong background as a Parliamentary Counsel and in top-tier law firms, followed by advisory work in the General Secretariat of an IBEX 35 company, focusing on Corporate Governance and consulting projects in both national and international environments.

She later became responsible for the European financial assets of a leading IBEX 35 company, which is currently listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Subsequently, she worked in the public sector, managing public funds for strategic companies, family businesses, investment funds, and other key players in Spain's business landscape.

Her experience extends to financing and investment, through an Asset Management Company, involving temporary investments in capital expansion vehicles or funds, direct equity participation, and corporate financing for international operations. She has advised clients on Corporate Governance matters, maintaining a close relationship in monitoring their companies and supporting their business development.

Nagore performs her professional services comfortably in an international setting, speaking fluent English and German, is a Lecturer at IE University about Corporate Governance and she holds a double degree in Law and European Union Studies at CEU San Pablo (Madrid, Spain) and Fachhochschule Mainz, Germany, completed the PDG at IESE in 2018, and obtained in 2013 an MBA in Sustainable Economics. She is also certified by the Institute of Directors in Madrid (IC-A).

ANTONIO NÚÑEZ
Senior Partner

As a Partner at Parangon Partners, he specialises in senior management, boards of directors and executive searches. For ten years, he led several departments at the IESE Business School, working with a large number of executives and leading Spanish and international companies.

He also created and managed the Center for Public Leadership and Government. His experience in public management was gained during his tenure as Director of Social Policies for the Cabinet Office of the Spanish Prime Minister.
He was active as a social entrepreneur in creating and consolidating the NGO Cooperación Internacional in over 12 countries.

He is a CUNEF graduate and has an MBA from IESE, a Master's degree in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School, and a PhD from Universidad Rey Juan Carlos.

He was the president of the Harvard Kennedy School Alumni Association in Spain and a member of several Boards of Directors.

JUAN FERNÁNDEZ-ACEYTUNO
Partner

With a professional career spanning more than three decades, Juan has held positions of responsibility in industrial and service companies, combining operational and industrial vision with corporate strategy, team leadership, communication and open dialogue with Boards and Owners.

He is a Director and Board member of several companies and is actively involved in the business as a trustee of various Foundations and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Círculo de Empresarios. Founder of the “Know Square” think tank, he is the author of the books ‘Management in Times of Crisis’ (2009), ‘Simple Logic’ (2015) and ‘Drawing the Word’ (2020).

Juan holds a degree in Mining Engineering from the Madrid School of Engineering, a Master's degree in Operations and Production Management from the Instituto de Empresa (IE) and a PDG from IESE. He has completed the CESEDEN National Defence Programme and holds CESGA® (Certified Environmental, Social, and Governance Analyst) certification.

JAVIER GARCÍA-PRIETO
Partner

As a Partner of Parangon Partners, he is primarily dedicated to advising Senior Managements and Boards of Directors, developing high performance solutions, in succession plans of CEOs and management teams, executive search, and evaluation and development of management structures, as well as consulting projects of HR and change management, for all types of organizations both nationally and internationally.

Previously, Javier has been a Managing Partner of Activa Advice, an organization belonging to the Parangon Partners Group. Being responsible for the integral management of the organization and the development and origination of agreements with companies belonging to different sectors of the economy, as well as the coordination and management of large contracting and consulting projects, both nationally and internationally, of executives and middle managers.

He has developed his career for twenty years in different business fields. In a first stage, he worked in financial institutions, carrying out his activity in the risk area and in the corporate banking area, later in the services sector, as Director of Large Accounts, and for fourteen years he has been developing his professional activity in the consulting sector. He was Practice Leader in our country of an international consulting group, and later for eight years, he has been Managing Partner at Activa Advice where he has developed important projects, always with a high complexity component, for companies with cultures, business models and very diverse strategies.

He has a degree in Business Administration from CUNEF, Universidad Complutense de Madrid and an Executive MBA from the Instituto de Empresa Business School.

FRANCISCO MARTÍN
Partner

Partner at Parangon Partners, with more than twenty years of experience in Executive Search, advising Senior Management Teams in numerous strategic projects of expansion and consolidation of the business in Spain and Latin America for different sectors such as Healthcare, Professional Services, Industrial or Energy.

Although his career began in a leading financial institution, he soon ventured into strategy and management consulting, working for international companies such as KPMG and Booz Allen in Mexico. Back to Spain, he continued his consulting activity in leading executive search firms, both nationally and internationally, until joining Parangon Partners where he advises steering committees in the search, evaluation and retention of key executive talent.

Francisco has a degree in Law and is a member of the Madrid Bar Association and has a program in Business Administration from the Madrid Business School.

LUIGI LUBELLI
Partner

As a Partner at Parangon Partners, he is primarily dedicated to Executive Advisory, Board of Directors consulting, and International Executive Search.

He began his career in commercial and business banking, later moving to the insurance sector, where he has over twenty years of experience. He has held senior executive positions in the financial area, including CFO and Risk Director, in publicly traded multinational groups in Spain, USA, Italy, and UK.

Additionally, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of various entities. His main areas of expertise are financial management, with a special focus on capital markets, risk control, franchising, and Corporate Governance.

Luigi has acted as a senior advisor and consultant. He is also an instructor of in-company courses on finance and risk management.

Currently, he is a member of the Board of Directors of an international insurance group and a fund management company.

Luigi holds a degree in Economics from the "L. Bocconi" University of Milan, FRM from GARP, and GREA from IEB. He is trilingual in Spanish, Italian, and English and can speak other languages.

PABLO ALONSO
Partner

Pablo provides strategic advice to senior management on people strategy, talent management, M&A and integrations and the design and implementation of organizational change. He also counsels CEOs and senior leaders to get ready for larger and more complex challenges as they grow their companies and helps make these transitions smooth and rewarding for the individuals and their organization.

He has extensive experience in Europe, APAC, USA, and LATAM and has led complex global programs and spearheaded business transformations and change projects. Pablo has worked in diverse companies and in sectors such as Technology, Tourism, Banking, Automotive and he has founded a startup on People Strategy Consulting.

Pablo excels at getting to the crux of any issue through a healthy dose of curiosity and perseverance. He enjoys managing complex challenges and enabling people-centric organizations.

He holds a double degree in International Business Administration from ICADE (Spain) and ESB Business School in Reutlingen (Germany). He has trained as a co-active coach (CPCC) and is certified by the International Coaching Federation (ACC).

A citizen of the world, Pablo has lived and worked in Switzerland, Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Singapore and he is fluent in English, German, and Spanish.

Search for Non-Executive Directors and Senior Executives

Our search processes for Non-Executive Directors and Senior Executives are personally led by our Partners, who have the experience and knowledge to immerse themselves in the company culture and provide tailor-made solutions.

Our firm focuses on Boards of Directors and Senior Management, conducting search processes for key positions where hiring the right professional is critical to the company's strategy and future sustainability.

Our methodology is based on a direct search procedure to ensure the best fit with our client's expectations and needs, as well as their values and corporate culture. We have an extensive database of international talent at the highest management level.

We base the search process on five essential stages:

1. Preliminary interview with the Client to gain an in-depth understanding of the company, its corporate culture and the key aspects of the position. Definition of the search strategy to ensure the most suitable professionals are recruited.
2. Regular progress reports to the Client to ensure alignment and share developments in the process.
3. Interviews will be conducted with candidates pre-selected by Partners and Consultants to obtain and verify relevant information, as well as initial general references.
4. Presentation to the Client of the most suitable candidates for the position after a preliminary assessment and a Confidential Report on each candidate.
5. Obtaining specific references, negotiating remuneration and monitoring the integration process into the company as an added value to the process.


Assessment of Senior Managers and Non-Executive Directors

We conduct individual Assessments of Non-Executive Directors and Senior Managers to diagnose and benchmark their skills in order to develop a personalised Development Plan that will enable them to add greater value and have a greater impact on the organisation.

1. Understanding of the strategy, mission and key objectives through working sessions with Chairmen and CEOs.
2. Definition of the corporate leadership model, key competencies, experience, attitudes and motivation.
3. Individual assessment using our methodology, providing an objective and independent evaluation.
4. Preparation of a Confidential Report for each of the individuals assessed, with an Action Plan including milestones for improvement to increase their performance.

Corporate Governance

Our Partners are trusted Advisors to Boards of Directors in creating value and efficiency for their organisations, always following Good Corporate Governance Practices.

Services:

• Design and implementation of Boards of Directors
• Board remuneration policies
• Design and implementation of Advisory Boards and Committees
• Evaluation of Boards of Directors, Non-Executive Directors and their Committees
• Implementation of Good Corporate Governance Practices
• Succession Plans

Strategic and Organisational Consulting

We provide highly personalised consulting services to our clients, contributing to improved corporate performance in two areas:

1. Strategy
- Formulation of the Strategic Plan. Implementation of the strategy and monitoring
- Advice on mergers and acquisitions and achievement of synergies
- Definition and implementation of Contingency Plans and Communication Plans in crisis situations
- International Partnerships and Joint Ventures

2. Corporate Organisation
- Leadership and Management Programmes
- High-performance teams
- Tailor-made development programmes for members of Boards of Directors and Management Committees
- Design of leadership models aligned with the company's strategy and challenges
- Implementation of new technologies and management tolos

We work with the Board of Directors and the company's senior management to understand their business vision and short-, medium- and long-term objectives.

Based on this understanding, we help companies define their operations, organisational structure and the functions to be performed by their management team in order to adapt to new competitive environments.

Our consultancy services are an excellent resource to use when companies face special circumstances:

▪ Organisational changes resulting from mergers and acquisitions
▪ Succession plans
▪ Rapid growth
▪ Strategy reformulation
▪ Leadership development
▪ Restructuring and adaptation to new environments

Business Succession Plans

Our services will guarantee maximum efficiency in the Business Succession process for the company's shareholders, ensuring its present and future sustainability and improving the management model.

- We provide sound business guidance and an efficient management model to enable the company to meet the important challenges it will face in the future.
- Our advice guarantees the future of the company and the assets of future generations.
- We analyse, study and reflect on the current situation of the family and company shareholding structure, culture and values, strategic lines, organisational model, the company's constraints, the international environment and the variables of change in the sector that may affect it.

OUR VALUE PROPOSITION

Parangon Partners is a Firm specialising in Advisory Services for Senior Management and Boards of Directors. We always develop projects tailored to the real needs of our Clients.

• More than 30 years' experience working in different sectors, developing search processes, understanding our clients' corporate culture and helping to find solutions tailored to each need, with the agility and diligence required in each case.

• Search processes are personally managed by Partners of the Firm who have developed their knowledge and management experience in different sectors of activity. In these sectors, they have held positions as Chairmen, Chief Executive Officers and Senior Managers in companies.

• Extensive experience in developing processes for identifying management talent in the market, through the design of effective search strategies and always under the parameters of the direct search method, through highly trusted contacts and ensuring maximum confidentiality.

• Parangon Partners has developed its track record globally, with a particular focus on Europe, America and Asia, directly conducting numerous search processes in more than 28 different countries around the world. International processes are managed centrally by the firm's partners in Spain to ensure a single point of contact with the client, a single decision-making centre and the ability to reach all the countries that constitute the search target.

• Parangon Partners is part of IIC Partners, one of the world's leading organisations in executive search and Human Resources Consulting Services, https://iicpartners.com/global-offices/ y https://iicpartners.com/global-offices/offices/madrid/parangon-partners/ with a presence in the most important financial centres on the planet. We carry out international search projects with the support of our international network of partners.

WHY PARANGON PARTNERS?

• Experience in executive search processes using the ‘Direct Search’ method, understanding our clients' corporate culture and helping to find a solution tailored to their needs.

• Search processes are personally managed by the firm's partners, who have knowledge and experience in all sectors of economic activity.

• The independence of our firm, which is made up of a team of experienced partners and professionals (www.parangonpartners.com) with in-depth knowledge of executive profiles and how to identify the skills and abilities that will bring the most value to their organisation, both now and in the future.

• Our global reach and international experience. Over the last 15 years, we have worked in more than 30 countries, supported by our international network of partners https://iicpartners.com/global-offices/ in more than 50 countries around the world.

• We bring to our projects our knowledge of the corporate culture of our Spanish clients, the proximity and trust of a Spanish consulting firm, centralised management of the search process, with a single decision-making centre and the ability to obtain information from different areas within the same country.

• A highly qualified team of consultants, researchers, data processing specialists, cutting-edge technology, and a process database that guarantees outstanding results in the search for talent, generating a high rate of loyalty among our clients.

During the Firm's more than thirty years of activity, we have carried out more than 4,000 search processes and conducted competency and leadership style assessments on more than 7,000 Senior Executives and Non-Executive Directors of 16 different nationalities. We have carried out these projects in large teams, the largest of which consisted of more than 160 executives, and always with a high degree of flexibility and adaptation to the needs of each organisation.

We have carried out all kinds of Projects with great efficiency in different sectors, although we cannot cite specific references or company names for reasons of confidentiality.

Our expertise covers various sectors at national and international level in all areas of economic activity, such as industry, finance, health, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, energy, the environment, and distribution, among others, both in the IBEX-35 and in family businesses, small, medium and large companies.