Cristóbal Baeza

The challenge of diversity is one of the key transformation pillars for any company. In the case of BBVA, ensuring a diverse workplace, in the broadest sense of the term, allows the company to better address the needs of its diverse customer base and offer a more comprehensive service.

In the last year, the bank has stepped up its efforts to improve the wellness and health of its employees. These initiatives are already proving their worth by helping employees in areas as wide-ranging as sleep quality, early detection of genetic diseases and mental health.

The financial institution is launching a new job portal to attract people with technological backgrounds in the different countries where it has a presence. The Group expects to end 2023 with over 2,600 new hires of this type of professionals, 1,000 of which will be in Spain.

After announcing that the bank will have 35 percent women in management positions in 2024, BBVA has launched the high performance program ‘I am female talent’, which is geared toward the bank’s female employees with the greatest potential for growth. The bank has also presented a new remuneration policy for executive directors, which includes a diversity indicator as part of the variable incentives.

The growing demand for digital financial services around the world has brought with it an increase in exposure to digital crime and fraud. With 47.8 million digital customers worldwide, BBVA has put its customers' protection and trust as a fundamental pillar of its strategy to combat this situation. In 3 years, the bank has managed to prevent up to 75% of fraud, strengthening customer protection.

The bank celebrates the third edition of Diversity Days, an internal event to promote diversity, inclusion and equality in the workforce through activities, conferences and events throughout the week. As part of Diversity Days, the bank informed its workforce about its Diversity Guidelines, a general guide for action that makes respect for differences, and thus for diversity, a fundamental pillar of the company’s strategy.

Almost 1,000 engineers have joined BBVA in the first half of 2022. A figure that the financial institution expects to double by the end of this year. These are technology profiles that are embedded throughout the different countries where the bank has a presence, 400 of them in Spain.

The pandemic proved to be the turning-point for her to take the most important step of her life. Not without fear, Alicia García began a gender transition process to "not have to hide my identity and be able to be myself." This was a personal journey with an impact on her work environment. Although a lot less than expected.

In an organization as large and diverse as BBVA, with more than 110,000 employees in 25 countries, we are bound to encounter different family models that go beyond the one formed by two adults of different sex and one or more children. To better understand each type of family and their specific needs, the bank has created a guide to make that diversity visible. “We want to raise awareness that there are other family models besides the conventional one. At BBVA every family has their place, and we are under a duty to be aware of the needs and specific features of each one,” explains José Antonio Gallego, Diversity Discipline Leader at BBVA.

The bank becomes the first financial institution in the world to share its cybersecurity knowledge with society through Coursera, a learning platform with 97 million registered students. As experts in cybersecurity, BBVA's goal is to train, motivate and empower its customers, and society in general, to acquire secure behaviors to properly manage the risks posed by the digital era.

The bank is one of the first large companies in Spain to indefinitely commit to remote working. The bank's employees will be able to take advantage of this measure whenever possible depending on the nature of their job position, and will be able to work remotely up to 40 percent of their time. They will benefit from a high degree of independence to organize themselves even on the same day and can distribute this percentage on a quarterly basis. The bank will allow them to do so from two different addresses within the national territory. The bank will sign new contracts with its employees in Spain to adapt them to the Spanish Law on Remote Working. BBVA is thus taking action ahead of the announcement of the end of the state of health emergency to implement a permanent working model based on flexibility, work-life balance and trust in employees.

The road to equality requires us to redefine gender roles to free them from stereotypes and prejudices inherited from past social norms. In this new paradigm, the company plays a key role if it wants to attract and retain the best profiles. In the search for this approach in favor of ungendered talent, BBVA is committed to programs and actions that reflect different family models, new paternities, the promotion of women and the visibility of role models to amplify the message of diversity.

BBVA has renewed the processors of its Data Processing Centers (DPC) in Spain and Mexico, with the help of IBM, to achieve significant energy and environmental improvements. In the case of its DPC in Tres Cantos (Madrid), a recent study carried out by BBVA has concluded that the installation of the new IBM z15 central processing equipment is already allowing the use of 50% less energy than with the previous data processors and, in a period of five years, the emission of carbon gases will have been reduced by half, a very significant figure when it comes to moving towards a more sustainable model.

For the fifth year in a row, the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index (2022 Gender Equality Index) has included BBVA in its annual report that analyzes companies’ commitment to this issue. The firm lists the bank due to the diversity and inclusion that helped it improve its rating by five points from the last edition. Garanti BBVA, the Group’s subsidiary in Turkey, is also part of the index.

BBVA has launched a new global software division that brings together more than 16,000 developers across the Group. This new division will speed up delivery of digital solutions and make them more easily scalable across the countries where the bank operates.

“At BBVA, there are more than 100,000 people working in over 25 countries, with a wide range of different cultures, experiences, beliefs, languages, etc. This diversity is a fundamental part of the recipe to our success, and it will make us stronger to face the challenges and opportunities that lie before us,” said BBVA Chairman Carlos Torres Vila at the main event of the bank’s Diversity Days, a series of internal events being held for the second year in a row to share important advances in terms of diversity and inclusion, and to create a space for learning for all of the Group’s employees.

“Four Principles for Realizing Strategy with Innovation” by Nils O. Fonstad, Research Scientist and Jukka Salonen, CISR Industry Research Fellow has been published by The MIT Sloan Center for Information Systems Research, a research center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that focuses on the use of information technology and management in complex organizations. The briefing analyzes the bank’s successful implementation process of its single development agenda (SDA) model.

When Blanca Huergo knocked on BBVA’s door less than two years ago, she could never have imagined that she would wind up visiting its Madrid headquarters to meet with its top executives. This young Mathematics and Computer Science student at the University of Oxford has become a role model for many girls in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) career areas where they are scarce.

During the pandemic, working from home has brought with it new trends to organize the return to the office. The hybrid model is already a firm bet in many companies such as BBVA, where employees book through their physical work station via an app the days they work from the office.

BBVA has been named the world´s best bank for corporate clients for the second time by Global Finance magazine in its annual awards. Awards that have become a trusted standard of excellence for the financial industry.

'Diversidad Trans. Punto de encuentro' is the manual presented by the financial institution that includes guidelines and protocols focused on supporting trans or gender transitioning employees or customers. Diversity and inclusion in general, and particularly LGBTIQ+, are intrinsic to BBVA's DNA and are part of its strategic and business objectives.

Sustainability is a fundamental part of BBVA's strategy, which involves helping customers in the transition to a green and inclusive future. In response to this challenge, the bank has made sustainability one of the key skills for its employees and has designed its own reskilling plan, identifying training needs in this area and collaborating with prestigious educational institutions such as the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Yale.

The Camp is the new reskilling and upskilling proposal for BBVA employees. Through an innovative training ecosystem, the bank’s workforce will be able to reinforce, update or deepen their knowledge in the skills identified as pivotal to promote the transformation and the future of the bank. All of this using gamification tools, which make it possible to design more familiar and attractive experiences for employees that increase their level of commitment during the learning process.

BBVA was recognized by the U.S consulting firm Gallup as one of the 30 most exceptional companies in the world. The Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award is given to companies that are committed to developing the human potential of their workforce.

While society continues to adapt to the new reality post the pandemic´s outbreak, the workplace has begun to glimpse the guidelines that will mark our new ways of working. Confinement and movement restrictions have made teleworking a valid solution in many sectors and its managers are now studying how to extract the lessons learned and incorporate them into hybrid work models. It's something that will bring on the need to adapt to different work roles, work dynamics and new ways of leading.

It´s been found that 62.5 percent of organizations with more than 50,000 employees are already working in an Agile way, according to the Agile Maturity Index report. In collaboration with Workday, Opinno consultancy presented its conclusions of an analysis of 600 companies (260 Spanish) from various countries. BBVA, a pioneer in incorporating agile work forms in Spain, is positioned as a benchmark for success in its implementation.

BBVA was included in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index for the fourth consecutive year. The financial institution, which has placed diversity as a business objective, improved its rating by five percentage points compared to previous editions thanks to its policies of promoting equal opportunities in professional growth and an inclusive corporate culture, according to the international agency. Garanti BBVA, the Group´s Turkish subsidiary, is also included in the index.

Vicente Larraga, research professor at the Vaccines and Gene Expression Unit of CSIC Biological Research Center, participated in a videoconference for BBVA employees, where he answered their questions about current vaccines against COVID-19. Larraga is a doctor and honorary professor of research at the Margarita Salas Biological Research Center and has been a member of the jury for the BBVA Foundation's Frontiers of Knowledge awards.

Christmas brings with it the most anticipated lunches and dinners of the year. With the intention of closing 2020 in the best of ways, the Roca brothers and 'Sustainable Gastronomy' present a culinary proposal based on seasonal ingredients from small producers. This BBVA led project is a commitment by those from Girona who want to stand alongside one of the sectors most affected by this crisis, while raising awareness of the importance of healthy cooking.

The financial institution celebrates Diversity Days, a conference that highlights recently implemented projects in this area and that draws a roadmap with the challenges and goals for converting diversity into the Group's DNA and as a key objective for the future.

At BBVA's talent fair held in November to showcase the latest trends in business talent, Ophélie Richard, global head of Talent Acquisition at BBVA, and Nacho Villoch, from the Open Innovation area, shared their thoughts on future job opportunities and career challenges.

BBVA celebrated its third annual Values Day under this year's theme, ‘united by our values’. The event provided the bank’s more than 125,000 employees the opportunity to reflect on and cultivate the BBVA corporate values and behaviors. The activities and workshops organized for this year's event — unavoidably marked by the COVID-19 pandemic — were moved into a virtual environment, which was available to employees during the days leading up to the event.

In 2016, U.S. consulting firm Gartner predicted that by 2020 the average citizen would have more conversations with bots than with his or her spouse or partner. They were not far off. Virtual assistants are increasingly present and integrated in our daily lives. If a few years ago it was strange for us to talk to robots, it is now commonplace to ask Siri what the most popular pop song is, to get help from Alexa on making a cheesecake, or asking Cortana the fastest way to get from point A to point B. Virtual voice assistants are increasingly more human, but with something in common: their sex.

The coronavirus crisis has proven to be a catalyst for workplace flexibility. Companies around the world urgently accelerated their digitization processes in order to first cope with the lockdown measures established in the early days of the pandemic, and going forward to design a new approach to the world of work. If technology served as the primary ally during the initial phase of this transformation, work-life balance is now positioned as the most significant challenge to overcome. BBVA is already preparing for this new reality, evolving its flexible work model, which it implemented two years ago, to cater to the new reality. The bank is responding to important challenges like the use of physical space, goal setting, the new profile of leadership, and employee empowerment and engagement.

Corporate virtual security has become even more important as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Cybercriminals have found new opportunities in digitization and remote-working to commit fraud and cyber attacks; companies and employees alike have to be prepared against this risk. To this end, Campus BBVA has trained approximately 2,000 employees using courses, conferences, and discussion groups focused on digitization and tele-working as strategic capabilities that promise to be fundamental during the near future.

Mindfulness is not a passing trend. Its impact and potential go beyond a mere meditation and stress management technique, as it also encompasses a key managerial skill. Mindfulness is something that is being harnessed for both personal and professional reasons on an individual level, but also from the perspective of organizations. This is the case at BBVA, where mindfulness is producing positive results in employee productivity, well-being and leadership, while also supporting the bank’s corporate culture.

The bank has produced a manual entitled ‘Normalizing Differences’ that aims to provide employees across the company a basic knowledge about LGBTIQ+ diversity, most especially executives and people managers who are involved in the selection process or decision-making about employee professional development and trajectory. The document, put together with input from hundreds of employees who agreed to be interviewed for the initiative, identifies challenges and specific needs people belonging to this group may face.

The project was created with the aim of promoting the work of farmers, ranchers, fishermen and wineries across Spain through easy and delicious recipes. Every month, the Roca brothers will select the best ingredients in season and come up with a proposal of how to cook them. Subscribers will receive a box of products in their kitchen, along with a recipe, the stories of the farmers behind the selected products and healthy advice to make the most of each ingredient. This content will be available to anyone on the ‘Sustainable gastronomy’ platform.

BBVA’s emblematic headquarters building in Madrid will be lit with a black ribbon for the 10 day mourning period decreed by the Spanish government, which began yesterday. The bank, which has devoted its efforts to help combat the health emergency, is therefore joining the tribute to the victims of the disease.

Essential remote working has forced a change to on-site employee training plans. BBVA had already espoused a culture of online learning before the pandemic, offering its staff a comprehensive digital training catalog via the Campus BBVA platform. The platform has been refreshed to adapt to employee needs during the weeks of confinement. Employee response has been positive: traffic to the training portal shot up 96 percent with more than two million sessions during the first month of lockdown. A review of the most consumed topics reveals employees’ growing interest in developing new competencies (data, design, sustainability), which are priority for BBVA and and even more apropos given the new reality that awaits.

In an interview published by the financial newspaper Expansión, BBVA’s CEO explains what the coronavirus crisis has been like for him, and how the bank has adapted its operations to continue providing customers the same service. “It is very rewarding to see how our teams have adjusted to the challenges posed by this scenario,” he said. Onur Genç thinks the crisis is going to have a major impact on the economy and businesses, and that now is the time  "when we - the banks – need to stand by our customers more than ever before, and be part of the solution to this crisis."

Nearly two months after Spain declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus crisis, the population has slowly begun to adapt to the lifting of some lockdown restrictions amid lots of questions and fear of a new outbreak. In an initiative promoted by the BBVA Foundation, Dr. Jordi Vila, the Head of Microbiology Services at the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona, gave a videoconference for BBVA employees to answer some of these questions. Among his responses regarding how to return to work in a safe manner, he indicated that “massive testing would be ideal, but it’s impossible from a logistical standpoint,” in his opinion.

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered our habits. Bars, restaurants, and entertainment spots have temporarily closed down and are being forced to consider how they might have to restructure in response to a new, post-pandemic world. “Seeing an empty restaurant is a bit sad: such a vital space, normally with so much energy and young people from all over the world working, but we want to be optimistic,” says chef Joan Roca, owner of El Celler de Can Roca, one of Spain’s most celebrated gastronomic venues. The hospitality industry is facing a considerable challenge, and insight from industry leaders like the Roca brothers can shed some light on what we might expect from restaurants in a post-COVID-19 reality.

One month before confining at home due to the coronavirus pandemic, chef Jordi Roca opened the doors to the latest proposal to come out of the Roca brothers’ world. Casa Cacao is one of their most personal projects to date, one that’s inspired by the pastry chef’s passion for chocolate. A boutique hotel that houses a chocolate workshop, right in the heart of Girona. Obviously, the hotel’s debut was tarnished by the events that unfolded soon afterwards. The youngest Roca brother is taking this isolation time to ponder about the problems that was the catering and hospitality industry will be facing after things go back to normal.

Dr. Antoni Trilla, Head of the Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology Unit at Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, volunteered to hold a videoconference with BBVA’s employees in order to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about coronavirus: Can someone who is asymptomatic transmit the virus? Can it be transmitted through contact with pets? How long will the preventive measures last? Is it dangerous to take ibuprofen if you have coronavirus? When will there be a vaccine? Hospital Clinic of Barcelona has compiled all the information available on COVID-19 and in a project undertaken together with the BBVA Foundation, has made it available in a dedicated portal, PortalCLÍNIC.

The health crisis caused by the advance of coronavirus in Spain has put businesses and employees to the test. Recommendations and restrictive measures put in place by the government have all but brought commuting to a standstill. BBVA has adopted these measures in record time thanks to the protocols established in its continuity plans and its commitment to flexible work schemes, which has allowed the bank to continue providing the best service while ensuring the health of both its employees and customers and clients.