- Programme studied and Year of Graduation:
MSc Management, 1996
Since graduating ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, Alvaro has held a number of regional strategy roles at well-known brands, such as Pepsi, Ericsson and Nestle, where he dedicated his time to helping them outperform their competitors. He has since become an expert in competitiveness strategy, which he now executes at his own brand consulting firm, Barracudaworks.
Current job title and description of what this role entails:
I am the Founder and CEO of a “boutique” brand strategy consulting firm, Barracudaworks. When I first started Barracudaworks I aimed to be the place where both our clients, and our consultants come to do their best work. Most, if not all of my decisions, have been guided by that principle.
A big part of the challenge of owning a “boutique” consultancy is that my role as CEO goes well beyond a traditional CEO job. It requires me to think both long and short-term, as well as take on a number of different roles.
On the one hand there is the long-term strategy and planning. I need to make sure that the firm is growing in a sustained way, in order to capitalise on selling or merging, when the time comes. This includes deciding on which markets to enter (geographies, and customer profiles), which products to include in our service portfolio, and with whom to partner.
On the other hand, there´s the day-to-day operation of our business, in terms of achieving financial goals (revenue, and profitability), and ensuring the satisfaction of our customers. This includes designing the processes, systems, and protocols to ensure we deliver the best product in the marketplace, whilst being profitable.
In short, my job is about strategy as much as it is about operation.
Tell us about your career journey since graduating from ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳?
I believe that careers happen, rather than being purposefully designed, and I´m aware that this is a concept that may throw off headhunters, who always expect their candidates to have a logical explanation behind every career move. However, in hindsight, I can draw similarities across the different jobs I´ve had since graduating from ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, which give my career a sense of direction.
Without really planning it, I ended up working for several number-two brands, instead of the market leader; for example, I worked at Pepsi, not Coke; RJ Reynolds, not Philip Morris; Ericsson, not Nokia; Nestlé, not Kellogg´s. And in every instance, my job was about regional strategy, rather than local execution.
I like to think of myself as an expert in competitiveness strategy. For the past 20 years I´ve dedicated myself to helping companies, brands and athletes, beat their competitors. Whether in the market, on the shelf, or on the court, I´ve helped our clients outperform their competition for good.
It was through the different jobs I´ve held after graduating from ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ that I truly understood what makes a commercial entity connect with its audience, and, in consequence, be competitive.
And that´s exactly what I´ve continued doing: helping the underdog surpass the leader.
How has the programme you studied helped your career since you graduated?
At ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ I learnt the power and the value of analysis and thought, over knowledge and action.
I´ve made a career, and an incredibly fulfilling living out of advising clients where to direct their businesses long term, rather than being concerned about the immediate next campaign.
Through my readings, lectures, and discussions at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, I learnt that knowledge has an expiration date: what is seen as revolutionary, disruptive, and new today, will soon be dated. What will always remain current is the ability to connect the dots, to identify the underlying conditions of things, and how their interaction affects beliefs, behaviour, and conduct; whether we´re talking about economies, markets, or people.
And I believe this is at the core of ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳´s motto: “Raerum Causas Cognoscere”.
What´s the best piece of career advice you´ve received?
My first job was at Leo Burnett, one of the leading advertising agencies of the time. Old Leo, founder of the agency that bears his name, would always encourage us “Burnetters” to “reach for the stars”. He would say that upon reaching for the stars, you wouldn´t necessarily get one, but you wouldn´t end up with hands full of mud, either. And that has been a driving principle for me since.
What´s the greatest challenge you´ve had to overcome?
I believe that everything in life is about optics, it´s the way we frame things that gives meaning to what happens around us. To me “challenge” sounds adverse, a “challenge” is something that has to be endured, fought and vanquished. I´ve been blessed in the sense that I have never experienced anything as a “challenge”. Some situations were more comfortable than others, but each of them always presented me with an opportunity. So, I guess there lies the real challenge, identifying the opportunity in everything that happens around us, rather than facing it as a challenge.
What are your hopes for the future?
I hope there are more and better opportunities for new generations, and people with the capacity, the energy, and the will to make the best of them. I have witnessed on many occasions how the few opportunities for education, work, and entrepreneurship can be squandered.
I will continue to support others, like I´ve done since the early days of my career, in their pursuit of a fulfilling professional development. I will carry on training, mentoring, and providing new opportunities for those with the drive to succeed.
Share with us your fondest memory of the Department of Management.
Singling out a specific memory from my time at the Department of Management is as difficult as writing the 40,000 word thesis that the programme required in my day.
There are flashes from time spent with Professor Peter Abell – who headed the newly-created Department of Managment back then; with Michael Barzelay – who entrusted me with the proof-reading of the Spanish translation of his then newly-released book; with Professor Christopher Hood – who introduced me to the unknown world of the Public Sector; with Razeen Sally – whose lectures about International Relations awoke me to a world much larger, richer, and more complex than the one I had experienced until then.
All of them are a significant part of probably the most stimulating time of my life, yet. For that, I will always be thankful to them; and will carry ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ in my heart.
If you would like to be profiled or if you would like to nominate a Department of Management alumni, please email dom.alumni@lse.ac.uk.