Background to Business in Spain

Background to Business in Spain

Describing approaches to business in Spain is no easy task. Spain, probably more than any other European country, is going through a very far-reaching period of structural and organisational change – and added urgency has been added to this task as a result of the post 2008 financial crisis.

After the Franco era, Spanish industry saw radical economic restructuring with the dismantling of many of the state-run businesses which fell under the umbrella of the INI (Instituto Nacional de Indistria). INI ran many of the traditional industries in Spain and was characterised by inefficiency and over-bureaucracy. Indeed, many of the misconceptions historically held about Spain in northern Europe and the States stem from an acquaintance with INI subsidiaries.

However, the post-Franco years saw the emergence of new indigenous Spanish organisations, managed by a new, younger breed of management – many of who were partly educated outside of Spain. These new companies have brought different attitudes and approaches to Spanish industry, which are often at odds with more traditional Spanish work styles. This clash is usually described as a generational issue but can also be seen as a result of the movement from a nationalised economy to a more modern economy.

Despite these tensions, it is still possible to draw some conclusions with regard to what the non-Spaniard can expect to encounter when conducting business in Spain or with Spaniards and this country overview attempts to pull together some of those commonalities.

Author

This country-specific business culture profile was written by Keith Warburton who is the founder of the cultural awareness training consultancy Global Business Culture. 

Global Business culture is a leading training provider in the fields of cross-cultural communication and global virtual team working.  We provide training to global corporations in live classroom-based formats, through webinars and also through our cultural awareness digital learning hub, Global Business Compass.

This World Business Culture profile is designed as an introduction to business culture in Spain only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.