The heads of the main companies in the country gave El Espectador their optimistic vision of the reactivation that Colombian society requires to overcome the crisis.
One of the lessons that the pandemic has left, without a doubt, is that as a team and with a spirit of solidarity is the only way to move forward. For this reason, now that the country has the challenge of reactivated economically and solving other social issues, it is urgent to rejoin forces to provide solutions and start this road of reconstruction.
This is the time when everyone can help and a key ally is the business sector, which is historically known for its contributions to development, innovation and job creation, and this is no exception. “As business leaders, we must reflect on the responsibility we have to be purposeful and contribute to be part of the solution. This is a time to take sensible, prudent and wise positions that allow us to find consensus and solutions in the face of the difficult outlook, contributing to avoid intensifying the crisis and uncertainty ”, says Henry Bradford, rector of the CESA.
For this, it is essential to work as a team and conscientiously, taking advantage of the advantages that Colombia has with its diversity, talent and its privileged geography. This to give way to new ideas and projects that make a difference and transcend time.
In this context, in an interview for El Espectador , several business leaders spoke about what they like most about Colombia and how the organizations they lead are contributing to that change and economic reactivation. In the words of Bernardo Vargas, ISA president: “What I like the most are its landscapes and natural wealth. The joy and humor of its people. Its culture, art and crafts. We contribute serving my country from my work, creating and managing a company that gives thousands of jobs to Colombians with criteria of sustainability and ethics. In addition, being an example of good management, commitment and respect for millions of Colombians who are touched by the company through their businesses ”.
One of the lessons that the pandemic has left, without a doubt, is that as a team and with a spirit of solidarity is the only way to move forward. For this reason, now that the country has the challenge of reactivated economically and solving other social issues, it is urgent to rejoin forces to provide solutions and start this road of reconstruction.
This is the time when everyone can help and a key ally is the business sector, which is historically known for its contributions to development, innovation and job creation, and this is no exception. “As business leaders, we must reflect on the responsibility we have to be purposeful and contribute to be part of the solution. This is a time to take sensible, prudent and wise positions that allow us to find consensus and solutions in the face of the difficult outlook, contributing to avoid intensifying the crisis and uncertainty ”, says Henry Bradford, rector of the CESA.
Follow the news of El Espectador on Google NewsFor this, it is essential to work as a team and conscientiously, taking advantage of the advantages that Colombia has with its diversity, talent and its privileged geography. This to give way to new ideas and projects that make a difference and transcend time.
In this context, in an interview for El Espectador , several business leaders spoke about what they like most about Colombia and how the organizations they lead are contributing to that change and economic reactivation. In the words of Bernardo Vargas, ISA president: “What I like the most are its landscapes and natural wealth. The joy and humor of its people. Its culture, art and crafts. We contribute serving my country from my work, creating and managing a company that gives thousands of jobs to Colombians with criteria of sustainability and ethics. In addition, being an example of good management, commitment and respect for millions of Colombians who are touched by the company through their businesses ”.
Example to transform
”I am very proud of our culture and of our social and collective values. We are a country that in the midst of so many needs knows how to overcome adversity and that drive is a mark that is recognized in the world. Compensar is a perfect setting to contribute to the construction of a better country, because that is our purpose, to be part of the social transformation by joining multiple efforts to generate progress and integral well-being. So helping others to have a better life, and making it happen day by day, is undoubtedly a great contribution. In the same way, setting an example to create an environment of closeness and trust and work as colleagues facing the same challenge. It is better built by generating trust and recognizing all interlocutors as peers, who in turn can recreate these behaviors and build communities with equity in treatment and personal appreciation. We just need to feel and see ourselves as equals to change the world ”: Carlos Mauricio Vásquez, General Manager of Compensar.
The ability to understand people’s needs
”Leading an organization like Bancolombia has given me the opportunity to travel our country and learn about the needs of the population in each territory. In my country, I am proud of each Colombian who gets up every day to build a better country for everyone from his knowledge and possibilities. At Bancolombia we have a commitment that transcends our activity and that leads us, as corporate citizens, to fulfill a mission that contributes to promoting social and well-being indicators for all. We can all help. At a time when the Colombian economy is looking for ways to reactivate, in the first quarter of 2021 we focused on accompanying households and the country’s productive sector with loan disbursements for 18.6 trillion pesos. With these resources, more than 215,000 bank clients, including individuals, independent workers, SMEs and companies, were able to meet their needs at this juncture, related to consumption, housing, working capital and investment, among others ”: Juan Carlos Mora, President of Bancolombia.
Build from trust and innovation
“Being Colombian means living with passion and showing innovative solutions in the face of adversity. I am proud of Colombia for its cultural richness, for the majesty of nature, because the landscapes and the charisma of the people make us a special destination for tourism around the world. Colombians know that when we come together we build great stories. At El Dorado we work every day to build a country based on trust, innovation, effort and sustainability. We are constantly improving and creating new connections that energize and reactivate the country’s economy by promoting sectors such as tourism, commerce, and agro-industry, among others. Every day, the airport becomes the platform that allows them to continue strengthening the value chain that makes Colombia grow ”: Andrés Ortega, general manager of OPAIN.
Execution and more opportunities
”The pride and love for Colombia had its origin in the family and from there it grew and became established throughout life. I am proud to be Colombian for the joy, warmth and closeness of its inhabitants; for the richness and diversity of each region; for the solidarity that always moves all sectors in the moments when it is most needed; for the innovative and transformative capacity of the different companies and organizations; because of the ability that people have not to lose hope and in the face of difficulties to get up and emerge stronger, because Grupo Éxito believes in Colombia. We are at the crossroads of more than 100 cities, about 4,500 suppliers, 8 million clients and 37,000 collaborators that has allowed us to understand the capacity we have to contribute to others, to generate development possibilities and to transform and positively impact the places where we have a presence and the interest groups with whom we interact, and thus, build a country. To build a country is to seek the eradication of chronic child malnutrition through the Éxito Foundation, to strengthen local purchasing, to boost the national textile industry, to preserve our own employment and that of our suppliers ”: Carlos Mario Giraldo Moreno, president of Grupo Éxito.
Empathy is the key to progress
“Our country has the best people, the most creative, the hardest working. I feel very proud to have been born in Colombia and to have had the opportunity to create a company in Barranquilla. We want to continue generating progress and well-being for our country and making the best glass and windows in the world, from our country. Doing things correctly, working non-stop and always thinking about the other. Empathy is a fundamental principle that is reflected in Tecnoglass. We always seek to put ourselves in the place of the other, understand him, understand him and listen to him. We know that we must work together so that we can all move forward in times of difficulty. Colombia needs companies and entrepreneurs that work towards the construction of a better country, and that is how we understood it from the first moment in Tecnoglass ”: Christian Daes, COO Tecnoglass.
Strengthen an entrepreneurial spirit
”Colombia is a country of opportunities. Among its cultural, ethnic and environmental diversity, it has allowed my family and me to consolidate a Business Group through which we have been able to provide employment opportunities to thousands of Colombians in the more than 50 years of the company’s foundation. Together we have managed to consolidate a flagship company that is a symbol of the entrepreneurial spirit of Colombians, and at the same time it is a sign that when we have a common purpose it is possible to achieve success and carry the name of Colombia high. Based on the challenges that we have been facing since the last year, I have applied a phrase that has become an engine to move forward: ‘We live difficult times, but not impossible’, and from there, we have dedicated ourselves to finding the possibilities to continue building country. We have made alliances to attend to situations generated by the pandemic, especially with a view to accompanying medical personnel, among other actions with which we ratify our commitment to Colombia ”: Carlos Arturo Calle: general manager of the Arturo Calle Business Group.
A commitment to education and work
“The main reason why I am proud of my Colombia is the people, their human qualities and the commitment of Colombians to always get ahead,” rain, shine or shine. ” We are a diverse country from its people to the nature that surrounds us. At Alquería we have set ourselves the purpose of nurturing the future of Colombia by transforming dreams into reality. Along these lines, we have made a strong commitment to generating nutrition for Colombian households, especially those who need it most. On the other hand, we continue with our commitment to education as a fundamental pillar of a more equitable society. This is why we generate various benefits around education internally with our collaborators and their families, but we have also done strong work externally to improve the educational quality of the official schools of Cundinamarca so that in later stages children can access to higher education ”: Carlos Enrique Cavelier, coordinator of Sueños de Alquería.
Time to work in one direction
”Being Colombian is a source of pride for many reasons. The diversity of our country, its people, our idiosyncrasy, the folklore that characterizes us, but especially because of the drive of the Colombian. Unfortunately, we sometimes forget the resilient spirit that runs through our veins and the vision of the future that has characterized us for many generations. Our company seeks to contribute positively, providing hygiene and cleaning solutions in harmony with the environment, generating shared prosperity. In addition, from our sustainability strategy we seek to contribute to dignify the work of trade recyclers as a fundamental link for the circular economy and promote state-of-the-art processes, which at the same time contribute positively to the environment. , as a company and working together in a single direction, we contribute to the generation of direct and indirect employment, we promote the development of our business partners and we energize the country’s innovation ecosystem ”: Andrés Felipe Gómez, general manager of Grupo Familia.
A company of all Colombians
“The pride of being Colombians comes from recognizing ourselves as a diverse country in the broadest sense, in cultures, natural resources, people’s capacities, where our greatest power is. The sum of all these aspects enriches us and allows us to learn to live and think with others the possibility of building agreements for a present and a future that bring greater and better opportunities for all. As an organization, at SURA we have contributed for more than 76 years to a harmonious growth of society from different fronts. In the first place, being a democratized company in its ownership and listed on the Stock Market, today Grupo SURA is of millions of Colombians, through its savings in private pension funds. So the company’s profits also contribute to these long-term savings for Colombians. We also kept more than 24,000 formal and qualified jobs in the country during the pandemic, in addition to creating more than 3,000 additional jobs on those fronts. where it has been necessary; At the same time, we are building a business fabric by accompanying more than 20,800 Colombian suppliers, the vast majority SMEs, so that they have liquidity, keep jobs and also receive training ”: Gonzalo Pérez Rojas, president of Grupo SURA.
The conviction to change the future
”I am proud of the passion that drives us to get ahead. I see it every day in my children, in the work team of the company that I lead, in the people with whom I interact, when I go to the market, when I go to the countryside or tour the city. We are resilient, hardworking, fraternal and welcoming people, who when we decide to come together to get something forward, we succeed. As a company we are convinced that we are fundamental actors in the construction of possible futures and this occurs from the sustainable management of the resources entrusted to us by millions of clients, from the development of new capacities for the development of the country, such as the stimulus to young talent, or the boost to SMEs; as well as from the resizing of active aging, the development of our human talent, the enabling of technology to facilitate access and the promotion of savings and financial and development well-being. We have the firm conviction that changing the future is possible if we listen to each other more, if we connect our futures and orient our goals towards transcendental purposes that we can push together ”: Juan David Correa, President Protección.
