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FROM
RED SWAN PARTNERS
Emerging Trends and the Future of Agri-Food Business in a TICC-Driven World
Santo Mauro, A Luxury Collection Hotel - MADRID
Round Table Discussion
ATTENDEES
26 November 2024
MEET
OUR ATTENDEES
Talal Yousef
C.E.O
Red Swan Partners
Talal is truly passionate about the success of his clients and his team. He is a truly Serial Entrepreneur having experience across multiple cultures and regions in emerging countries including 5 new businesses in the Middle East, Singapore, Greece and United Kingdom covering industries from:
- Testing & Inspection services.
- Refrigerant gases.
- Liquefied petroleum gases (LPG).
- Welding/cutting equipment.
- Environmental solutions.
- Industrial/medical gases.
Susan Putters
Advisory Board Member
Red Swan Partners
Susan has led more than 40 M&A transactions for the HR function as well as supporting organic growth and business transformation across 6 continents within these listed companies and in private company settings. Many of these transactions required organisational restructure, remuneration and policy harmonisation as well synergy realisation to enable the best outcomes for the acquisition. She brings the buyers perspective which is an especially useful insight she can share with sellers gearing up for growth or exit.
John Willox
Advisory Board Member
Red Swan Partners
John is an accomplished international senior leader. Having worked all over the world for Hilti for over 20 years he then moved to the Exova Group. As group MD at Exova he was responsible for; Fire Testing, Building Products, Automotive, Calibration and Certification globally, as well as having led Exova Middle East/Asia as MD for a period of time based in Dubai.
John is now based in the UK. He has overseen and led multiple acquisitions and divestments in a variety of situations from growth to the recovery of debt and with a long experience working with private equity.
Jesús Díaz Fau
Operating Partner
Red Swan Partners
Jesús has been involved in numerous TIC M&A transactions in the stages of leads: acquisition, qualification, NBO, DD, purchase and integration.
Jesús held senior positions at Bureau Veritas and Oca Global in Spain before joining Aenor International as Group Corporate Development & Acquisitions (M&A) Director and Inspection Services Director with worldwide responsibility.
Starting 2007, Jesús has been supporting businesses as VP of TIC Association in Madrid, to develop and implement strategies and business improvements to create real value.
Alexandria Monk
Fractional Chief Marketing Officer
Red Swan Partners
Global B2B and B2C marketing and event experience covering strategy, positioning and complex campaign planning including; multi-channel campaigns, subscription campaigns, customer life-cycle management, new product launches, event management, channel comms, digital project management, video production, webinars and internal comms.
Industries I have worked in include; publishing, events, technology, software, digital, training, financial services, healthcare, education, telecoms, import and export, legal and property management.
Benjamin Lambert
Founder & CEO
Checkfirst
Founder and CEO at Checkfirst, helping businesses in the TIC space do better with reliable data and AI powered workflows.
With over 15 years of experience as an entrepreneur and investor, he has been involved in creating and scaling simple solutions through technology-focused products across different industries, such as ComplianceTech, API First SaaS, FinTech, EdTech, HealthTech, LegalTech and PropTech. He is also an angel investor in around 20 blockchain projects and an angel investor in multiple start ups across Europe.
At Checkfirst, he leads a team of driven and focused repeat founders who are passionate about helping TICC businesses reach their full potential by effectively leveraging AI to improve productivity and workflows.
Jon Harrison
Group Head of Corporate Development
Phenna Group
After nearly 30 years in investment banking/M&A Jon joined Phenna Group, a former client, in 2024 to lead the external growth efforts of the group.
Jon’s experience spans many sectors, with a particular specialisation in testing, inspection, certification, and compliance (TICC), where he became one of the pre-eminent global advisers in the sector.
Based in London, UK, Jon has advised clients across the globe and is particularly well networked on the international TICC scene through his deal activity, involvement in various industry associations and regular participation in industry events.
José Martín Avanzini
Corporate Development
AGQ Labs
Jose Martín Avanzini holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration by CUNEF (Madrid), and started his career in the Corporate Finance Department of Alantra (formerly N+1) as an analyst advising in M&A, Debt and Capital Markets. After 12 years in the advisory, he had the opportunity to join AGQ, acting as the responsible of Corporate Development with its main focus on inorganic growth opportunities.
Luis Miguel Fernández Sierra
Manager
COEXPHAL
- Academic and professional training.
- Has more than 25 years of experience in the horticulture sector of Almería.
- He is an Agronomist Engineer, University of Córdoba and Ph.D. Agronomist Engineer University of Almeria.
-Manager of the Association of Organizations of Fruit and Vegetable Producers of Almería (COEXPHAL) since October 2015.
- Previously he held the position of manager of AGROCOLOR, S.L, a Certifying Company for 13 years, where he began his career as a quality technician.
- He is also an Associate Labor Professor of the Department of Management and Management of Companies of the University of Almería from October 2006 to the present, with teaching in ADE, LADE, GADE and Management/Systems Computer Engineering.
Matías Romero
CEO / Managing director
Acerta
In 1988, I graduated as an Agricultural Engineer with a specialization in the design and construction
of food industries and food manufacturing technology.
From 1987 to 1991, I worked as a project engineer at Unión de Ingenieros y Economistas
Consultores, a leading company in Spain in the design and construction of food industries.
In 1992, I participated in the founding of the engineering company ARTICA Asesores. In 1996, I
created the quality consulting department, which I led for 2 years, helping dozens of food
companies comply with management system and product certification standards.
In 1998, I participated in the founding of Entidad Certificadora de Alimentos de España, a
company I directed until 2003, and a pioneer in the food safety certification sector in Spain.
Since 2004, I have been a founding partner and CEO of the ACERTA Group, specializing in
certification of food safety, R&D&I, and sustainability, with operations in more than 15
countries.
In December 2022, I was elected president of CONFICERT, an international non-for-profit
association of certification bodies, which develops and promotes B2C quality labels.
Álvaro Barrera Fernández
President
Ecovalia
Born in Seville, he is a Veterinary Bromatologist from the University of Córdoba and in 2002 he completed his studies in Food Science and Technology at the University of Granada.
After his beginnings in the food quality sector in direct relation to livestock farming in the province of Huelva, in 2004 he joined the then called Asociación Valor Ecológico-CAAE, an entity in which he held different positions as inspector, technician, development director, certification director for Andalusia, territorial director and assistant to the presidency. During this stage he participated as a representative of Spain in the European Organic Certifiers Council (EOCC), which gives him a deep knowledge of the entity and the sector. Since 2015, he has held the position of president of Ecovalia, the Spanish professional association for organic production, as well as of the CAAE certification entity, entities with more than 30 years of experience in the field of organic production. In addition, within the international panorama, he is an observer member of the Inter-American Commission on Organic Agriculture (CIAO), participating as a speaker in the congresses and assemblies of said entity. The entity he presides is also a member of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA); IFOAM Organics Europe, as well as the Leading Organic Alliance (LOA).
In his more than 20-year professional career, he has expanded his training in Senior Management of Companies in the Organic Sector, a Master's Degree in Total Quality and the Environment, Food Standardization and Legislation.
In addition to his professional activity, he is a member of the Savia Foundation for Commitment and Values.
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