Making a splash - A liarla parda

I met José María álvarez-Pallete more than ten years ago at one of the Chamberí Valley entrepreneur lunches, organized with the help of Gonzalo Martín-Villa, who at that time was fully involved in launching Wayra. Back then, José María—who was COO of Telefónica—dedicated a lot of quality time to listening to our problems as entrepreneurs, and we were struck by his frank conversation, his genuine interest, and his approachable, humorous nature.

I didn’t have much contact with him again until 2018, when I joined Telefónica like a true paratrooper, with no prior experience in the corporate world. Six months later, I received my “baptism of fire” in his way of leading and communicating during my first ExCom and Board of Directors meeting. That day, I took quite a hit (I already shared the story at the time), and I still remember one phrase that made an impact on me:

“How could you have become so corporate minded in just six months?”

Little did he know that, in reality, I would end up being a "Telefónico" through and through, with the Wayra logo tattooed under my skin. He said to me: “You came here to be yourself, not to be the same as us.” That simple sentence gave me the freedom to try things my own way and the justification to ask the organization to take risks working with startups. How could I possibly ask them to take risks if I didn’t take the first step myself?

With José María there was always a clear message: at Telefónica there’s room to innovate and leave a legacy that goes beyond oneself. That desire for permanence and positive impact on society permeates his way of doing things and the company culture.

During the pandemic, for example, when we launched the Covid self-diagnosis app to help alleviate emergency services with the assistance of many entrepreneurs and companies, Telefónica took a heavy responsibility for all data management and provided the necessary resources to develop it in record time, pro bono. It was a tangible demonstration of those ethical principles and social commitment. Culture shows itself when things get tough.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing: when the rough patches came, with media attacks and political pressures, José María’s shoulders shielded me from the turmoil.

And when, months later, I hinted to him that I was thinking of leaving the company, he gave me a long personal conversation to understand my motivations and encourage me to keep building projects within the company. As he always says, “in this house, there is much to be done.”

I ultimately decided to leave Telefónica—against my wife’s wishes—to pursue other paths aligned with my purpose of creating more jobs and local wealth with a venture growth capital fund at KFund, following the mantra: “Once Telefónico, Always Telefónico.” José María and Telefónica continued to support my projects, even when they sometimes seemed quite complex or unlikely. Today, through Leadwind, with Telefónica as the anchor investor, we have been able to launch the first growth fund in the Spanish ecosystem, and I have felt the unconditional support of the company and its tribes.

I am enormously grateful for the mark and legacy you leave, José María, not only at Telefónica, but also in me—as a professional and as a person—and in so many others who have crossed your path.

I know we will continue trying “making a splash” with each new project we dream up. And of course, I’ll always be ready for any Friday meeting, with the same excitement about making the world a better place by connecting people’s lives.