The NoviaSalcedo Awards have a significant background in promoting employability. Do you think the Foundation is doing a good job in this regard?
I am not aware of the details, but I do know that this is what the Foundation does and that it is widely recognised for doing a good job and for the results it achieves.
Training and integrating young people is one of the requirements taken into account for an enterprise to be worthy of our awards. Do you think the prize will help the winner in the future?
All awards help those who receive them. The person or organisation that receives a prize feels gratified and encouraged to continue working. It is an acknowledgement that you are working in the right direction and that what you are doing is useful to society.
We have added a category that rewards the Public Administrations this year. Do you agree that public-private partnerships favour youth employment and integration policies?
Provided that such collaboration is based on good judgement, good practices and is subject to the necessary checks, it will clearly promote employment policies and insertion. At a time and in a country in which employment is so fragile, and it is so difficult to recover, any form of collaboration to increase employment figures has to be a welcome development.
Women, green economy, work-family conciliation… are aspects that we assess carefully in SMEs. Do you see these as essential aspects in the development of small businesses?
They are references and priorities. Lately, there has been a realisation that the employability of women leaves much to be desired; there are defects and even illegal situations regarding wages that exist with impunity. Family-job conciliation is one of the most urgent on-going issues to achieve real and fair formal gender equality. As for the green economy, this is clearly the way to go. Nobody can ignore this need any longer.
Finally, why did you decide to accept the invitation to become a member of the jury of the Novia Salcedo Awards?
Because of the relationship that I have had with the Foundation since I came into contact with it and because I admire what it does.