Savills Aguirre Newman Barcelona: international real estate consultant
Anna Gener, Chairperson and CEO of Savills Aguirre Newman Barcelona
What does the company specialize in?
We are real estate consultants. Our teams create comprehensive customized solutions in all areas of real estate.
When did you start to work in this company?
Savills se fundó en Reino Unido en 1855 y cuenta con más de 30 años de presencia en Barcelona. Tras seis años de experiencia en auditoría financiera, empecé a trabajar en Savills Aguirre Newman en 2003 como analista de inversiones.
What do you like most about your work?
There are two aspects of the consulting world that I really like: using my intuition to anticipate and communicate emerging trends, and working with a multidisciplinary team. Our challenge as a group is to generate intelligence that is capable of solving complex problems.
And what do you like least?
Consulting is very demanding in terms of hours and involvement. It is such an absorbing job that it leaves me little time to devote to other areas of knowledge that also interest me.
What do you think your company excels at?
Without a doubt, our team stands out. We are well aware that this is our great asset, which we treat with deep professional respect and personal affection.
There are several aspects that define our way of working: we love our profession and have a high level of commitment to the work we do, and we also share values and objectives.
What is your main challenge?
Adding value to our city and our society, attracting investment to Barcelona, and setting up companies in our city.
Where is your company located? Do you know why this place was chosen?
We work in the 'El Dau' building, on Diagonal, which is located close to our main clients. It is also very important for us to be in an architecturally interesting building that meets sustainability criteria.
What do you like most about the neighborhood where you work?
It is a commercial and financial area that is pleasant, quiet, and very well connected to the airport and Sants Station.
How important is Barcelona for your company?
We cannot dissociate our activity from Barcelona, due to the very nature of the real estate sector. For this reason, we are firmly involved in promoting our city, collaborating with many economic, social and cultural institutions, such as the Ateneu Barcelonès, the Picasso Museum and the UPF-BSM.
With which city would you compare Barcelona to?
Berlin and Amsterdam, which are both profoundly European, have great personality, and stand out from the rest.
What model of city do you think Barcelona should be like?
Barcelona has to find its own way. It is quintessentially Mediterranean, has an urban environment that is essential for social cohesion, and it is a place known for its extraordinary architecture.
What best practices from other cities would you like Barcelona to adopt??
A greater understanding of public-private collaboration to help us solve the increasingly complex challenges we face as a society.
What would you ask of the Barcelona of the future?
In conceptual terms, to become a hub of talent. Talent is the key: where it is concentrated, there will be economic and social prosperity. And in terms of town planning and real estate, more rental housing at affordable prices, and a larger office park. We will not solve these needs if we do not articulate a 'Greater Barcelona' that better integrates the capital with the entire metropolitan area and beyond. To better articulate this whole territory is the great challenge of our generation.