HELICOPTER VIEW
My career began in 1992 in Mundicolor Iberia, the leading Tour Operator in Spain. In 2002 I was appointed as General Manager. Then I learned insights into the traditional travel business. In 2006 I joined Google as Director of the Travel Vertical to help to convert a sales office into a subsidiary company, creating that from-scratch Unit. 6 years later Spain was one of the 10 key global markets for Google and I generated approx 45% of the revenue. I also developed Travel pan-regional projects and was a member of the Global Travel Advisory Committee. In those years I learned the insights of the online travel business and the fundamentals of Digital Transformation.
In April 2012 I left Google to found and launch ConnectedtoGo, a traveltech start-up devoted to providing connectivity to travelers. In Jan 2014, Eurona Telecom, a listed company, acquired ConnectedtoGo. In Feb 2014 I joined that company as CCO to reorganize and develop the Commercial Area and undertake Digital Transformation. In Oct 2014 I created Eurona Digital, a unique marketing platform focused on the millions of connected travelers using wifi services at Spanish airports.
In October 2015 I joined as CEO of the accelerator Top Seeds Lab and created its world-class Advisory Board. Together with Ignacio Macias, I launched Travel Tech 1 SCR (ISIN: ES0180541007 y CFI: CPCGLQ), a Venture Capital focused on travel tech B2B startups in the acceleration stage, with 7M of capital, backed by Fondico Global. I am now the Managing Partner & CEO.
Since 2012 I have provided consultancy services related to online travel and digital transformation, and in 2018 I worked for Facebook to create for them the «Valuable Touch Points Model». And since 2015, I have collaborated as SME with Avasant in International Travel & Tourism projects with social impact. In 2007 I launched TravelThink, a media platform to evangelize about the relevance of traveltech which has now reached an audience of +18.000 people and increased to more than 80.000 with the agreement with FutureTravel.
Current Institutional Roles: Member of “Mesa de Turismo de España”; Member of the Board of the “Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero”; Member of the “Commission for Inclusion of Discapacity in Arbitration” at Club Español del Arbitraje.
Academic Background; PhD in Law; PhD in Economics; MBA; Master in Auditing; Degree in High Accountancy; Stanford Executive Program (SEP) Certificate; Registered Legal Auditor; Certified Internal Auditor.
1.- Academic acumen
From 1986 to 1994
Ph.D in Law, School of Law of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Speciality, Commercial Arbitration. ( 5+2 years –not counting the thesis)
Ph.D in Economics, School of Economics of the UNED, speciality auditing. (5+2 years –not counting the thesis)
Master in Auditing, Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca in Madrid (1 year, 840 hours) Degree in High Accountancy, School of Economics of the UNED (0,6 years,530 hours) Master in Business Administration, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (1 year, 630 hours) From 1994 to 1996
Registered Legal Auditor by Official Exam (ROAC n, 16.629)
Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) by Exam (Instituto de Auditores Internos) 2010
Stanford Executive Program Certificate (SEP2010), from the Graduate School of Business of Stanford University.
2010 – ongoing
Continuous Training Courses, mandatory and official, for Legal Auditors in exercise, for a total of 40 hours per year, focused on auditing and advanced accountancy
2.- Professional Career
TRAVEL TECH 1, Sociedad de Capital Riesgo (VC)
Managing Partner & CEO (from June 2016 to now)
It is a regulated investment vehicle, a venture capital firm, under the supervision of the Spanish SEC (ISIN: ES0180541007 y CFI: CPCGLQ), whose capital is 7M euros, focused exclusively in Travel Tech, that has invested in 11 start-ups, in the early growth stage. It has been created under the umbrella of Top Seeds Lab. The main investor is Axis (FondICO Global), the fund of funds of the Spanish Kingdom as Travel Tech 1 SCR was one of the winners of the FondICO Global 9th edition.
Javier is also responsible for the reporting and communication with CNMV, SEPBLAC and AXIS, due to his financial & Auditing background.
TOP SEEDS LAB
Chairman of the Advisory Board, (from October 2015 – ongoing).
Top Seeds Lab is the only Spanish accelerator part of the Global Accelerator Network (GAN) and is focused exclusively on Travel Tech, as part of an agreement with the Ministry of Tourism of Spain.
Strategic Advisor for the Spanish Travel Industry (from May 2017 to May 2018) Javier led an EMEA Travel Project
AVASANT
Travel & Tourism Expert for International Projects (from Dec 2015 – ongoing) Avasant is a leading management consulting firm focused on translating the power of technology into realizable business strategies. Specializing in digital and IT transformation, sourcing advisory, global strategy, and governance services, Avasant prides itself on delivering high-value engagements through industry-focused innovation and flexible client-based solutions.
GRUPO EURONA DIGITAL
Group CCO; CEO Eurona Digital (from February 2014 to March 2015) In February 2014, after selling ConnectedtoGo, Javier joined Grupo Eurona Telecom, a listed company and the largest independent telco in Spain, based in Barcelona and with a presence in 10 countries, to serve as the CCO of the Group as well as CEO of ConnectedtoGo. In October 2014, Javier created Eurona Digital, defining and implementing from scratch a unique marketing platform focused on the millions of connected travelers using Kubi´s WiFi services at Spanish airports.
CONNECTEDTOGO
Founder & CEO (from April 2012 to March 2015)
At the end of March 2012 Javier left Google to found his start-up ConnectedtoGo S.L. and acted as his CEO. ConnectedtoGo is devoted to providing connectivity to travelers through MiFi Routers and local data fares and a unique business model based on a large network of travel partners.
HOFFMAN
Member of the Board (from October 2012 to January 2015)
In October 2012 Javier joined the Board of Hofmann, one of the European leaders in digital photography, representing Venture Capital firms Portobello and Realza, to help the company to face the challenge of Digital Transformation.
Director, Travel. Spain & Portugal (from 2006 to 2012)
In April 2006, Javier joined Google in Spain as Industry leader, Travel, as part of the management team hired to help to convert a sales office into a subsidiary company, creating from scratch that Unit. 6 years later Spain was one of the 10 key global markets for Google and the Travel Vertical represented about 45% of the revenues in Spain and was the largest Unit in SEEMEA for Google, with 180M euros of revenue. In his last year at Google, Javier, as Director, Travel, developed pan-regional projects (SEMEA), replicating his success in Spain in emerging countries. He was a member since the inception of the Global Travel Advisory Committee (created after the acquisition of ITA by Google)
GONZÁLEZ-SORIA ABOGADOS S.L.
Partner (from March 2003 – ongoing)
Boutique law firm, founded and managed by Prof. Dr. Julio Gonzalez-Soria , focused exclusively on arbitration.
Since 2018, Member of the List of Arbitrators of the Court of Arbitration of the Madrid Lawyers Bar, specialising in Digital, Marketing and Travel.
MUNDICOLOR IBERIA
General Manager (from 1992 to 2005)
Javier joined the company in 1992. Mundicolor Iberia, the in-house tour operator of Iberia Airlines. His beginnings were focused on financial and management control, as Director of Development & Control . Three years later he added to his duties Business Development (f.i, he launched the first eCommerce site in 1996) and in 1998 he also assumed the Sales & Marketing responsibilities. In 2002 he was appointed as General Manager. In September 2005, when Grupo Marsans bought Mundicolor, he decided to leave the company, which he did in January 2006, when the company had 475 employees and a 240M euros turnover and it was profitable. In 2010 the company went bankrupt as well as the whole Grupo Marsans.
GONZÁLEZ-SORIA & MORENO DE LA SANTA AUDITORS
Managing Partner (from 1996 – ongoing)
Javier has specialized in providing forensic services to large companies such as General Electric, Cepsa, Correos, Ahold, etc…, collaborating on a regular basis with relevant law firms, mainly Garrigues Abogados. He has collaborated intensively as an independent forensic for the Court of Arbitration of Madrid.
His quite unique combination of lawyer, economist, auditor and top executive is especially useful in litigations related to companies evaluation and emerging damages and lost profit appraisals.
He also provides auditing services for medium-sized companies. His large network of contacts as he has been an auditor since 1996 allows Javier to create teams ad hoc to execute each project, which guarantees the speed, quality and cost control of the delivery.
IBERIACOLOR S.A.
CEO (from 1993 to 2005)
While at Mundicolor and as part of his responsibilities, in 1994 Javier created and managed Ibericolor S.A., a consulting firm specialising in travel technology and marketing, as part of his duties in Mundicolor. The shareholders were Iberia Airlines, Carlson WagonLit Travel, Viajes Ecuador, Grupo Marsans and Mundicolor. The clients were companies related to the shareholders and Destination Management Companies (DMOs)
CONSORTIUM EUREKA EUROTOURISM
General Manager (from 2001 to 2004)
In 2001 Javier created the Consortium Eureka Eurotourism, in close cooperation with the CDTI (Ministry of Industry and Technology of Spain), and was his General Manager during all the project. Eurotourism was an umbrella project (E! 2527) approved in 2001, and that ended in 2004, representing by then a first and unique initiative on a world scale. The objective of the strategic Eureka Eurotourism project was the application of new technologies for the improvement and sustainability of the tourism, leisure and cultural industries as well as increasing the European citizen’s standard of life. More than 150m euros were assigned to different travel/technology projects.
RODONLINE.ORG
General Manager (from 2001 to 2005)
In 2001 Javier created Revisión Objetiva de la Difusión S.L., a company devoted to providing online independent impressions and clicks reports, signed by legal auditors.
3.- Teaching Experience
Associate Professor (Doctor) of Accountancy in the Department of Financial Economy and Accountancy II of the School of Economics of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (www.uce.es ) from 2002 to 2008
Professor in various Postgraduate Courses related to management, Total Quality and arbitration, among others, in the Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca, in the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, in the Legal Practise School of the Universidad de Castilla La Mancha (www.uclm.es), in the Universidad de Alcalá de Henares (www.uah.es), in the Universidad de La Coruña (www.udc.es), in the Institute of Internal Auditor of Spain, in the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, in the Escuela de Organización Industrial (www.eoi.es), in the Centro de Estudios Superiores CEU San Pablo (www.uspceu.com), in the Centro de Estudios Garrigues (www.centrogarrigues.com), etc.
Lecturer in various Conferences, related to the world of tourism, arbitration, e-commerce, e-marketing and new Technologies in Europe, Latam, Canada, Puerto Rico, México, Korea, Mauritius and China.
Founder, Director and Professor of the Superior Course in Business Administration of Tourism Companies, organised by AMAVE (www.amave.org ) and the Universidad Católica de Avila (www.ucavila.es ), sponsored by the Madrid Government) –1997 to 2003-
Founder, Coordinator and Professor of the Master in Business Administration of Touristic Companies, organized by AMAVE (www.amave.org ) and the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (www.upm.es), supported by Tourspain 2000 to 2003-
Coordinator and Professor of the online version of the Master in Business Administration of Touristic Companies, organized by AMAVE (www.amave.org ) and the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (www.upm.es), –2004 to 2007-
Founder, Director and Professor of the Preparatory Course for the R.O.A.C. admittance exam in 1996, 1998 and 2001. (UE habilitation to perform as a legal auditor)
4.- Institutional Participation
Member of the Mesa del Turismo de España since 2022
Member of the “Commission for Inclusion of Discapacity in Arbitration” at Club Español del Arbitraje since 2022
Member of the Board of the Instituto Tecnológico de España since 2020. Mentor of Plug & Play Tech Center since 2019.
Vice President for Europe of the Affiliate Members of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (2005 to 2006)
Member of the International Law Association, Spanish branch. (http://www.ila-hq.org ) since 1991
Member of the Internal Auditors Institute of Spain (www.iai.es ) from 1993 till 2004 and member of the Executive Committee from 2000 to 2004.
Member of the Steering Committee and President of the Audit Commission of the Asociación para el Control y la Dirección (ACODI) since 1996 ( www.acodi.es) till 2005
Member of the Colegio Oficial de Titulados Mercantiles de Madrid since 1995
Member of ACODI (Asociación para la Contabilidad Directiva) from 1994 to 2000 and President of the Commission on Auditing from 1995 to 1999.
General Manager of the Consortium Eureka-Eurotourism. (www.consorcioeurotourism.org ) from 2002 till 2006
Member of the Experts Commission designated by the Instituto de Contabilidad y Auditoría de Cuentas (http://www.icac.meh.es) in relation to the accountancy problems of the airline companies. –2002-
Member of the International Experts Board of France’s Ministry of Tourism from 2003 to 2005
Member of the Advisory Committee of the Journalists and Communicators´ Chamber from 2004 to 2012
5.- Non-profit activities
Javier launched in 2006 his non-profit project, TravelThink (Youtube Channel & eNews), in which analyzes subjects related with tourism and marketing, especially related to emarketing, social media, eCommerce mobile and online travel. The YouTube channel has more than 130.000 reproductions and the biweekly Travelthink eNews are received by more than 18.000 subscribers. The “hub” of Travelthink information is www.travelthink.org In 2022 TravelThink has reached an agreement with FutureTravel and the English version will be distributed to their more than 100.000 subscribers.
He was a collaborator, with two sections, as a specialized journalist, of the radio program GenteViajera from 1998 to 2003. Javier is invited as an international travel media expert to all the Phocuswright, Eyefortravel, WTM, ITB, Fitur, etc.. events in Europe and America. Even Travelthink is a media partner of Eyefortravel in the European Travel Distribution Summit.
Javier also has a long international experience as a speaker as he has been a panelist in +300 national and international events (tourism, emarketing, arbitration, auditing). Javier publishes, on a regular basis, books, essays and studies related to Travel and eMarketing, which are widely distributed in the industry. Special remarks deserve his ebook “Regarding Travel and eMarketing”, and the following models he has created: “Virtuous Circle of Destination Sustainability”, “Tetrix Model”, “Contribution Unit Model” or “Valuable TouchPoints Model”. Nevertheless, he also publishes articles and books related to Commercial Arbitration and he is the editor of an eNews devoted to Arbitration. In 2022 he is coordinator of the “Anuario en español de Derecho Internacional” de la International Law Association.
Javier has organized many TravelThink and Think Travel with Google events, with world class speakers and hundreds of attendees, which were a reference in Spain for online travel. And since 2016 he is organizing Travel Innovation Summits, which are the most relevant events in Spain dedicated to traveltech.
Javier is one of the 10 top Google Maps Local Guides in the world, with more than 350 millions of visualizations of his pictures and reviews by now. Passionate traveler, he has visited at least once 80 countries in 5 continents