BBVA - Press Room

• The department, headed by Gregorio Panadero, will change its name to Communications & Branding and be organised into six business units: Global Corporate Communications, Digital Communications, Strategy & Evaluation, Corporate Responsibility, Corporate Advertising & Content, and Institutional Communications.
• Alberte González Patiño will assume responsibility for the Global Corporate Communications unit, managing internal and external issues, as well as communications for other business areas.

BBVA announced today that it is to reorganize its Communications Department to adapt to the new demands of global financial markets, in which different stakeholders are playing an increasingly important role. The main goal of this restructuring is to provide greater visibility to the BBVA Group’s unique values.

The current economic context, and the new demands from society and information professionals are the driving forces behind this new phase in BBVA’s Communications Department. To meet these new challenges, the group has decided to restructure the department, which has been renamed Communications & Branding, a name which reflects the new strategy, and which is more in line with the current global environment.

In accordance with this strategy, Communications & Branding has been organized into six business units:

Global Corporate Communications will be headed by Alberte González Patiño, who is rejoining BBVA. He will manage the group’s internal and external communications as well as communications for other business areas.

This department’s responsibilities will now be globalized, but its daily management will be carried out from the different business areas. Accordingly, a new department will be created to coordinate communications in the Spanish-speaking countries (Spain, Mexico, and Latin America) where the group has a presence. This department will be headed by José Luis Rodríguezwhile Adolfo Zarza will be responsible for Spain and Portugal. Ulla Karppinen will manage business communications for the Wholesale Banking and Asset Management business.

Digital Communications, headed by Jesús Frej, will be responsible for, among other issues, the further development of the group´s online presence, with a special focus on social networks and multimedia.

Strategy & Evaluation, under the management of Ángel Alloza, will be responsible for defining and implementing the department’s guidelines, managing BBVA’s identity, brand and reputation, as well as its metrics and evaluation systems.

Corporate Advertising & Content, headed by Ignacio Maldonado, will be globalized to develop institutional advertising and manage the sponsorships, which will now have a global focus and brand territories (soccer and music, among others).

Corporate Responsibility, headed by Toni Ballabriga, will be responsible for managing the group’s social and sustainability initiatives, and will develop a new function which will entail strengthening direct communication channels with the main stakeholders.

Institutional Communications, headed by Sonia González, will be responsible for functions related to cultural activities and events.