“The US had an advantage, but we’re missing something.”

You might have seen the word digitization from the mouth of a political leader sometime in the last few years. If you haven’t, chances are you’ve moved to another planet. Because that process is finite By Royal Spanish Academy With something as simple as “recording data digitally”, it has become one of the obsessions of the future, but the present, of public administrations. Especially those Community of Madrid.

Because, according to data handled by the regional government, the technology sector currently accounts for 22% GDP of the region leading the economic drive of the entire national territory and it should rise to 40% in the next legislature. Compared to others that are more relevant at the national level, tourism is 8% and industry is 17%. “The industry of the future is digital or it won’t be. Just like business and services”, in short rogelio de la fuenteFounder and Chairman of AEQ Business Association of the Science and Technology Park of Leganes, capital launched in 1997, and one of eight in clear expansion. One of its three phases is currently in operation, occupying one million square meters and housing more than a hundred companies. The second has been sold and construction will begin soon on an 800,000 square meter plot. There is still one third, which will occupy 1.2 million meters to complete the three.

In addition, related to business archive Carlos III University 21 in the region are financed by public funds- specifically for the implementation of technical projects Beginnings. After the pandemic, they entered that world in 2020, Luis Basogoiti, Ignatius Moreno, Michael Fernandez Y Przemek Gotfryd cheater CapchaseA fintech Focuses on helping others financially Beginnings And with meteoric growth. In just three years they went from four founders to 130 employees and four offices (Madrid, Barcelona, ​​London Y NY) “Madrid is in a sweet spot, the market is maturing, but there is not yet the brutal competition that leads people to change companies every nine months. But we are progressing because America He had a big advantage over us in everything related to venture capital for about 20 years, and we were cutting something”, details Moreno, whose company received more than 1,500 million in funding from Madrid in its first two years.

Because according to the data of 2022, the community of Madrid EurostatIt is the second region European unionA little behind Paris, with 6.2% growth and the highest number of jobs in the high-tech sector with 262,300 representing 32.3% of the total in Spain. According to the latest figures updated in 2020, there will be 552,027, and it can also see an increase in the number of medium and high-tech companies, which already account for 4.1% of the total region. In a decade, moreover, the capital of these companies increased by 10%.

Counting from 2021, new business lines have started or will start soon in Madrid Google, HPE, Microsoft, IBM, Oracle oh Characteristics of Merlin Till completing 16 techniques in total. Investors like Google will contribute 1,200 million euros to Spain’s GDP and create 10,000 new jobs a year. In the case of Microsoft, it will build three data centers in Madrid, which will generate 5,300 million euros and 13,200 jobs. That’s why Madrid already has 10.3% of people working in this sector, three points higher than the national average and lagging behind. Basque country (12.4%).

Among those companies Fujitsu, celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and has moved its big data and artificial intelligence center to Madrid, from which its entire European strategy is driven. “Sometimes in Spain we go a little bit with that campus, we don’t have that competitiveness, and I think we have a fantastic fabric. Madrid is a center of talent, it has the best universities in the country to train young people in this field and it has enviable communications. South America, Central America Y Europe», he says Patricia UrbezThe general director of the Japanese company’s public sector describes that half of the company’s 2,600 employees in Spain are capital and 40% of the business volume in the public sector.

And the question is obvious, why do all these companies choose the Madrid community as a move to set up their business in Spain? Members of the organizations have brought to the capital a range of issues, including taxation, concentration of companies, the level of technical training in universities and regional economic assistance. “Size is the most obvious indicator of the moment Beginnings A second generation is emerging. Before there were adults, sort of KefiNow, the most powerful companies are starting to emerge as former employees of its founders, taking the risk of entering the field. At the same time, essential venture capital funds are emerging for financing, especially in 2022 and 2023″, says Ignacio Moreno, who considers that “excessive regulation” is still present in Spain and throughout Europe. “There is very little communication between management and a very punitive system has been chosen. For example, paying payroll is almost automatic in the US, where you need advice and a lot of documentation.

From Fujitsu, they mainly point to the digitization process and training as one of the keys to the region’s success in attracting investment. In fact, there are contracts with a Japanese company Universities like Rey Juan Carlos and the Polytechnic and the Chair on Artificial Intelligence, centered out of Madrid University of Granada. “This work allows you to advance in the creation and recruitment of talent, then retain it in the company. Our philosophy is to create our own quarry that identifies with the company in a market that is changing towards not owning”, exemplifies Patricia Urbez, who still recognizes the “shortage” of professionals in the sector due to “growing demand”. . . . “There is no shortage of personnel in our company, but there is one in technical profiles. And I’m not just talking about college graduates Dual career training This is one way to acquire that skill. We are launching online courses to transfer and provide technical training to people without that training but with incredible experience who can contribute a lot to the organization.

“Madrid, on the one hand, is the capital and center of our country. Here are all the ministries and all the institutions capable of helping these companies to finance, give them the opportunity to export, investigate and develop. In addition, the general treatment of companies belonging to the Madrid community is good, with specific programs,” said He mentions. rogelio de la fuenteHe also acts as treasurer AmeticAn association representing the technology sector at national level promotes the creation of an innovation center halfway between Madrid and Madrid. MalagaAnother emerging tech hub in Spain.

Although companies are reluctant to describe the tax benefits offered by the Madrid community as an operational center for their companies, it is clear that this is another aspect that favors implementation. This is because the region, which the regional government insists is the only region with no taxes of its own, has the lowest index of tax rates. Personal Income Tax Promotes bonuses for the country and companies, abolishes wealth tax and has exemptions for those who want to invest in newly formed companies or listed on alternative stock exchanges. “Taxation in a friendly tax system for companies is always appreciated. For example, the policies launched in Andalusia with a change in tax policy to attract investment are also interesting,” says the General Director of Fujitsu’s Public Sector.

However, this digital ecosystem and the progress in these sectors have prompted warnings from experts in the labor market about the dangers that come from this process and lead to “disturbing legends” or “strange dystopias”. Professor of Labor Law and Social Security Jesus was a merchant addresses in his essay The future of work in the age of digitization and robotics Issues such as the “lack of definition” of the right to digital disconnection included in current Spanish law, “changes that incomprehensible change the actual legal precedents and the idea of ​​work” stand out.