Alain
Jordà
Ad-Hoc Expert
Generic Skills
B.1. Understanding of integrated and sustainable urban development:
I hold a Msc in Telecommunications and I'm graduated on Business Management by EADA Business School.
This allowed me to have a 20 years career in the private sector. First, in ICT related companies, including several years managing European Space Agency telecommunications projects for INDRA, a big spanish engineering company. Then, I served in some industrial companies and I finally was a free-lance consultant on e-marketing in Spain and Latin America.
By 2001, I was invited to integrate in a political list for the local elections in Manresa, my town. I was then elected and was, for 10 years, a city councellor with several responsibilities from innovation, technology and local economic development to security (police and emergency services) and finance.
In this period I introduced my town to european projects and we joined Eurotowns network by 2004 and I get to be elected as President of the network from 2008 to 2011. I was directly involved in several transnational european projects (Interreg, URBACT).
I designed and promoted the first Local Innovation Plan in Spain (2005) and we set up a number of important Private-Public Partnerships in town.
From the end of 2011 I work as a local development expert by assisting local authorities in defining and developing their local economic development strategies both in Latin America and Europe.
B.2. Understanding of exchange and learning processes at transnational level:
Eurotowns. As a member and, later on, President, of this network I actively contributed to the managing commitee and I participated in the decision process as well as leading new initiatives.
CAPTURE Interreg III project (20 partners). This project was about knowledge economý and we exchanged experiences on very different aspects of KE: from entrepreneurship to creative industries or even information design. Study visits and staff exchanges were the main tools we used in that project.
CLIQ (Creating Local Innovation through the Quadruple Helix) was a kind of second part of the CATPURE project more oriented to innovation and how to boost it in society also. The project succeeded and ended by producing a very interesting “toolkit”. There were 16 partners.
REDIS (Restructuring Districts into Science Quarters) was an URBACT project involving 8 cities. An implementation lab in each city was the core of the project. Each city received representatives from the other partners and, for 3 days, we were all working on the most relevant question for the hosting city project.
ACTE. This is not a transnational project as it involved only spanish towns but I think it's a relevant experience as well. The partner cities were all ancient textile cities. The aim of the project was to explore ways to reintroduce to the labour market all the people that used to work in textile industry.
B.3. Proficiency in English:
I have no certificate at all. I just learned english at school. Then, listening to rock music and reading books during my telecommunications university studies. After that, I've practiced mainly in different jobs. Let me give you 2 references.
I was a Project Manager for European Space Agency projects for about 4 years. Those projects involved companies from several countries and, as the project manager, I had to lead the team, manage the meetings and write quite a number of documents (requirements, specifications, tests, reports,.....). All of this was done exclusively in english.
Later on in my career, I was representing my town in Eurotowns network and I was elected as the network President for two terms (2008-2009 and 2010-2011). The only official language in this network has always been english.
Thematic expertise:
Theme / Policy:
Local Governance
Summary Thematic expertise:
As a Deputy Mayor for 10 years in my town with very different responsibilities throughout that time. Out of Security, Revenue and budget, I've hold different responsibilities related to Economic Development: Innovation, Universities, Technologies, European projects and Economic Promotion.
Tha't's why I have quite a wide experience in such themes as Local Governance, Local Economic Development,, Research, innovation and knowledge economy and Entrepreneurship and competitive SMEs.
I have a complete experience including 1) my previous career in several private companies, 2) my 10 years serving as a Deputy Mayor, 3) being a partner in several transnational projects (Interreg, URBACT) and 4) my recent experience assisting towns, cities and regions in such areas as RIS3 adoption, Smart Cities approach and Economic Development strategies, all together gives me a wide experience in those thematic subjects.
Theme / Policy:
Local Economic Development
Summary Thematic expertise:
As a Deputy Mayor for 10 years in my town with very different responsibilities throughout that time. Out of Security, Revenue and budget, I've hold different responsibilities related to Economic Development: Innovation, Universities, Technologies, European projects and Economic Promotion.
Tha't's why I have quite a wide experience in such themes as Local Governance, Local Economic Development,, Research, innovation and knowledge economy and Entrepreneurship and competitive SMEs.
I have a complete experience including 1) my previous career in several private companies, 2) my 10 years serving as a Deputy Mayor, 3) being a partner in several transnational projects (Interreg, URBACT) and 4) my recent experience assisting towns, cities and regions in such areas as RIS3 adoption, Smart Cities approach and Economic Development strategies, all together gives me a wide experience in those thematic subjects.
Theme / Policy:
Entrepreneurship and competitive SMEs
Summary Thematic expertise:
As a Deputy Mayor for 10 years in my town with very different responsibilities throughout that time. Out of Security, Revenue and budget, I've hold different responsibilities related to Economic Development: Innovation, Universities, Technologies, European projects and Economic Promotion.
Tha't's why I have quite a wide experience in such themes as Local Governance, Local Economic Development,, Research, innovation and knowledge economy and Entrepreneurship and competitive SMEs.
I have a complete experience including 1) my previous career in several private companies, 2) my 10 years serving as a Deputy Mayor, 3) being a partner in several transnational projects (Interreg, URBACT) and 4) my recent experience assisting towns, cities and regions in such areas as RIS3 adoption, Smart Cities approach and Economic Development strategies, all together gives me a wide experience in those thematic subjects.
Theme / Policy:
Research, Innovation and Knowledge Economy
Summary Thematic expertise:
As a Deputy Mayor for 10 years in my town with very different responsibilities throughout that time. Out of Security, Revenue and budget, I've hold different responsibilities related to Economic Development: Innovation, Universities, Technologies, European projects and Economic Promotion.
I have a complete experience including 1) my previous career in several private companies, 2) my 10 years serving as a Deputy Mayor, 3) being a partner in several transnational projects (Interreg, URBACT) and 4) my recent experience assisting towns, cities and regions in such areas as RIS3 adoption, Smart Cities approach and Economic Development strategies, all together gives me a wide experience in those thematic subjects.
I've a number of experiences either in local innovation, in boosting the development of technology, at the local level as well as inside the city council organization, in the creation and management of technology centers as well as in transnational exchanges about these subjects.
Expertise support to local authorities and other stakeholders in designing & delivering integrated and participatory policies
E.1. Knowledge on participatory methods and tools for co-production and implementation of local polices :
My method to draw city development plans is participatory. I'm strongly convinced that, to be effective, any local development plan needs to be defined, discussed and accepted by the local stakeholders. This is why, I use workshops with the relevant stakeholders to help local authorities setting-up their local strategy plans. As a reference, this is the way I managed the work in the 4 mexican cities and towns involved in the “Laboratorio de Cohesión Social” project funded by the European Commission and the Mexican Government.
I was fully responsible for the workshops in the project. From defining the format of the workshops, preparing the presentation materials, telling the theory and managing stakeholder groups and debates as well as writing the reports.
E.4. Ability to understand specific local situations and adapt tools and content to different local realities:
I use the same methodology in every local strategy project but I obviously adapt contents to each context. I did it in Europe (Comarca Bajo Cinca, Spain) and in America (Mexico). In rural environments like Comarca Bajo Cinca, Spain, or Chiapas, México and in cities like Ciudad Juárez, México.
Definition of RIS3 specialization strategy requires different approaches as well depending on the territory which wants to define its specialization and so I did in Lleida or in Sabadell. Both cities are in Spain but the first one is the capital of a wide agriculture and livestock region while the second one is the heart of the most industrialized region in Spain (close to Barcelona).
Informations
Residence location:
Spain
Languages:
Spanish - Mother tongue
Foreign Languages level:
Foreign languages:
Foreign Languages level:
Foreign languages:
Email:
alain@alainjorda.com