On Wednesday, 11 April 2012, the UIC formally opened its new Department of Management by Missions, part of the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences and headed by Dr. Carlos Rey, an expert in strategic management and the management of change, and Dr. Miquel Bastons, the faculty dean and an expert in decision-making.

The department’s objective is to establish communication channels between the UIC and the companies collaborating with the department through activities and research projects related to the concept of management by missions.

Management by missions offers a new focus that enriches the traditional view of objective-orientated management. It integrates missions into the management system, positioning objectives so that they serve the mission and promoting employees’ commitment to it.

Initially, the department will be supported by six companies from different industries that have committed themselves to conducting research into this new management model: Jimenez Maña (automotive industry), the main sponsor; Semillas Fitó (agricultural industry); Kern Pharma (pharmaceutical industry); Aitex (textile industry); JJC Contratistas Generales (construction industry); and Industrial Química del Nalón (chemical industry).

The UIC’s aim is to meet the needs of the market by creating a department that enables scientific and technological cooperation to take place in a wider arena than that of an R&D project. Its activities will have long-term timeframes and involve three distinct areas: training, knowledge generation and the transfer of technology and know-how. As a result, the new department will be home to training activities as well as those involving research and dissemination of findings.

The signing of the agreement formalizing the creation of the department, which took place at noon on Wednesday, 11 April 2012, was attended by UIC Rector Dr. Pere Alavedra, Head of Department Dr. Carlos Rey and Assistant Head Dr. Miquel Bastons, along with representatives from the participating companies.

The ceremony also included an inaugural talk given by IESE Professor Antonio Argandoña, the Head of the “la Caixa” Department of Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Governance, who focused on the concept of the mission and the values that govern a company.

After the talk, the department officially entered into operation with the organization of a workshop designed to set out the department’s areas of activity, which will include the organization of conferences and the creation of a documentation centre specializing in management by missions.