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CaixaBank and Ivie have confirmed their collaboration to review and improve the competitiveness of Valencian firms through the GECE Observatory

The new agreement signed by CaixaBank and Ivie extends the Corporate Governance, Strategy and Competitiveness Observatory (GECE) for 12 more months

CaixaBank and Ivie have renewed their collaboration for another year to continue the GECE project, which began in 2017. This initiative aims to analyze the evolution of the competitiveness of Valencian companies, as well as the internal factors and determinants that can help improve it. It also compares the indicators to the national average and allows the results obtained to be broken down by province.

Olga García (regional director of CaixaBank in the Valencian Community and Murcia Region) and Felipe Pulido (commercial director for businesses of CaixaBank in the Valencian Community and Murcia Region), attended the meeting to renew the agreement for 2025-2026. In representation of the Ivie were Pilar Choren (Ivie managing director) and Alejandro Escribá (GECE Observatory coordinator).

Over its eight years of existence, the GECE Observatory has produced a total of 22 reports and documents on the competitiveness of Valencian companies, regional and sectoral characteristics, and determining factors such as corporate governance, size, and strategy. In addition, for the companies that are part of the GECE Panel platform, which currently has 133 member firms, individualized reports are developed on their relative position in terms of competitiveness. These reports support strategic decision-making by comparing their characteristics to those of other reference groups.

Following the renewal of its activities until July 2026, the GECE Observatory plans to publish two new documents addressing its three main areas of focus: strategy, corporate governance, and competitiveness of Valencian companies. In addition, three workshops and seminars will be held with business representatives to present the results.

The GECE Observatory reports combine macroeconomic statistics (with sectoral breakdowns) with company-level information, both secondary and primary. The study also identifies the characteristics of family businesses that differentiate them from other companies in the region and presents data for the three provinces of Valencia.

The regional director of CaixaBank emphasized their continued support for the initiative developed by the GECE Observatory, noting its vital importance in strengthening companies in the Valencian Community and enhancing their competitiveness. He added that the Observatory allows an in-depth analysis of how changes in business characteristics, adopted strategies, and governance and leadership structures can impact competitiveness —an insight that is extremely valuable.

According to Alejandro Escribá, coordinator of the GECE Observatory, in-depth knowledge of the characteristics of Valencian companies, the identification of distinctive features and patterns among of the most competitive firms and the strategic behaviors they are implementing —alongside the study of governance and strategic decision-making structures—represent a source of opportunities to add value to Valencian society as a whole, and to its economic and business fabric in particular.

The GECE Observatory

The main objective of the GECE Observatory is to contribute to the design of strategies that improve the competitiveness of companies in the Valencian Community, with the aim of reducing the current deficit, which is reflected in the lower relative weight of the Valencian economy in the national GDP.

To this end, the Observatory conducts an in-depth analysis of the specific characteristics of the Valencian business fabric and compares them with those of the most competitive companies. This analysis is based on a combination of macroeconomic data and microeconomic information extracted from databases on annual accounts, shareholders, capital structure, and the composition of corporate governing bodies. Based on this information, a synthetic competitiveness index is developed that allows companies to be classified into four levels, from high to low competitiveness.

All companies associated with the GECE Observatory contribute to the generation of knowledge through the surveys they complete. In return, they receive regular personalized reports that allow them to compare themselves with other leading companies in their sector, both in the Valencian Community and in the rest of Spain.

Since its launch, the ‘GECE Observatory’ has published studies analyzing, among other aspects, the ownership structures and governing bodies of Valencian companies, as well as existing gender differences. It has also examined their degree of internationalization and the evolution of their competitiveness levels over time, using highly competitive companies as benchmarks. All these aspects will continue to be explored in depth in this new edition of the agreement between CaixaBank and Ivie, and the results will be available on the GECE Observatory website.