Meeting of the IK4's Strategic Committee

Forty top representatives of the Basque Country's companies, institutions, technology centres, universities and scientific and technological players met at the headquarters of the AIC (Automotive Intelligence Centre) in Amorebieta (Bizkaia) to form the IK4's Strategic Committee. The aim of this new body is to advise the management of the Basque Technology Alliance and to monitor the development of its strategy with it, by supporting it in its aim to establish itself as a top Basque reference in technological research applied to companies.IK4's Strategic Committee held its foundational meeting yesterday and is anticipating holding several plenary sessions a year. The forthcoming one is planned for July when it expects to draw up the papers on the appraisal of the current strategic framework (2009-2012) and the specifying of IK4's strategy for the medium to long term, and decide on the setting up of working teams for this purpose.
IK4's Strategic Committee comprises the following people from the business sphere: the Chairman of Confebask [Basque Business Confederation], Miguel Lazpiur; the chairmen of the three provincial employers' associations, José María Vázquez Eguskiza, Eduardo Zubiaurre and Juan José Azurmendi; Juan Ignacio López Gandásegui, the chairman of Aernnova; Alvaro Videgáin of Tubacex; Txomin García of the Caja Laboral co-operative savings bank; Itziar Unzueta of Ekotek; Pedro Luis Uriarte of Empresa, Economía y Estrategia; the vice-chairman of the Mondragón Co-operative Corporation, Javier Sotil; and the CEOs Inés Anitua of ACICAE and Joseba Mandalúniz of MTC, among others.
The institutions are represented through the General Secretary for Innovation of the Spanish Government Juan Tomás Hernani; the Deputy Minister for Technology and Innovation of the Government of the Basque Autonomous Community [region] Juan Goicolea; the Deputy Minister for Industry and Energy, Xabier Garmendia; the Deputy Minister for Universities and Research, Pedro Luis Arias; and the Deputy Minister for Innovation and Health, Olga Rivera; as well as the Director of Technology Edorta Larrauri; the member of Bizkaia Charter Provincial Council responsible for Economic Development Izaskun Artetxe; the member of Alava Charter Provincial Council responsible for Economic Development Arantza Zenarrutzabeitia; the member of Gipuzkoa Charter Provincial Council responsible for Innovation José Ramón Guridi; and the Managing Director of Promotion and Communication of Innobasque, Pilar Kaltzada.
Participating from the academic sphere are the Vice-Chancellors of the following universities: UPV/EHU-University of the Basque Country, Iñaki Goirizelaia; University of Deusto, Jaime Oraá; and the Mondragon University, Josu Zabala. Also participating are prominent figures in the scientific and technological sphere like the CEO of CIC bioGUNE [Centre for Co-operative Research in Biosciences], José María Mato, or the members of Jakiunde [Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters] José Antonio Garrido and Javier Retegui.
The forum is completed by the chairmen of the eight technology centres that make up IK4 and the leading members of the Alliance led by its Chairman, Jesús María Iriondo; its CEO, José Miguel Erdozain; and its Deputy Chairman, Guillermo Dorronsoro.
The mission of this new body is to lend support to IK4's strategic management by advising on specific questions as well as evaluating its results in terms of progress in knowledge. It will also be advising during the annual updating of the Strategic Plan by means of operational plans, and will be issuing monitoring and evaluation reports. In short, it will be contributing towards projecting IK4 and reinforcing the orientation of the Alliance towards the creation of value and the social and economic development of Basque Society.