Most of the larger and most successful companies in any economy are family businesses. As a matter of fact, the Argentine Institute of Family Business (IADEF) and the Latin American Institute of Family Business (ILAEF) are two organizations that have long recognized the role of such companies, and have recognized Corporación Multi Inversiones (CMI) among them, as a family business that stands out for its Business Trajectory and Corporate Governance.
Within these companies, the leaders stand out as those who maintain the spirit and culture of the business. To understand what are the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur in the context of a family business, it is necessary to understand what it really means to be an entrepreneur. In general, an entrepreneur is someone who takes a risk, pushing a business forward with the aim of solving a problem, satisfying a demand or innovating.
These are, perhaps, the most important skills that successful people have in common: resilience and innovation. These are some of the success factors that writer Núria Vilanova, founder and president of ATREVIA, a Global Communication and Strategic Positioning company in Spain, explores in her new book.
The book, which was introduced on July 30, 2019 at Guatemala’s Industrial Club, is entitled “The essence of the family business: Communication and Values”, and highlights the participation in the Ibero-American business world of Juan Luis Bosch Gutiérrez, Chairman of CMI Capital, of Corporación Multi Inversiones (CMI).
The book deals with the personal and professional experiences of the main Ibero-American businessmen from up to 18 different countries, such as Juan Luis Bosch Gutiérrez himself, whose outstanding participation in business for more than 44 years is recounted.
In the testimony of the businessman included in the book, Bosch highlights the role of values in any business activity: “My grandfather (…) always talked to us about principles. He used to say that you have to go to work happy, but when you leave you have to be happy, happy, happy. In his honor we have instituted the acronym REIR, which defines the values of the family and the company,” said Bosch in reference to Don Juan Bautista Gutiérrez, the founder of CMI.
REIR brings together the four corporate values that form the basis of the culture at CMI: Responsibility, Excellence, Integrity and Respect.
It was in 1920 when Juan Bautista Gutiérrez opened a small store in San Cristóbal, Totonicapán in Guatemala, and laid the foundations for what would eventually become Corporación Multi Inversiones, a multi-Latin company with more than 40,000 employees in 16 countries.
After 100 years of the corporation’s existence, it is currently led by the third generation of the family. It is chaired by Juan Luis Bosch, who currently serves as Chairman of CMI Capital, along with Juan José Gutiérrez as Chairman of CMI Foods. Both are part of an entrepreneurial legacy, and have shown with their track record that, while expanding business is not easy, it is always possible.
“We’ve also taken part in the good, the bad and the excellent; we in the third generation have a group of excellent executives who have all adapted and changed. We are very proud of our team” – Juan Luis Bosch.