61 Industrial Baranquesa in Spain

Team 46 Poster

Team Reflection

“Spinning into the future” is our story about the company Industrial Baranquesa and its commitment to international expansion and alignment with multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through our interview with Manuel Turiel, the project lead for the company’s India expansion, we gained a sense of his dedication to both the technical and human aspects of this challenge. Turiel described his vision to bring European work standards to India, noting how crucial it was for him to create a meaningful, positive difference in working conditions. During the interview, he said, “I wanted to make the idea of the India factory a reality, including the development of people, machinery, plans, suppliers, and organizing the team,” which shows how complex and impactful a project like this could be for both the company and the region.

What made us choose Industrial Baranquesa was the increasing revenue and economic value and the commitment to contributing affordable clean energy and supporting the Indian workforce by providing decent work aligned with European health and safety standards. This commitment closely aligns with SDGs 7, 8, and 9 and well with the organization’s ethics code, a main topic we focus on in lectures, readings, and group meetings.

Examining this project from an academic perspective, multiple frameworks can be considered, including the triple bottom line and corporate accountability, two main topics we have learned about this semester. Through the triple bottom line, which measures performance on social, environmental, and economic scales, Industrial Barranquesa demonstrates how a company can address each section with full commitment. By establishing sustainable operations which contribute to affordable clean energy, the company actively impacts the environmental aspect. With the attention to decent work conditions and the impact of raising employment standards in India, this perfectly aligns with the social components of this model. In class and within our group conversations, we have talked about certain theories and how SDGs can be met by using them. For example, we learned how sustainability and corporate social responsibility can differ, with sustainability focusing on the long term, while CSR can be more short-term, direct measures. Industrial Barranquesa showed us that they manage both, showing that sustainability measures are being used, as well as responsible management.

This story also challenged some assumptions that we have talked about. Before starting this project, we had skeptical views on companies expanding internationally, as the main reason for this act is profit-driven. However, after interviewing Industrial Barranquesa, we learned that when ethical values drive internationalization, businesses can do more than just expand their market, it can positively impact communities and bring a good change to standards. We were also very impressed with the level of personal dedication described by Turiel. The commitment to training workers, understanding cultural differences, and addressing different negotiation styles made us realize that successful internationalization is more than just profits.

Our team greatly learned and benefitted from this cross-cultural experience. This project was able to provide real-life examples of the content taught in class, showing us the importance of respecting cultural diversity in international business. This experience greatly strengthened the value of flexibility and cultural respect, which is a main topic in this class, and it expanded our view of how responsible business practices differ across regions. The coursework in CSR and sustainability greatly increased our teamwork. We all used knowledge from academic insights to strengthen our understanding of how SDGs can serve as business goals. By connecting what we have learned in class, we felt prepared to analyze and interview Industrial Barranquesa. We were encouraged to question assumptions about internationalization and explore the issues that could arise with cross-cultural business practices.

To divide the work effectively, we split tasks based on each team member’s strengths and comfort levels. For example, some members were more creative and took the lead on the poster, while others took the lead on writing and the story. Each team member showed up to meetings and was able to discuss the interview, the questions that would be asked, and the importance of relating the practices to the SDGs. The division of tasks worked well overall, as it allowed us to address specific parts of the story, as talked about while working with individual skills. However, there are always challenges within business, especially cross-culturally. There was a 7-hour time difference for members, so finding a time that worked for everyone had difficulty at times. During meetings, we set deadlines and divided tasks for each part of the project, which minimized confusion in finding another time for meetings.

Reflecting on this experience has reshaped our view of what it means to be a responsible leader in a globalized area. The AIM2Flourish story has shown us the power of cross-cultural projects and made us realize the importance of understanding other cultures, as at some point of time in our lives, we will be working with people in different cultures across the globe to some extent. We can use what were learned here in the future to carefully consider the social and environmental impacts of any business decision, ensuring people and places are treated with respect.

To conclude, we can say that our team project and the Interview with Industrial Barranquessa have taught us so much. We learned the importance of working with SDGs when practicing business and how you can positively impact the environment and humanity. Also, working cross-culturally has allowed us all to better understand how cultures practice business differently. We had potential setbacks, but as a team, we were able to overcome them and complete this project. It was a great way to make new connections and friends, and it was enjoyed by all.

Individual Reflections

Keaton Woods: 

Being involved in this global project was a great experience that provided us with unique perspectives on virtual collaboration and teamwork within different cultures. Our team did a great job finding a productive online meeting schedule that suited everyone’s needs to the best of their abilities. At first, I expected that managing time zones, schedules, and cultural differences would be very difficult, but we quickly adjusted to this and worked well. I approached this project with an open mind as I knew we would have to work with people from all over the globe. I believe that this attitude helped with the flow of the project, as a negative attitude from the start would have shown very poor results in meetings. My contribution to the team and projects was consistent and important, just as much as the other students. This project highlighted the importance of collaboration and inclusiveness across multicultural teams, which will further help me approach roles in the future.

Matt:

Overall I really enjoyed the opportunity to collaborate on a fun project with people from different parts of the world who I’ve never interacted with before. It was very cool to see so many schools and students focused on the same project. Learning to manage time differences and schedules between 6 people in 3 different countries was not as challenging as I thought it would be, because of how cooperative each member was. Everyone was pulling their weight, showing up on time and communicating effectively since the beginning of the project. I had no idea what to expect and I feel like my expectations were fair exceeded. Over the last 5 weeks I have actually made new friends and fun experiences through this project and look forward to staying in contact with them. There were of course some language barriers present at times and cultural differences as well while working on the project. However, it was interesting to see and get a feel for how cross-geographical dynamics can play in a potential business setting and has given me a better comfort in the subject matter. We very quickly and effectively decided on a company with everyone bringing proposals, divided out the tasks and completed them well before deadlines which is rare to find in university group orjects, let alone an international one.

Elena:

At first, I was hesitant about this project since I thought that working with people from different cultures and time zones would be difficult. But I was wrong. It was an amazing opportunity to work with these people, learning about them and their countries. This experience made me understand how important it is to learn how to work with people from different countries since you never know what you are going to encounter in your future. Different cultures and approaches can add so much value to a project like this, making it more interesting and overall enriching. Also, this experience made me realize how useful the internet can be nowadays. Being able to communicate with people from all over the world is such an incredible experience and an amazing opportunity. After this project, I gained so much knowledge not only about the topic we were working on but also about different cultures, and the best thing, I made some friends along the way.

Sofia:

Working on this global project was a big learning experience for me. At first, I thought it was going to be complicated to manage time zones and different cultures. But it turned out to be easier than I expected once we got the hang of everyone’s schedules and preferences. We quickly found a routine that worked for all of us, and that made the collaboration much smoother. This experience showed me how important it is to work well with people from different backgrounds, and that everyone brings something unique to the table. I’m sure this skill is going to be helpful in the future, especially as business becomes more global and connected. And honestly, it’s amazing how the internet allows us to connect and work as a team from across the world. I didn’t just learn about the project topic, I also got to know a bit about other cultures and made some new friends.

Layan Alredhayan :

In this activity, our virtual team consisted of members from diverse universities and cultural backgrounds, each bringing unique perspectives and skills. Working together in a remote setting, we shared ideas, collaborated, and overcame challenges to complete our project. This experience emphasized the importance of effective communication, adaptability, and respect for each other’s viewpoints, fostering a strong sense of teamwork.

Personally, I found this experiential activity both enlightening and rewarding. Being part of a multicultural team allowed me to gain insights into different approaches and strategies, enhancing my understanding of cross-cultural collaboration. I appreciated how each member’s contribution enriched our project, creating a collective outcome that we could all be proud of. This experience strengthened my ability to work effectively in virtual environments and underscored the value of diversity in problem-solving.

The experience also emphasized the importance of digital collaboration skills in today’s interconnected world. Overall, working together to accomplish our shared goal reinforced my belief in the power of teamwork and diversity in driving innovation and success.

Yara:

I gained numerous skills from the group experience that I took part in, and it was full of worthwhile moments and lessons. One of the most noticeable aspects of teamwork was the cooperative attitude that united the group, with each member having a distinct position and set of duties. Despite our disparate origins and viewpoints, we were able to use our diversity to our advantage and successfully accomplish the shared objective because of this organization.

Effective communication was one of the most significant lessons I took away from this experience; I came to see how crucial it is to share ideas and have ongoing conversations to make sure that everyone is on the same page. I also saw that respect for one another and tolerance for different viewpoints help to create a productive workplace where dealing with difficulties and issues is made easier. Throughout the project, we had certain challenges, but we were able to get past them thanks to our open communication and ability to come up with answers.

The most significant lesson I took away from this experience was the value of effective communication; I came to see how crucial it is to share ideas and have ongoing conversations to make sure that everyone is on the same page. Additionally, I observed that respect for one another and tolerance for others’ viewpoints help to create a productive workplace where dealing with difficulties and complications is made easier. Throughout the project, we encountered various challenges, but our capacity for candid discussion and cooperative problem-solving enabled us to get past these setbacks.

References

• United Nations. (n.d.). The 17 goals | sustainable development. United Nations. https://sdgs.un.org/goals
• Jaulas de Pernos y bridas de torre. Industrial Barranquesa. (2024, July 1). https://barranquesa.com/es/inicio/