A strategic reflection forum for the leaders of the Food value chain

For those who want to lead the future of the Food business

Business owners, board members, chairs, CEOs and managing directors

Starts 6 April 2027

8 days · 2 per month · Tuesday and Wednesday · Seville

Senior Management Program for the Food Value Chain (ADECA)

ADECA is an advanced, specialized forum for reflection with a strong strategic focus. It addresses the challenges, issues and opportunities facing the Food value chain as a whole. As such, it is a unique program in the European Union.

business owners and executives

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Food-sector alumni

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months of program

ADECA Participant Profile

For those who want to lead the future of the Food business

Business owners, board members, senior executives (chairs, CEOs, managing directors and general managers) and senior members of their executive committees who are responsible for leading or playing a decisive role in defining corporate strategy.

Business owners and chairs

Owners and chairs who want to test their strategic perspective with peers at the same level, outside their own boards.

→ Ownership or chairmanship in the Food value chain

→ Ultimate responsibility for strategy

CEOs and Managing Directors

Top executives from industry, retail and consumer goods. They come to refresh their judgment, not to receive formulas.

→ CEO or managing director

→ Company from any link in the chain

Board Members and Executive Committee

Board and committee members with a decisive voice in defining strategy.

→ Board member or senior committee member

→ Decisive role in corporate strategy

→ The typical profile of those who return years later

What are the objectives of the ADECA Program?

Global perspective, reflection, inspiration, debate and networking. Five words the program turns into judgment of your own.

DEBATE

Strategic challenges do not have single answers or magic formulas. Exchanging perspectives with highly experienced business owners and executives helps participants build their own comprehensive, rigorous approach.

REFLECTION

On the strategic and business challenges affecting companies competing in the Food value chain: understand changes in the environment, assess their impact and strengthen judgment in designing the response.

INSPIRATION

To gain fresh new ideas, spot opportunities and acquire new perspectives on the business, through the analysis of current, relevant business situations selected to address today’s challenges in the Food business.

NETWORKING

Connect with influential, top-level business owners and executives across the Food value chain to build strong personal relationships and identify opportunities for business and collaboration.

Methodology

The Case Method. You learn by deciding.

Program sessions are built around the Case Method and in-depth discussions with business leaders.

«In class, the discussion is the one that would take place in the executive committee of the company being analysed. With one difference: its protagonist is in the room.»

Highly current specialist cases: each case describes a real, complex business situation involving challenges similar to those faced by business owners and executives in their own companies. In class, participants take an active role in a discussion comparable to one held by the Board or Executive Committee of the company being analysed. ADECA refreshes a large share of its cases every year to ensure that the issues discussed remain fully current.

Individual preparation

Each case describes a real, complex business situation. You arrive with your position already taken.

Teamwork

Pre-session discussion in small groups: test your perspective against that of other top executives in the sector.

Classroom debate

Full-class discussion led by the professor, at Board level.

Dialogue with the protagonist

Discussions include the real protagonists of the cases and in-depth dialogue with CEOs and business leaders.

Curriculum

Academic Content

The program addresses the challenges of the Food value chain as a whole, from the first link to the last, in three modules.

Governing the Food business: ownership, Board and management.

Cases refreshed every year

A large share of the cases is rewritten or replaced in each edition. The discussion is about the sector today, not its history.

Production, industry, retail: strategy from every seat at the table.

The protagonists in the classroom

Cases are discussed directly with their real protagonists. The benchmark: the Chairman of Nestlé taking part in a session.

Issues that cut across the entire chain, discussed with the people who face them first-hand.

Unique in the European Union

There is no other senior management program in the EU specialized in the Food value chain as a whole.

The strongest proof: participants who return seventeen years later

When the managing director of Mahou San Miguel takes ADECA in 2004 and returns in 2021, no sales pitch is needed.

ADECA 2023

Fernando Fernández Soriano

“My experience at ADECA has been fantastic. The cases are highly current and the professors managed them very well. Having the protagonists of the case in the room adds enormous value. I have met wonderful people and outstanding professionals, and it has helped me grow a great deal, both personally and professionally.”

Fernando Fernández Soriano

Chairman of PROMARCA

ADECA 2006

Ignacio Rivera

“ADECA is a program worth repeating, because it helps you analyse new ideas, refresh your values and discover new ways of thinking about the problems we all face every day.”

Ignacio Rivera

CEO · Hijos de Rivera (Estrella Galicia)

ADECA 2005 and ADECA 2021

José María Bonmatí

“In the consumer goods sector, differentiation is essential, and the ADECA Program brings together several elements that make it unique: the excellent quality and relevance of the cases, a top-level faculty and guest speakers, an excellent climate for debate, the high calibre of the participants and its specialization in the agri-food sector. The high level of satisfaction among those of us who have studied here is the best guarantee. That is why we encourage other business owners and executives to take the ADECA program; I am sure it will not disappoint them.”

José María Bonmatí

Managing Director of AECOC

ADECA 2004 and ADECA 2021

Alberto Rodríguez Toquero

“The level of the faculty, together with the professional profile of the participants, makes ADECA an excellent platform for addressing the key issues. The level of knowledge and networking is extraordinary. Add the case-study dynamic and the unique opportunity to discuss the cases with their own protagonists, and you have a combination that delivers outstanding results. For me, it is a privilege to be part of the great San Telmo Business School family and to contribute to its present and future development.”

Alberto Rodríguez Toquero

Managing Director of Mahou San Miguel

The impact

What happens after completing ADECA.

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Executives since 2003

Business owners and senior executives from Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

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Participants who return

Executives from Mahou San Miguel and AECOC returned 17 and 16 years after completing the program.

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Alumni in top management

Of all alumni of San Telmo’s Food area.

Companies on the Advisory Boards

Companies linked to the Advisory Boards of the Food area.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Is the program compatible with running a company?

Yes. ADECA is designed for business owners and senior executives who want to keep developing their strategic perspective without stepping away from the day-to-day running of their company.

The program is built around the Case Method, discussions with CEOs and business leaders, and the exchange of experience among top-level executives from the agri-food sector. Its format concentrates sessions into two consecutive days, making it easier to combine with your professional activity.

What is the admissions process like?

ADECA is aimed at business owners, board members and senior executives (chairs, CEOs, managing directors, general managers and senior executive committee members) who lead or play a decisive role in defining the strategy of their companies in the food value chain.

If you are interested in taking part, the San Telmo team will arrange a personal interview to analyse your development needs and assess how the program can contribute to the growth of your company and your management career.

How much does it cost and what financing options are available?

The program fee is €18,000.

Deposit to secure your place: €1,500
Remaining amount: payable before the program begins.

Tuition includes teaching materials, working lunches, coffee breaks and dinners. If you are unable to take the program, the deposit may be used towards any other San Telmo program within the following two years.

In addition, the program is recognised as a university-specific degree (Título Propio) by Universidad Villanueva, so employees may apply for Individual Training Leave (PIF), provided they meet the established requirements. Financing options are also available through preferential agreements with banks, and the fee may offer tax advantages in certain cases.

Where is the program held?

ADECA is held entirely at San Telmo Business School’s Seville campus.

Sessions take place on Tuesdays, from 9:45 to 19:30, and on Wednesdays, from 9:00 to 18:30, concentrating the program into two consecutive days to make it easier for business owners and executives travelling from across Spain and abroad to attend.