Organised by WOBI for the past 21 years, the World Business Forum Madrid 2025 will bring together some of the leading international figures in business thinking on 12 and 13 November. Among them, Peter Diamandis, Anne Chow, Nathalie Nahai, Adam Grant, Nouriel Roubini, Brené Brown and Gary Hamel will share their vision on innovation, leadership, strategy and the future of work.
New this year is a series of parallel conferences designed to offer a more dynamic and participatory experience. These sessions, led by national experts, address key trends such as creativity, talent management, sustainability and artificial intelligence applied to business.
Pedro Hernanz, managing director of WOBI for Spain and Portugal, explains how this edition seeks to go beyond theoretical reflection to focus on developing practical skills and inspiring a new generation of leaders.
Since you took over as director, the World Business Forum has evolved significantly. What changes would you highlight in the event’s approach and value proposition?
Since 2024, we have transformed the experience: learning, inspiration and networking are no longer concentrated into two days, but accompany you 365 days a year. With a WOBI subscription, you not only enjoy your ticket to the World Business Forum, but also have access to recordings of speakers from all editions globally. In addition, the WOBI app offers over 300 hours of management content in multiple formats—videos, masterclasses, book summaries, and podcasts—and you will become part of the international community of WOBI Members, allowing you to create high-value connections and attend in-person content and networking events throughout the year.
This year, a new series of conferences with national experts is being added. What motivated you to create this space and what is its objective within the overall programme?
We decided to create this space so that many more executives, including companies that are currently unable to invest in attending the World Business Forum, have the opportunity to listen to and be inspired by top-level national speakers and share the same exposure and networking environment enjoyed by WOBI Members.
The agenda includes international figures such as Peter Diamandis, Adam Grant and Brené Brown. How do you define the criteria for selecting speakers to maintain a balance between inspiration and applicability?
We are in constant contact with the business world, actively listening to our community of WOBI Members, speakers and their agencies with whom we have been working for over 30 years, professors from top universities and our global partners.
All this with the aim of identifying emerging trends, the real concerns of leaders and the challenges facing organisations. Based on this active listening and rigorous editorial work, we transform these challenges into relevant learning experiences that are applicable and aligned with current needs. Our goal is to offer content that not only informs, but also inspires and helps executives make better decisions.
ente on leading in the unpredictable.
In a forum with such a wide range of topics, how do you manage to connect all the presentations with a coherent thread?
This year’s theme is ‘The Power of the Unpredictable,’ so we selected and organised all the presentations around that idea: how to lead, decide and innovate when the unexpected is the norm. We start with a macro-theme and break it down into a series of guiding questions—from purpose to strategy, execution, teams, customers, technology/AI and resilience—so that each presentation connects naturally with the next. In this way, the diversity of topics builds a unique and coherent narrative about leading in the unpredictable.
How do you think the World Business Forum contributes to strengthening business leadership in Spain and Latin America?
Our goal is not only to inspire, but also to transform the way leaders think and act in the face of current challenges. Each edition promotes the development of key skills such as innovation, change management and human leadership, offering practical tools that attendees can apply directly in their organisations.
In addition, we promote a collaborative learning environment where leaders from different sectors can share experiences, compare perspectives and generate synergies that drive new growth opportunities.
Technological changes and artificial intelligence are transforming the business world. What advice would you give to executives seeking to adapt without losing the human essence of leadership?
From my point of view, I consider technology to be another ally. My advice is for managers to embrace innovation from a humanistic mindset, combining technological curiosity with a deep understanding of the human factor. Combining the opportunities offered by technology with human talent is the key to building more agile, sustainable and purposeful organisations that are capable of adapting without losing their essence.
What role do you assign to creativity and emotional management—topics covered in presentations by Inma Shara and Sergio Scariolo, among others—in modern management?
Both are fundamental pillars of modern leadership today. We live in a business environment where uncertainty and the speed of change demand leaders who are capable not only of thinking strategically, but also of inspiring others.
Creativity drives innovation, allows us to find different solutions and remain competitive in complex scenarios. But that creativity only flourishes in environments where emotions are properly managed, where people feel listened to, valued and secure enough to take risks.
That is why I believe that truly effective leadership combines rational and emotional intelligence and understands that leadership is not just about achieving goals.
Beyond the big names on the programme, what lesson or message do you want attendees to take away from this edition?
I would like attendees to come away with a mindset of action and real transformation. I want them to understand that the ideas they hear at the forum are not just meant to inspire, but to drive tangible changes in the way they lead, innovate and connect with people.
In this edition, we want to convey that contemporary leadership requires balancing strategic vision with empathy, innovation with purpose, and profitability with social impact.
Looking ahead, what new formats or experiences would you like to incorporate into future editions of the World Business Forum?
The big news is that next year we are moving the event to the Palacio Municipal (17–18 November) because the North Convention Centre has become too small for us. We are also considering an additional one-day event in the middle of the year, included for WOBI Members, to maintain momentum between editions, and we will continue to organise face-to-face content and networking meetings throughout the year, trying out different formats and themes to strengthen the community.
