Miguel Hornillos González
Real estate services professional with almost 15 years of experience in the sector. Although I’m currently a portfolio manager at Solvia, I previously worked for nine years at the real estate multinational JLL at their offices in Madrid.
I started my studies with a bachelor’s degree in business science and administration and business management, which I’ve complemented with several master’s and courses, such as an MBA from IEB, the Master’s in Taxation and Tax Advising from CEF, and, more recently, the IE Real Estate Company Management Program.
My current functions include supervising the management of my assigned portfolio, applying the client’s policies, and keeping the organization’s strategy in mind at all times.
"I’ve acquired a much more global vision of the real estate sector, as well as new knowledge and skills that are helping me in my job."
At a time of uncertainty, Miguel decided to choose IE to expand his management training in the real estate market, thereby giving his career a boost after 15 years in the sector. The program provided him with a global perspective and new knowledge he can use to build a new future in a highly competitive profession.
Why did you decide to further your education at IE?
I’ve always been a nonconformist and demanding when it comes to my education; I’ve taken many courses and master’s degrees since I finished my bachelor’s degree, which usually have coincided with difficult economic moments, because I believed the best way to stay in the job market or give my professional career a boost would be to take a high-quality training program.
And it’s common knowledge that the COVID-19 pandemic has hit the global economy, and the Spanish economy in particular, very hard. It’s been a time of layoffs that we have all had to deal with one way or another. I had been in the real estate sector for over ten years, and I had always worked on the finance, tax, and asset side of real estate, so I was lacking greater knowledge of the sector from an investment, sales, and technical perspective.
So, in May 2020, my curiosity for new knowledge was combined with a pandemic that left us stuck at home and put many companies’ viability at risk; that led me to make the decision to embark on a new educational adventure. Now I just had to find a program with strong content, excellent professors, and the option to take it online, as I was planning on doing the whole thing from home. The IE Business School Executive Real Estate Company Management Program met all these requirements, as it offered both prestige as a business school and its capacity to adapt and innovate to continue with its educational activities during the pandemic.
Do you think that your time at IE has changed your focus in your career?
It’s not easy to make an important decision like starting a program like this, because it requires significant economic and personal effort, as you have to combine your workday with class hours and homework, and therefore have to take hours away from family and friends. But the effort was undoubtedly worth it: I’ve had the opportunity to learn from excellent professors/professionals and to share the experience with exceptional classmates with whom I would have loved to share more moments, but the pandemic prevented me from doing so as I live far from Madrid.
Now that the program’s ended, I can say that I’ve acquired a much more global vision of the real estate sector, as well as new knowledge and skills that are helping me in my job, and they are the foundation upon which I want to build my future in the complicated, competitive world of real estate.
But this adventure that I started with IE in June 2020 isn’t over yet, as the Executive Real Estate Company Management Program included the RICS Training Module, which I also took. After a few months’ work with a great advisor, I prepared and presented my candidacy to be a member of RICS, which was accepted, and I’m waiting to undergo the assessment panel in November to become a member of this prestigious association of real estate professionals.
Is there a valuable lesson you learned during the program?
To be able to survive in an increasingly competitive and global job market, quality education programs that can be reflected on our CV, which defines us personally and professionally to others, a series of qualities and skills, such as effort, organization, determination, perseverance, initiative, and motivation for ongoing improvement, and it, of course, accredits that you have the best, most up-to-date knowledge. I view this as essential to continue to be a desirable professional candidate, even if companies and recruiters aren’t always able to judge it fairly.
Do you have any inspiring stories you’d like to share with your classmates?
For me, training has been the key to setting myself apart from others professionally since I started my professional career in 2003, and that is still true today. That has been the foundation upon which I have built my personal and professional growth.
