The Glovo Gap Year

Earlier this year, we launched the first iteration of a 12-month international program aimed at uplifting our most promising and talented leaders at Glovo. Dubbed the International Leadership Program, we opened up applications across Glovo in search of 10 determined candidates ready to have their skills put to the ultimate test. As agile leaders and Glovo Cultural Ambassadors, their challenge was to take part in an assignment at one or several countries where Glovo operates, finding ways to shape the long-term strategy of the country while taking part in fundamental manager training sessions. 

A little over 7 months since the start of the program, we sat down with one of its main sponsors and Glovo Chief Revenue Officer, Arnau Cortés, to hear more about the inspiration behind the project, its future, and his thoughts on leadership. 

Arnau Cortés, Glovo Chief Revenue Officer

How did this program get off the ground? What was the inspiration? 

We saw that we were struggling to hire for some key positions in developing markets where we still don’t have a strong employer branding and where talent for certain fields is more scarce. At the same time, we were receiving inquiries from top performers inside Glovo to go abroad. So, we thought we could facilitate this and have a win-win for both sides.

What does it mean to be a Glovo Cultural Ambassador?

By the book, it means that one needs to exemplify at least 4 of the 6 Glovo Core Values. This means that the person needs to be an example of how to be the best at those specific values by contributing to spreading those values in the organization on a daily basis.

How has this year’s program been going?

It’s been great! We’re very happy to see how the members have grown over the course of a year and the impact they’ve had on the local teams, both professionally and culturally.

Why did you want to become a sponsor for the International Leadership Program and what’s your role? 

The program was originally sponsored by Cristina De La Rosa but, as she moved into her new role, I took over the reins as I believed it was a great opportunity for both the people participating and the teams abroad receiving the participants.

How would you define your leadership style? What are your core leadership principles? 

Regarding my leadership style, I try to give my team a lot of space to execute. My job is to challenge them, provide vision and lead by example in the things I expect them to do. My core leadership principles are:

1. Balancing execution and strategy is the key to succeed in any venture. Zoom in and zoom out.
2. Obsession about team performance. Getting the right people in the right position can drive 10x performance. 
3. Culture is the ingredient that can multiply outcomes on a team. Never compromise it.
4. Ownership and proactivity are the 2 skills that move things forward in organizations. 
5. To scale and solve any challenge, become an ultra fast learner.

Do you have a mentor or leader you look up to? Who is it and why?

I try to be a sponge and learn the best practices from my peers, my team, and Oscar. Every small detail I see from the people around me that I believe to be an improvement versus what I do, I try to copy with pride.

What do you hope for the future of this program and future leaders at Glovo? 

I hope this program will continue for many years and will be the in-house school for Glovo’s next-generation of leaders.

When will we be announcing the 2022 program? Will anything change with respect to the previous year?

We’re going to announce it in the upcoming weeks. The main difference is that we want to make it a continuous program instead of having a defined application date. This will give more flexibility to both the candidates and the receiving teams.

Non-Vanilla Culture in Action

At Glovo, we believe that our people are our #1 asset. We challenge ourselves to be always-on learners who are ready to generate impact at every turn. As part of our non-vanilla culture,we look for people who thrive in roles that demand passion and inspire others in doing so. Empowered by a set of 6 core values that drive everything we do, the International Leadership Program is an important opportunity for individuals who want to grow, learn, and have a bit of fun along the way. 

From Spain to Morocco, Kenya to Ghana, and Italy to Poland, each manager has experienced new cultures and challenges in their adventures abroad. Ranging from expertise in Q-Commerce, Partner Relations, and Business Expansion, each manager who was selected for the program are open-minded, creative thinkers tasked with developing out of the box solutions. 

Check out some of their stories below.

Glovo Managers talk about their experiences with the International Leadership Program so far