Our experts bring decades of valuable experience to advise clients on how to affect change at the highest level in the Spanish market.

Our network and knowledge of the ever-changing political climate helps us navigate policy changes for our clients.

We create synergy between brand and business to improve relations with media and key stakeholders.

Rud Pedersen España is one of the pioneers and leaders of Government Relations & Public Affairs in Spain, with more than two decades of experience generating a positive, sustainable and sustained impact on society and for the benefit of our clients.

We build bridges between the political, social, and economic spheres thanks to our multidisciplinary and highly experienced team.

We are experts in hyper-regulated sectors such as Energy, Technology, Finance, Mobility, Health, and Defense. We also count on the most-valued Department of Legislative Intelligence which provides real-time detection and analysis of regulatory risks to our clients. 

Spanish experts, European impact

Alfonso López

Mario Pulido

Israel Sánchez

Claudia Cruz

Natalia Merino

Diego Sanjuanbenito

Lucía Gómez

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**Rud Pedersen España** 
[Calle Prim 19. 4º Planta.
28004 Madrid](https://maps.app.goo.gl/MehHF6SschhyADt6A)

**Managing Partner:
Alfonso López** [a.lopez@rudpedersen.com](mailto:a.lopez@rudpedersen.com)

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**Madrid, September 13, 2024** – Rud Pedersen Spain, one of the leading public affairs firms in the country, has announced the creation of its new Strategic Communications Department. With this launch, the company strengthens its commitment to providing comprehensive solutions that combine public affairs and public relations into a cohesive strategy.

The new department kicks off with five major accounts, won through competitive bidding, from multinational companies with a strong presence in Spain, operating in strategic sectors such as technology, banking, mobility, and investment. These clients, who are already receiving public affairs services, will now benefit from an expanded communications offering aligned with their institutional needs.

**Lucía Gómez**, formerly of El Economista and with extensive experience in the media, will be responsible for leading this team. Joining her will be **Marta González**, a consultant at the firm and journalist. This team will be further strengthened in the coming weeks with professionals with extensive experience in both journalism and strategic communications, currently being recruited by a headhunter.

**The CEO of Rud Pedersen Spain, Alfonso López**, highlighted the importance of this launch: *“The creation of the Strategic Communications Department marks a milestone in the evolution of our firm. It allows us to offer a comprehensive approach that not only covers stakeholder management but also a more robust and effective media communication strategy. This new department is a direct response to the growing demand from our clients in the area of public affairs, with whom we have already collaborated in strategic consulting, particularly in the field of lobbying. The most inspiring aspect of this growth is that it has been driven by our clients' needs, reaffirming that we are moving in the right direction and in line with our own path of organic growth.”*

With this integration, Rud Pedersen Spain aims to provide its clients with a global strategic vision, optimizing their positioning both institutionally and in the media. This will enable them to effectively manage their key messages, strengthening their presence and reputation among their main audiences.

Currently, Rud Pedersen Spain has 33 consultants and expects to close the year with a turnover of 3.3 million euros, representing a 50% growth compared to the previous year.


*For more information, contact [Alfonso López](mailto:a.lopez@retionline.es), CEO, Rud Pedersen Spain.*

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**About Rud Pedersen Group:**
The Rud Pedersen Group is a partner-led and independently owned public affairs and strategic communications agency. Founded in 2003 by Morten Rud Pedersen in Sweden, the agency has grown from a single-person operation to over 600 highly specialized partners and employees, operating in 19 offices across 18 European countries. Rud Pedersen specializes in government relations, public and regulatory affairs, communications, and crisis management. By combining a deep understanding of political systems and influencing mechanisms with public relations expertise, Rud Pedersen assists clients in navigating societal, political, and market dynamics relevant to their businesses. The agency equips clients with the tools needed to achieve their business objectives through public affairs and communication efforts at local, national, and EU levels.

Rud Pedersen Spain launches new Strategic Communications Department

Rud Pedersen Group announced today that it will acquire a 30% stake in RetiEspaña, located in Madrid. RetiEspaña is a leading government relations and public affairs consultancy in Spain that supports clients to navigate complex political, regulatory and communications challenges. RetiEspaña will become a full member of the Group and be the Group’s representation in Spain. Alfonso López, Founder and CEO will continue leading RetiEspaña.

“With this partnership, we solidify our footprint in Europe, to meet the needs of our clients and be able to include Spain in our Europe-wide projects and offerings” said Morten Rud Pedersen, CEO, President, and Founder of Rud Pedersen Group. “I have known Alfonso for a number of years and have been impressed by RetiEspaña’s reputation in Spain and the culture of the company which will complement our growth throughout Europe. We are excited to work closely with our new Spanish colleagues in the months and years to come and integrate RetiEspaña’s knowledge, insights, and experience into the wider Group’s proposition.”

Alfonso Lopez, CEO of RetiEspaña said “We are delighted to become part of Rud Pedersen Group, an organisation renowned for its excellence in institutional relations and strategic communications. This partnership will allow us to expand our influence and enhance our service offerings for our clients. We remain committed to our mission of providing high-level consultancy and look forward to a future of shared growth and success.” 

RetiEspaña’s specialty straddles a complex mix of corporate diplomacy, stakeholder analysis, market intelligence, media relations and positioning, as well as strategic communications and government relations advisory. The company’s team of 20 professionals brings on board deep expertise in political and communications backgrounds and works across a broad spectrum of clients ranging from finance, tech, agriculture, defence and healthcare.

Rud Pedersen Group acquires stake in RetiEspaña

The Italian Public Affairs sector continues its evolution with constantly growing companies, investments by funds, new acquisitions, mergers and above all expansions both inside and outside the Italian territory - usually towards Brussels - in order to facilitate the management of European dossiers.

However, this expansion process is not unidirectional. In fact, if it is true that Italian companies now cannot avoid having an increasingly European dimension, the same can be said of European consultancy companies which cannot neglect the national level and, therefore, the Italian market. We discussed it with **Luigi Ferrata, Managing Partner of the Italian office of Rud Pedersen Public Affairs**, one of the largest European consultancy firms in the public affairs and communications sector which has offices in 18 EU countries.

**Your company is rapidly expanding and last March you opened an office here in Italy. Why now?**

**LF:** Rud Pedersen Group is in a phase of great expansion and only in the last year has it expanded its presence to Ukraine, Spain and the Czech Republic. A similar process cannot ignore Italy, as ours is one of the founding countries of European Union, the continent's third largest economy, Europe's second largest manufacturing industry and a major global exporter. To this purely economic aspect, we must add some considerations of a political nature linked to Italy's role within the Parliament, where our representation is one of the most numerous, in the Commission where we historically hold portfolios of great importance and lastly in the Council where our country is one of the most important presences. Furthermore, the role played by Brussels must be considered. The Belgian capital is characterizing itself as a landing point for international clients who increasingly prefer to hire a "one stop shop" consultancy company that acts as the sole interlocutor both at a central level and in the various member countries for the various support activities. It is for this reason, therefore, that it is necessary to guarantee a presence in the main European capitals and therefore also in Rome.

**Therefore Italy cannot be ignored, especially in view of the next elections.**

**LF:** Yes, certainly. In this historical period, our country, precisely by virtue of its history and size, can play an important role in many difficult dossiers. However, our real weight will largely depend both on the political choices that will be made in the coming months by institutional decision-makers (see PNRR) and, above all, on the new parliamentarians who will represent Italy and on who will join the next Commission.

**Speaking of Europe, what does it mean for a player accustomed to acting within regulated systems to arrive in the Italian system which is still looking for a regulatory framework for the sector?**

**LF:** In the past I too have been part of working groups organised by previous Governments and Parliaments to arrive at regulation of lobbying activity and obviously even today, Rud Pedersen is ready to collaborate and make their international experience available to the legislator. It is, however, also true that regulating the lobby is a very difficult task because there are numerous loopholes that prevent the identification of complete and exhaustive legislation capable of being applied to all cases. It is enough to look at what has happened in Europe where there are numerous obligations on the lobbyist but many fewer on politicians or on those who have recently left politics.

**Are you referring to cases of foreign interference through parliamentarians and former parliamentarians?**

**LF:** Exactly. This is an example, but there are many others that demonstrate how there are so many different scenarios that even the best regulation is imperfect. In principle, it's good to have regulation, but it's much, much more important that a significant role is left to civil society, watchdogs, and the press, who must monitor and supervise, bringing questionable or unethical behaviours to the attention of the public, without wanting to be executioners and holding trials in the square.

**On the other hand, however, we have a problem of authoritativeness of the sources. This control can always be challenged by the problem of fake news.**

**LF:** It's true, everything can be manipulated and fake news is a big problem. Given that complex problems have complex answers and that it is a very long and very difficult battle, in my opinion we have two paths: that of creating a critical conscience in people by investing in training, certainly not a short-term process which, however, can bring very important results; the second is represented by the use of technology through the use of systems linked to artificial intelligence which allow fake news to be identified more easily. By acting in this way, perhaps we will be able to manage the problem with greater awareness.

**You have a long experience which has seen you hold important roles in numerous companies, including international ones, in the sector. What differentiates Rud Pedersen Public Affairs from other consultancies?**

**LF:** The Italian market has evolved extremely positively thanks to the presence of companies that offer high quality services in line with best practices at a European level. In recent months, we are also witnessing a phase of consolidation with the entry of private equity funds. Having made the necessary premises of the case and a fair applause to our competitors, I believe that there are however some distinctive aspects in our activity that distinguish us and characterise us: i) our European matrix. According to some analyses, approximately 75% of the legislation adopted at national level comes from the European Union. Rud Pedersen is one of the most important companies in Brussels with a team of 80 people and solid presence in the main European capitals. Our objective, in addition to growth in the domestic market, is to shorten the distance between Rome and Brussels and to create a bridge with the different capitals; ii) skills on European funds , increasingly important in the creation and growth of businesses. Thanks to our Funding and Partnership department, we aim to accompany companies in accessing community funds; iii) lastly, to complete our offer, there is a very high level Senior Advisor Board, within which there are former political leaders, Ambassadors, Generals, Directors and Heads of Cabinet of the Commission and important business managers, who can offer great support in defining tailor-made strategies and approaches.

**How does this approach allow you to enter a very particular market with small, hyper-specialised boutiques on one side and large players on the other?**

**LF:** First of all, with regards to size and given the developments of the Italian market, I think it is important to underline that we are a company controlled entirely by partners and there are no external investors, funds or parent companies. In terms of services, however, we enter this market by offering a bridge with Brussels. Unlike our national competitors, who first structured themselves in Italy and then opened offices in Europe, we followed the opposite path. We are European by our very nature, ours is the baggage of a company present in 17 EU member countries which has structured an offer deeply based on a multilevel approach capable of responding to all the needs of companies.

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News & Insights

Rud Pedersen Spain launches new Strategic Communications Department

Rud Pedersen Group acquires stake in RetiEspaña

Public affairs, if Europe looks at the Italian market

Rud Pedersen Spain launches new Strategic Communications Department

Rud Pedersen Group acquires stake in RetiEspaña

Public affairs, if Europe looks at the Italian market