Known by her titles as Adriana Campos-salazar, Partner of the Month, and President of Spain Partner of Citizen Business, Adriana Campos-salazar holds a Master’s Degree in International Business and Spanish at the Center for Strategic Leadership, an initiative of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. She has been an entrepreneur since joining the International Business Exchange in 1985. Campos-Salazar is originally from Madrid, joined the Spanish National Bank in Benidorm and then went on to become the controller of Banamex. This position allowed her to gain knowledge in financial management, which she used to start her career as an entrepreneur.
Campos-Salazar’s work experience as an entrepreneur gives her the knowledge to understand and plan a venture, to know which elements are important for the growth of the firm, and how to bring all these elements together. She believes that a good entrepreneur is one who has the vision but not the limitations. “A lot of time is consumed in developing a business, and then once the business is established, a limited time frame should be given to make sure that the firm thrives,” she says. Campos-salazar acknowledges that being an entrepreneur entails more than just the technical aspects of the organization, such as accounting, payroll, marketing, etc. “The real test of an entrepreneur is his or her character.”
According to Campos-Salazar, it takes tenacity and passion to reach the pinnacle of success, which is what makes her partner selection process such a challenge. She explains, “If you want to be a partner [in a company] it is better to have been part of something that is growing. Being part of a startup is different because there is no growth. We must have a clear idea of what the objective is before starting the business. We can only see growth if we have the courage to take a risk.” She concluded by saying that it takes more than just money to create a successful venture.