The award, presented by the CBD, recognizes companies and executives committed to training, talent development, and collaboration between universities and businesses. Javier Mira, who co-founded Facephi in Alicante in 2012, has led the international expansion of the company, specializing in digital identity verification, with over 300 clients in more than 30 countries.
In Mira's absence due to work commitments, Elena Cantó, HR Director at Facephi, accepted the award on his behalf and that of the team. Mira joins a list of recipients that includes entities such as Chocolates Valor, Grupo ASV, Hidraqua, Bonnysa, Centauro Rent, Caja Rural Central, Necomplus, and Aguas Municipalizadas de Alicante.
The event was presided over by César Quintanilla, President of the Social Council of the University of Alicante, accompanied by Rosabel Roig Vila, Vice-Rector for Lifelong Learning and Languages at UA; Juan Llopis Taverner, Director of Institutional Relations and Projects at UA; Carmen Berbegal, President of Fundeun; and Maite Antón, President of the Association of Family Businesses of Alicante (AEFA).
Quintanilla highlighted the CBD's two-decade journey, emphasizing that "the future belongs to those capable of uniting knowledge, experience, and talent to make better decisions," underscoring the importance of joint learning between universities and businesses.
The celebration also served to introduce new CBD projects, such as the Living Library of Business Knowledge and the Council for Business Experience and Knowledge, designed to transform real-world experiences into useful knowledge for students and professionals.
The ceremony concluded the 2025-2026 academic year for the CBD's training programs, including master's degrees in Human Resources Management, Business Management, Management Control, Hotel Sales Management, Data Strategy, and Artificial Intelligence. Twenty-eight awards were presented to students and projects, with participation from various business associations in the province of Alicante.
Six collaborating companies were also recognized: ASPY Prevención, Caja Rural Central, CEGOS, Comunicalicante, Garrigues, and Randstad.
The event particularly remembered Antonio Baeza Antón, Carmen Sala Catalá, and Enrique Briones Seguí, who were closely linked to the entity, and honored Andrés Lluch Figueras and Gabriel García Espinosa upon their retirement. Symbolic representation of families included Emilia, Izan, Liam, and Perseo.
