The original version of this article was published in Spanish. This English translation is provided for convenience only. In the event of any discrepancy, the Spanish version shall prevail.
For years, stockpiling inventory and taking on debt at negative real rates produced results that often masked the true strengths (or weaknesses) of a business. Operational efficiency, energy costs, financial expenses and competition stopped being central variables and became secondary concerns.
Today the landscape is starting to shift. And with it comes a different challenge: competing again on the basis of productivity, profitability and management quality.
The central question is how to generate better results in an environment where margins are tighter and where every decision has a more direct impact on value creation.
Realities vary across sectors. Some are still restructuring their balance sheets, redefining structures, or revisiting business models. Others, particularly those linked to the energy and agricultural value chains, are finding more favorable conditions to drive investment. But regardless of the sector, there is a common denominator: the need to manage capital better and allocate resources with greater discipline.
In this context, growing on inertia or simply passing on costs is no longer enough. Nor are there universal solutions. The key lies in determining where to invest, which processes to optimize, which products to develop, and which competitive advantages can truly be sustained over time.
That shift also extends to financial management. For years, many decisions were oriented toward preserving value in the face of uncertainty. Today, a more strategic view of companies' financial structure is gaining relevance: how to finance projects, how to manage liquidity, and how to use the tools available to strengthen execution capacity.
The evolution of the financial market has significantly expanded the alternatives available to companies. However, the availability of instruments does not guarantee better decisions. The difference usually lies in the ability to evaluate options, understand risks, and link each tool to a concrete business objective.
At the same time, there are two factors that cut across all sectors and are part of the corporate agenda for the coming years.
The first is the adoption of technology. Artificial intelligence and automation are beginning to change processes, cost structures and ways of competing. The discussion is no longer about whether these tools will matter, but about the speed and judgment with which each organization manages to adopt them.
The second is competitiveness. As the economy integrates into more open and demanding dynamics, factors such as productivity, operational quality and management standards are gaining increasing importance. For many companies, this will mean reviewing processes, strengthening internal capabilities, and raising efficiency levels that for years were shaped by other factors.
For a long time, a significant part of corporate results was determined by external factors. The stage now beginning restores the importance of more traditional variables: productivity, financial discipline and execution capacity.
In this scenario, the difference between companies will not be defined by the environment they face, but by their ability to adapt to that environment and the quality of the decisions they make.
By Oscar Llano, Vice President of Mills Capital SGR and Commercial Director at Mills Capital
