Source: Les Roches
  • 60 students from Les Roches participated in the IV Spark Innovation Hackathon, a team exercise assessing potential entrepreneurial projects in the fields of tourism and hospitality.
  • The BBA in Global Hospitality Management and Tourism Business program allows students to choose the specialization in Entrepreneurship and Business Development to lead innovative projects and embark on entrepreneurial journeys.
  • Carlos Díez de la Lastra, CEO of Les Roches: "The history of our institution is built on an entrepreneurial spirit and innovation, qualities expected of all future leaders."
  • According to the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) that gathered insights from 58 countries, 17,8% of students aspire to become entrepreneurs directly after studies, and 32,3% five years after graduation.

Madrid/Marbella - Last week marked the fourth edition of the Spark Innovation Hackathon for 60 students specializing in Entrepreneurship in their BBA in Global Hospitality Management program at Les Roches. The event was organized in collaboration with We Tangible, a company defining itself as the 'anti-consultancy' specializing in corporate innovation, entrepreneurship, Design Thinking, and Lean Startup.

During the exercise, ten current business challenges in the hotel and tourism industry were presented. Each team of students chose one of the presented challenges, invented a solution, and worked on innovative solutions by creating a startup. They then faced the task of presenting their project to a jury and managing tensions within the teams, all within a 48-hour timeframe.

The aim of this practice, which Les Roches has been promoting for years, is to equip students and businesses with the necessary tools to nurture creativity and entrepreneurial skills among the students. In this edition, the project with the most potential for the jury was "Cuba Libre," a B2B data-based solution to enhance the consumer experience in events and nightlife.

Carlos Díez de la Lastra, CEO of Les Roches, stated, The history of our institution is built on an entrepreneurial spirit and innovation, qualities expected of all future leaders. Additionally, the school instills values of humility and sacrifice, necessary for starting a project from scratch.

The training brought together leading figures from the European entrepreneurial ecosystem, responsible for mentoring the teams, including Alberto Cárdenas, CEO of FISIA Physiotherapy+Artificial Intelligence, Pablo Valencia, CEO of Patronus, Ildefonso Olmedo, Chief Digital & Innovation Officer of Santander UK, and Andrea Montoliu, Head of Spanish-speaking markets at Wooclap.

The dynamic also included the participation of the school's entrepreneurship team, represented by Susana Garrido, Director of Innovation and e-learning at Les Roches, and Professor Dámaris Tenza. Additionally, Salva Ferri Guallar, an expert in innovation, corporate strategy, and startups, co-founder and Managing Partner at We Tangible, was responsible for organizing the training.

Les Roches strengthens its commitment to entrepreneurial talent

According to the findings of the latest report from the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) that gathered insights from 58 countries, 17,8% of students aspire to become entrepreneurs directly after studies. On top of this, 32,3% of students plan to become entrepreneurs 5 years after graduating. These figures confirm what we can find on the study led by The International Journal of Management Education, which is that schools and universities, with the evolution of their programs, can boost students’ creativity and entrepreneurial capability, thus supporting their entrepreneurial aspirations.

Les Roches nurtures this innovative mindset through its educational offerings. A testament to this is that 24% of its students start their own businesses within two years of graduating. The BBA in Global Hospitality Management is an internationally accredited business degree focused on the hospitality industry and offering specializations in Luxury Hospitality Management, Entrepreneurship, Digital Marketing Strategies, Financial Performance Management, and Resort Development and Management. This education, available in English and Bilingual formats, allows students to acquire a professional discipline that opens doors to various sectors and some of the world's most prestigious brands, such as Marriott International, Hyatt, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, and Soho House, amongst others.

In the final year of the BBA program, students can choose the specialization in Entrepreneurship and Business Development to lead innovative projects within major hotel chains and bring their projects to life. The next intake for the BBA will take place in February 2024.

Additionally, the program provides students with exclusive access to the global innovation center, Spark, a physical space on the campus that serves as a platform for incubating disruptive startups. The goal of Spark is to introduce students to the latest technologies and innovative ideas driving the next generation of the hotel industry.

About We Tangible

We Tangible is an anti-consultancy specializing in innovation, strategy, product development, startup ecosystems, and educational experiences, with a mission to make innovation a reality in businesses. Founded by Salva Ferri and Benjamín Lorente, both with extensive knowledge of the innovative ecosystem, We Tangible emphasizes methodology and people as the driving force behind innovation. From identifying challenges and the talent required to addressing them, to validating new concepts in the market, We Tangible is involved throughout the process to ensure that innovation becomes a replicable model for the company.

Despite its recent establishment, We Tangible has been involved in over 50 national and international projects and has accelerated over 40 startups to date, contributing to the creation of digital companies that now have a market valuation of over €100 million.

For more information, visit We Tangible.

About Les Roches

Les Roches is a bespoke experience to educate tomorrow's leaders in hospitality. Founded in 1954 in Switzerland, Les Roches offers undergraduate, graduate degrees and executive programs in Luxury, Hospitality and Tourism Management. Les Roches has campuses across Switzerland, Spain and in Shanghai - China as of 2025 as well as partner campus in Gurugram (Delhi NCR) through an academic alliance with the Indian School of Hospitality (ISH). With a student body of more than 100 different nationalities, the institution provides students with a unique culturally diverse experience.

Les Roches ranks 4th in the world’s higher education institutions for hospitality and leisure management (QS World University Rankings by Subject, 2023). Part of Sommet Education, worldwide leader in hospitality education, Les Roches is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).

For more information, visit Les Roches.

Anouck Weiss
Chief Communication Officer, Sommet Education
Les Roches