Cementos Molins appoints Marcos Cela as new managing director

Julio Rodríguez is stepping down as chief executive after nine years at the helm of a company that has experienced strong growth in that period.

The board of Cementos Molins has appointed Marcos Cela as the new CEO to replace Julio Rodríguez, who has held the position for the last nine years. The replacement comes at the request of Rodríguez, who has decided to resign from his duties as the company’s chief executive, and will take effect at the end of June 2024 following the ordinary general shareholders’ meeting that is to formalise the appointment.

The change at the top of Cementos Molins is the result of a process planned over the last year and a half, when Julio Rodríguez communicated his decision to the board of directors. Since then, the board has developed an evaluation process, both internal and external, which has allowed it to value the professional experience, leadership and human qualities of Marcos Cela. The appointment was made unanimously by the board and with the full support of Julio Rodríguez.

Marcos Cela holds a degree in Business Management from the University of Barcelona, an MBA from ESADE Business School and a PADE Senior Management Programme from IESE Business School. He began his career in 1995 in the financial department of Decathlon Spain. Four years later he was European treasury and credit director at Bic Graphic Europe. He joined Cementos Molins in 2004 to perform the functions of financial director, a position he held until January 2015. From that date until today, he has been a member of the company’s executive committee as the executive responsible for the regions of Asia, Africa and South America.

Julio Rodríguez was appointed CEO of Cementos Molins in April 2015, replacing Juan Molins, the company’s current chairman. He previously worked 30 years at Schneider Electric, the last twelve as Executive Vice President of Operations and member of the company’s Global Executive Committee. Over the nine years of Rodríguez’s tenure, Cementos Molins has doubled its sales to 1,349 million last year and has multiplied its net profit by three to 151 million euros.

Marcos Cela declares: “My appointment as CEO of Cementos Molins represents a great personal and professional challenge and, after 20 years working in the company, I am delighted to take on this responsibility and I feel ready for it; I thank the board of directors for the great confidence shown in me. I am taking the baton from a person with the solid track record of Julio Rodríguez, under whose leadership Cementos Molins has undergone a great transformation and with whom I have been able to work hand in hand in the development of multiple strategic initiatives”.

According to Rodríguez, “due to his knowledge of the company and his track record within Cementos Molins, Marcos Cela is the ideal person to take over as CEO” and adds “since 2015 I have had the honour of leading the strategic transformation of Cementos Molins and contributing my grain of sand in the company’s almost 100 years of history. Today the company is different to what it was at the beginning of this 9-year journey, we have a new purpose that inspires us, greater size and geographical presence, new businesses and a culture and leadership model focused first and foremost on people and sustainability. I am very happy and grateful to all the people I have been able to meet, work with and learn from, directors and shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers and members of our communities… thank you all very much.

Over the next few months, Rodríguez and Cela will work on an orderly handover process that will culminate at the end of June 2024, when the change of functions will be effective following validation by the shareholders’ meeting.

The Board of Directors of Cementos Molins expresses its deepest gratitude to Julio Rodríguez for all these years of hard work, commitment, personal leadership and excellent results and wishes Marcos Cela every success in this new stage in the life of the company.