CMPC Chairman named “Executive of the Year” by EY and “El Mercurio”

The 16th annual business awards held by El Mercurio and EY in Chile honored Luis Felipe Gazitúa for his leadership at the helm of the company. He stands out as an executive that “has faced the prejudices and ignorance of the political world about the reality of the forestry industry.”

This year’s award ceremony was held on Tuesday at the Metropolitan Santiago event center. This 16th edition was put on by El Mercurio together with EY. More than 300 businesspeople, authorities and union leaders of the country attended the gathering. The top businessperson, executives, entrepreneurs and the most outstanding company in terms of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria of 2022 were awarded. The winners were chosen by an independent jury composed of businesspeople, senior leaders, and trade representatives that were awarded in previous editions along with members of El Mercurio and EY.

“In addition to its work related to information itself, El Mercurio has sought to find and identify people with inspiring careers since the newspaper’s inception. These are individuals who in some way embody the styles, convictions, and character that are fundamental to building the Chile we all yearn for,” said El Mercurio Director Carlos Schaerer at the start of the ceremony.

Macarena Navarrete, senior partner at EY Chile, explained that the winners “are not only outstanding in the corporate world, they are outstanding people within our social fabric. They are key figures for the economic, social and political development of the country.”

In this ceremony, CMPC Chairman Luis Felipe Gazitúa was given “Executive of the Year”, an award that distinguishes the “executive of a company recognized in the market, which for a sustained period of time has stood out for leading changes in said company or industry, or for the performance or development that the company has had, or for being respected for his/her human touch by employees and peers.”

This was recognized by Carlos Schaerer, who at the time of awarding the CMPC Companies Chairman said, “At the head of CMPC, with intelligence and determination, he has faced responsibilities that in truth pertain to Chilean society as a whole. He has confronted the prejudices and ignorance of the political world concerning the forestry industry today. He has also undertaken his business management role with a perspective and sense of country that has brought dignity and added value to the private enterprise.”

In his words of thanks, the CMPC award winner referred to the tragedy unleashed by the fires that struck south central Chile in February of this year and said, “No climate, tree or vegetation cause fires. They are caused by people and, in our case, mostly unscrupulous ones who harmed and cut short the present and future of thousands of people. I would like to express our solidarity with the thousands of firefighters, pilots, support staff and others who have worked tirelessly to staunch these fires.”

Regarding the award, he said, “Companies and ventures, be they personal or professional are the result of the effort and commitment of a team.” He added, “Personally for me this award that I’ve received today is honestly the recognition of a very significant and solid team that has been part of CMPC for many years.”

The ceremony also awarded the careers of recognized personalities from the public and private world, namely Holger Paulmann, Sky Airline Executive Director in the “Businessperson of the Year” category, Central Bank Governor Rosanna Costa as “Executive of the Year”, Juan Sutil, founder and president of Empresas Sutil, as “Entrepreneur of the Year” and Antofagasta Minerals (AMSA), represented by its Executive Director Iván Arriagada in the category of “Most Outstanding Company on ESG”.