In 2026, Alhona will be three years old. A period that has concentrated growth, learning and transformation. To celebrate, we spoke with our CEO, René González Castro, about the beginnings, the challenges and what it means to lead a technology consulting startup for the industrial sector. These are his reflections:
It’s been three years since the birth of Alhona, looking back, what would you say has been the biggest learning experience?
The greatest learning has been to realize that we can add value beyond the type of industry we knew. Working with clients such as Navantia or Repsol has meant approaching completely different sectors of activity to what we were used to and, nevertheless, we have discovered that the bases for incorporating technology are the same, and that our experience in the discrete and highly serialized industry is enriching for other sectors.
The early years are demanding. What challenges have marked the evolution of Alhona and how have they influenced the way you work with customers today?
The main challenge was to become a strategic partner of important industrial companies in the field of technology applied to operations. It is not easy because they are companies that know the technology well and have even obtained value from it, so first we have to convince them that we can help them obtain even more value, to the point of talking with them about competitiveness and transformation, not only about a certain value in terms of economic benefit. Then, once the relationship begins, we have to demonstrate that we are capable of doing it. This challenge has marked our evolution in every aspect.
Today we are a technology startup that advises the industrial sector. What really differentiates us from other consulting firms?
Our difference lies in our ability to make technology have a significant impact on operations. We do not limit ourselves to strategic recommendations, but work to ensure that technology generates real results in plants and in the business. This has allowed us to position ourselves as a reference in digital transformation of the industry in Spain. From there, there are other factors that reinforce this difference and are a consequence of the above: the intelligence of the team, the quality of the work, strategic vision and closeness in the relationship with the client.
If an industrial company is considering accelerating its digital transformation, why should it trust Alhona?
You should trust us because we know how to use technology to bring value, adapting to the circumstances of each company and understanding the business challenges. Also because these are complex issues to address and it is not easy for someone who has not faced major technology challenges in the past to draw a good plan. Sometimes we see poor approaches, even errors at the conceptual level, such as thinking that implementing an MES is digitizing or putting in a robotic arm is automating. We have seen skeptical managers who come to think that this is a hype that after a while we will forget, ignoring that the world is changing around us thanks to the same technology that can be used to transform the industry.
