The Government of Catalonia, by its agreement of 28 February, has approved the appointment of Dr Àngels Fitó as the new UOC president. The formalizing of her appointment marks the start of a transition period that will culminate in an inauguration ceremony on 13 April. This will bring to an end the selection process that was launched in December 2021.
Àngels Fitó has a PhD in Business and Economics from the University of Barcelona, is a senior professor at the UOC, and has been Vice President for Competitiveness and Employability since 2019.
Between October 2010 and February 2019, she was dean of the UOC's Faculty of Economics and Business. Throughout her academic career, she has specialized in tax and financial management and management control, and has taught courses on these subjects at a number of universities (University of Barcelona, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Pompeu Fabra University, and the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia). She combined her teaching work with a professional career in accounting and tax consulting for private companies and public institutions.
She is deputy chair of the Catalan Professional Association of Economists and a member of the Government of Catalonia's Economic Policy Advisory Board. Her research interests focus on financial reporting harmonization processes, management control systems and the transformative power of higher education for employability given the complexity of labour market dynamics. She leads a number of different local and international initiatives in this field to reconfigure higher education and provide a response to the challenges for lifelong learning arising in the current context of transition.
Born in Barcelona in 1970, she is the mother of three children and author of three novels.
From the selection process to the official appointment
The selection process began in December 2021 when the Board of Trustees appointed a search committee made up of four trustees. This committee set the profile to be met by candidates and appointed a selection committee, composed of three internationally renowned experts, charged with selecting a shortlist of candidates from among the applicants.
Having assessed the final three candidates proposed by the search committee, the Board of Trustees proposed Àngels Fitó to take on the role to lead the UOC for the next seven years, as per the procedures set out in the UOC Statutes.
Fitó went before the FUOC's Advisory Board and the University Council, each of which issued reports endorsing her appointment. The Board of Trustees then requested official approval of the appointment from the Government of Catalonia, which was given in the Government's agreement of 28 February.
Dr Àngels Fitó thus becomes the fourth president of the UOC, occupying the position previously held by Gabriel Ferraté (1995-2005), Imma Tubella (2005-2012) and Josep A. Planell (2013-2023).
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