What Year One Partners does

Year One Partners is a specialized, independent advisory firm headquartered in Madrid, Spain, providing premium corporate diplomacy services to international businesses. The firm's core offerings span three service lines: strategic government relations and policy advocacy, stakeholder engagement and management, and crisis management and communication. These services are tailored to help enterprises ranging from startups and scaleups to listed companies navigate complex political, regulatory, and social dynamics when expanding into or operating within foreign markets.

The firm was founded approximately 20 years ago and is led by a three-partner senior team: Xavier Cima as Founder and Managing Partner / CEO, Agustín Baeza as Senior Policy Advisor, and Fer Benito as Senior Strategy Advisor. Each partner brings 10-20+ years of experience in politics, public affairs, corporate and financial communication, and stakeholder and reputation management. The firm operates from four offices: Madrid (Paseo de la Castellana), Barcelona (World Trade Centre), and Jerez de la Frontera in Spain, plus a US regional office in Coral Gables, Florida (One Alhambra Plaza). The legal entity is YEAR ONE PARTNERS S.L., a Spanish Sociedad Limitada.

Revenue is generated through professional services engagements priced on a custom quote basis, structured as multi-year contracts. Distribution is sales-led via direct advisory engagements with enterprise clients, supported by organic presence on LinkedIn, Twitter, and the corporate website. The firm is privately held and founder-managed, with no disclosed institutional investors, parent company, or external funding rounds. There are no proprietary technology products, AI capabilities, patents, or formal partnerships disclosed.

Name

Year One Partners

Legal name

YEAR ONE PARTNERS S.L.

Website

https://yearonepartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Year One Partners is a Madrid-based independent advisory firm providing premium corporate diplomacy services—government relations, stakeholder engagement, and crisis management—to international businesses, startups, and listed companies seeking to navigate complex foreign markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Madrid

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Corporate Diplomacy Advisory Services: Premium consulting services in government relations, policy advocacy, stakeholder engagement and management, and crisis management and communication. Revenue generated through professional services engagements with international businesses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Year One Partners is an independent advisory firm that provides premium corporate diplomacy and public affairs services to businesses expanding internationally. Its practice spans strategic consulting on government relations and policy advocacy, stakeholder engagement and relationship-building, and crisis management and communication. Engagements are tailored to client needs and supported by the firm's local expertise in the political, regulatory, and social dynamics of its core markets in Spain and the United States.

Product overview

Year One Partners is a specialized, independent advisory firm providing premium corporate diplomacy services. The company offers a unified set of consulting services rather than a software product portfolio. Its core service offerings include strategic government relations and policy advocacy, stakeholder engagement and management, and crisis management and communication. These services are tailored to help businesses navigate international markets, manage complex external environments, and achieve their business objectives through local expertise and political/regulatory understanding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Government Relations and Policy Advocacy Advisory Premium consulting engagement that helps international businesses navigate government relations and policy advocacy in foreign markets. Includes strategic guidance on political and regulatory dynamics, policy influence, and stakeholder mapping. Targeted at companies expanding internationally that need support engaging with governments and regulators.
• Stakeholder Engagement and Management Advisory Strategic advisory for building and managing relationships with key external stakeholders in international markets. The offering helps clients identify, engage, and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with relevant decision-makers and influencers. Tailored to businesses operating or expanding into foreign markets.
• Crisis Management and Communication Advisory Premium advisory service for managing crises and protecting corporate reputation in international markets. Includes crisis preparedness assessment, response strategy, and communication guidance to ensure organizational resilience. Targeted at businesses that need to protect their reputation and respond effectively to crises in foreign jurisdictions.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Scale indicators1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• FleishmanHillard: Omnicom-owned global PR firm with a sizable public affairs and government relations practice. Provides the same corporate diplomacy, public affairs, and crisis services Year One targets in international markets.
• Brunswick Group: Global advisory firm focused on critical issues, public affairs, and corporate communications, with strong European roots. Closely comparable service mix — government relations, stakeholder engagement, crisis — for large international corporates.
• BCW (Burson Cohn & Wolfe): WPP-owned global communications agency with dedicated public affairs and crisis capability. Comparable to Year One's crisis management and government relations offerings, but as part of a much broader communications portfolio.
• APCO Worldwide: Global public affairs, strategic communications, and government relations consultancy with significant EU/Spain presence. A larger, broader portfolio player offering the same core corporate diplomacy services Year One specializes in.
• Hill+Knowlton Strategies: Global public relations and public affairs consultancy with established Spain/EU operations. Overlaps with Year One's stakeholder management, policy advocacy, and crisis comms offerings for enterprise clients.
• FTI Consulting (Strategic Communications): Global advisory firm with a major public affairs and corporate communications practice. Competes with Year One for corporate diplomacy and crisis mandates, but operates at much larger scale and across a much wider service portfolio.

Direct peers

• Llorente & Cuenca (LLYC) — Already listed: Duplicated entry omitted; the most relevant peer after LLYC in Iberia is Kreab, listed above.
• LLYC (Llorente & Cuenca): Madrid-headquartered public affairs, corporate communications, and public relations consultancy with deep coverage in Spain and Latin America. Closely comparable to Year One Partners in service mix (government relations, crisis, stakeholder) and Iberian/LatAm client base, but at materially larger scale.
• Atrevia: Spanish corporate communications, public affairs, and reputation management consultancy with strong presence in Spain and LatAm. Overlaps directly with Year One's stakeholder engagement, corporate diplomacy, and crisis management offerings for similar enterprise clients.

Emerging players

• Grupo Albión: Spanish public affairs, strategic communication, and reputation advisory boutique serving corporates and institutions. Similar size-band and specialization in government relations and public affairs to Year One Partners, but with a more Spain-domestic footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/YearOnePartners
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/year-one-partners

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Year One Partners