Chema Alonso, the hacker who failed at Telefónica

Chema Alonso, the hacker who failed at Telefónica: from CDO to the street after 9 years

Nine years. That is how long Chema Alonso has been at Telefónica, hired by José María Álvarez-Pallete in 2016 to lead the data strategy and digital transformation. The media-savvy hacker, known for his peculiar style and his self-proclaimed title of 'hacker', has ended up at the starting line, surrounded by failures in his key projects and with his fruta in question. The operator, which sought to «revitalize» the company with his signing, seems to have concluded that the experiment has been a resounding fiasco.

The leap from Móstoles to La Finca and the questioning of the 'snake oil salesman'

Alonso's trajectory in the multinational has been marked by the skepticism of some analysts and industry observers. Since his arrival, he has been labeled a "snake oil salesman" and "fraud", accusations that intensify now that his time at Telefónica is coming to an end. The contrast between his humble origins in Móstoles and his later move to the exclusive La Finca development in Pozuelo de Alarcón, as pointed out in some comments, has fueled the debate about his personal success versus business results.

The criticism focuses on the perception that Alonso has known how to sell his image and his supposed skills exceptionally well, achieving a high-responsibility position and a juicy salary —speculated to be in the seven figures— despite the failures reaped. "He's made a bundle, he hasn't done a lick of work," summarizes one of the most direct comments, reflecting a widespread opinion among those who see his time at the operator as a personal rather than corporate success.

Failed projects and the slowness of corporate reaction

The debate thread reviews, with irony and skepticism, the projects that have supposedly failed under his leadership. Telefónica's inability to detect and correct course for nine years is another point that generates disbelief. "It took you nine long years to realize, what a bunch of geniuses," jokes one participant, while another points out that "any normal person sees it coming from miles away, but Telefónica's executives are backward."

Alonso's figure has become a symbol of criticism of the management of large Spanish corporations, where there is a perceived tendency to hire media-savvy and image-oriented profiles at the expense of proven technical or management capacity. The operator, which sought a "Data-Centric" transformation and "Data-Driven Decisions", seems to have fallen into the trap of buzzwords without obtaining tangible results, according to the prevailing view.

The uncertain future and the lesson of the "emperor's new clothes"

With his departure from Telefónica, the question is what will become of Chema Alonso. Speculation ranges from selling online courses, as he has already done, to finding accommodation in other large corporations willing to pay for his image. However, the professional damage is undeniable, and his CV is overshadowed by the failures attributed to his management. Alonso's story at Telefónica is narrated, for many, as one more example of the tale "The Emperor's New Clothes", where lack of vision or political convenience clouded business objectivity.

The operator, for its part, faces the challenge of redefining its technology and data strategy, learning from a period that many consider a costly miscalculation. The question left in the air is whether Telefónica, a faithful reflection of corporate Spain, will finally manage to innovate or remain trapped in cycles of smoke and unfulfilled promises.

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