How Factorial Became Barcelona's HRTech Unicorn

This interview features Jordi Romero, Founder and CEO of Factorial, offering an in-depth look at the evolution of one of Europe’s leading HRTech scaleups. Based in Barcelona, Romero shares his journey from engineer to entrepreneur, reflecting on his early experience at Redbooth and the founding of Factorial in 2016. The conversation explores how Factorial has grown into a global business software platform serving thousands of companies across more than 90 countries. Romero discusses the company’s mission to eliminate manual administrative work through automation, enabling organisations to focus more on people and decision-making. With increasing investment flowing into AI-driven workforce management tools, Romero provides perspective on how automation, data insights, and integrated platforms are reshaping HR, finance, and IT operations. The discussion also highlights Spain’s growing role in this space, as well as the competitive dynamics emerging across Europe. His insights provide valuable context for understanding how modern companies are rethinking workforce management in an increasingly digital and AI-enabled environment. Key Points - The role of AI in automating recruitment, onboarding, and employee lifecycle management - Challenges and opportunities in scaling a SaaS company internationally - The shift from fragmented tools to integrated, all-in-one business management platforms - How startups can identify and solve inefficiencies in traditional business processes - The competitive landscape of European HRTech and emerging innovation trends