César Alierta

César Alierta Izuel was a Spanish businessman, who was the chief executive officer and chairman of Telefónica S.A. from 26 July 2000, until replaced by José María Álvarez-Pallete in 2016. He guided the company through a significant Latin American expansion. Alierta earned a bachelor's degree in law at the Universidad de Zaragoza (Spain) in 1967. Three years after his degree, he earned a master's degree in Business Administration at Columbia University in New York, United States.