Pope Francis has selected Luis Herrera Tejedor, a Catholic layman from Spain, to be the director of the Holy See's newly-created "Human Resources Department".
The position is stipulated in Praedicate evangelium, the apostolic constitution on the Roman, which was published last March and went into effect on June 5.
The 62-year-old Herrera, a lawyer and graduate of the Spanish IE Business School, has spent his entire career in the field of human resources.
Most notably, he has been HR director for the Spanish branch of Yves Saint Laurent (1990-1991) and the distribution group Logista (2004-2007).
He was also HR director of the Spanish bank Inversis from 2017-2021. And since leaving this bank, he has offered his services as a coach, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups.
Experience in the world of media
Herrera has also had significant experience in media companies. He was in charge of human resources at the Catholic radio station COPE (1987-1990), Radio Onda Cero (1991), and the Iberian press group Prisa (2001-2004).
His experience in the media world is of special interest to Francis, who made the Dicastery for Communication one of the first sectors in the Vatican to undergo a major reform. But the department's nearly 500 employees have not been enthusiastic about the changes.
According to January 2022 figures available to La Croix, there are nearly 3,000 employees in the various sectors of the Vatican.
But until the reform of the Curia, no centralization of professional and career paths was organized.
Professionalizing the organization of the administration
By appointing Herrera, the pope has confirmed his desire to professionalize the organization of the administration that assists him.
The offices of this Spanish layman will be located in the Secretariat for the Economy, in the heart of the Vatican. That office is headed by another Spaniard, Jesuit Father Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves.
According to our information, Herrera will have nine staff members.
About half of the entire Vatican workforce is made up of laypeople, almost all of whom are employed for life.
Apart from the prefects of the dicasteries, whose salaries can reach €5,000, the remuneration varies between €1,200 and €3,500 net per month and is non-taxable.