Katia Bassi Tribute: When a Legend Leaves Us

The words below were written in the hours and days after Katia's death. Words and thoughts that have consumed my head and my heart.

In the days after her death, I drew strength from a meeting with Katia’s closest confidante, also in shock she came all the way to London’s Heathrow airport to deliver?a message that will forever strengthen my purpose, and I am finally trying to put my thoughts on paper.

I am honored to have been given the responsibility to carry her legacy and to pay homage to the incredible woman she was. I do so with her love in my heart and her calm voice still in my ears…

?I'm not sure how to describe someone so special using… words.

How do you write about one of the most powerful and legendary business leaders in both the country of Italy, and in the world of super cars. ??

In business, Katia was known for her work most recently as CMO of Lamborghini (previously Ferrari and Aston Martin). Always at the edge of innovation, she had recently left Lamborghini to become the female managing partner of the world’s first hybrid supercar company Silk-Faw, for which she was managing the 2023 launch.

Katia changed the game, not just as the first C-Suite level woman in the luxury sports car industry, but she changed a way of thinking and used her power to change the lives of female leaders all over the world. Katia uniquely leveraged the influence of the brands she so positively impacted, communities and causes. Her career impact is almost unbelievable, unless you knew her…

On a personal level I’m struggling to sum up the memories, the impact, and the feelings I have for her in one tribute. It feels impossible.

I’ve received and read so many messages and have heard from many people from across the world saying “there are no words” – well, there are. There are words.

There are words of happiness about the treasured time we all had with Katia. There are words of elegance to describe her individuality and the way she carried herself. There are words of fear and sorrow to communicate what we are feeling now that she has left us.

But maybe most of all there are words of strength, of hope, of power, of impact, of resilience and of tender love. Words that serve to bring us together as we learn to live in a world without Katia.

For me, Katia was a?graceful and dynamic spark of love?and ambition to change the world. A quick Google search reveals she truly did change the world in her time with us, and in doing so she opened the doors for so many others to do the same. She ingrained in me her favorite quote:

?“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood”? –?Marie Curie.

I feel so blessed to have met her relatively early in my career, and despite how different we were and how ‘high up’ she was, she saw something in me and took me under her wing. She guided me, she was direct with me, she pushed me to do things I?otherwise might not have thought possible. She's made me a better person, and she gave me the idea to dream of a way to scale impact and influence. That dream became known as the Global Center for Influence.?

The eerie fate was that this dream she inspired in me was officially launched alongside the University of Texas at Austin just 3 months prior to her unexpected passing. She's left an incredible mark on our lives and we need to honor that with strength, with purpose, and with love. I believe the world needs more Katia’s at the helm.

?It is hard to understand and/or believe how much of an effect one person can have, and even harder to comprehend how difficult it is to find others to operate this way.

I’m so scared of losing all the memories, but even more frightened? of losing the impact she had and was continuing to create. She was just getting started, but I don’t take lightly that through the Center for Influence (C4I) I now have more fuel, motivation, and an incredible platform in the University of Texas and the leaders of so many both there and beyond to collaborate with to push so many positive purposes forward. The utmost purpose is to open doors for community and collaboration.

Thank you, dear Katia, for the great privilege of having known you for the past pivotal 9 years. I know you are still here among us. Thank you for reminding us that the present moment is precious, and that it is the impact we create that matters most.?

Spread your wings and fly proudly, Katia. You have earned it!