The social role of companies

My speech at Rome's Ara Pacis during the presentation of the 'Art for the Blind' project

We are gathering here this morning for a variety of reasons: for the relevance of new technology, the people who will benefit from it, the beauty and the universal message of peace exuded by this place, and last but not least, to celebrate SIFI’s 80th birthday.

80 years is the average life expectancy of a human being. It’s great to see a company whose activity stretches beyond this threshold, to leave a lasting legacy that will have a positive impact on people’s lives for a long time.

The concepts I am about to discuss are extremely important in these difficult and dramatic times. That’s why I would like to go beyond social responsibility, something that recently has turned into a rather trendy subject for superficial conversations, discussing instead the social role of enterprises.

Treviso, the city I was born, is the perfect example for this analysis. Unfairly labelled as racist and unwelcoming, Treviso is in fact, as highlighted by Caritas’ own data, the Italian city that performs best in terms of integration between foreign and local population. As usual, a falling tree makes more noise that a growing forest - quoting Chinese philosopher Laozi. And the forest of reception and integration has been growing silently for years.

Enterprises are this forest’s lifeblood. It’s through small and big enterprises, through work, that newcomers (let’s try to shed old-fashioned terms such as immigrants, asylum-seekers, refugees: these are people living in an area, you only need to travel a little around the world to understand that this is not a reversible process but one that can only be guided) have found the resources to settle and integrate. That’s how enterprises have become a real laboratory for the whole civil society.

Here is what I mean for social role: without enterprises there is no employment, without employment there is no family, without family there is no society and without society there is no progress. Such an easy postulate is often forgotten, however, I believe it should always be kept in mind, especially in a time when feelings of fear and hatred seem often to prevail.

These are the concepts at the core of today’s gathering. As I mentioned before, the social role of enterprises should be an inclusive one. And when we talk about inclusion, we also have to think about disabilities. More often than not, enterprises are seen only as profit-oriented ventures, caring only about the return of investments, as if responsibilities and performance were polar opposites. Nothing could be further from the truth. Believe me, I know what I'm talking about: 21 Investimenti, the company I founded in 1992, is regarded as a private equity enterprise, which in a layman’s view corresponds to a 'profit at all costs' venture.

Now, 21 Investimenti opened a new path, steering away from everything that came before it, beginning a new era with a fresh, completely different approach. We work together with entrepreneurs to build something unprecedented, we blend industrial and business approach to trigger change. Our approach takes into consideration the social value of enterprises in the wider community, throughout their lifespan. A firmly-rooted enterprise is worth much more. An enterprise that devotes its attention to people and families is worth much more.

SIFI is a prime example for this and many other reasons. It’s the classic Italian hidden gem, a small yet amazing tile in the successful mosaic of Southern Italy. My country is unparalleled in many different fields, even in the way it gets disheartened, and at considering other countries as better performing and efficient. We often forget that, in many sectors, the eyes of the world are always set on Italy and on what it has to offer. We are acknowledged as people who possess amazing talents: aesthetic sense, a taste for good food, creativity and many more. Traits that have revealed to be crucial during the most difficult economic crisis that world economies have experienced in almost a century.

With such a serious threat looming, we were asking ourselves when Italy would have ended up like Greece, and yet - I am really proud of using the word 'yet' in this sentence - the Italian companies 21 Investimenti believed and invested in have grown of an average 50% in terms of turnover, boosted their earning before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of an average 50%, incrementing their workforce with more than 1,200 new employees during the investment period. As you can see, there was a way to do things properly. Sometimes crisis is just an excuse for doing nothing.

Today, when I travel around the world, I see that trends have shifted and Italy is associated more often with Germany than Greece. This is just to highlight that while our institutions and politicians are in charge of building infrastructures and providing the essential conditions to create and support enterprises, it’s the entrepreneur’s job to believe in the amazing potentials of a country, such as Italy, which needs to face the future with confidence.

The future sooner or later is bound to arrive, whether we like or not. The real question is: which kind of future awaits us? Our actions, individual and collective, will define which opportunities we will get; the future is yet to be written. And change comes because we strived to earn it.

What we are introducing here today is the proof of our achievements. The 'Art for the Blind' project marks an unprecedented moment, when the visually impaired will be able to enjoy visual arts through the help of advanced technology and in-depth cultural studies. That's what I mean for social role of enterprises, especially when it comes to our country, with its glorious wealth of art and beauty.

“Beauty will save the world” Prince Mi?kin said in Dostoevskij’s Idiot. These words are extremely meaningful today, as we remember them within a place that stands for universal peace. A value in which, in these difficult and sombre times, we must firmly believe.

Rome, 18th Novembre 2015