On 1 October 2015, eleven top executives, from significant national and international corporations, met LUISS Business School students, with the hope of conveying the passion, the vision and the values necessary to build a strong leadership capable of motivating, exciting and leading the team beyond the simple economic performance.
Luigi Abete, Aurelio Regina, Nunzio Mirtillo, Maximo Ibarra and Marco Patuano with Giampiero Massolo, Sami Kahale, Pietro Salini, Luigi De Vecchi, Catia Tomasetti, Biagio De Marchis and Gianluigi Cimmino introduced themselves, their experiences and lives divided between business and values.
They talked about Transformational Leadership, the social impact of business choices, the importance of creativity, vision, global mind-set and the ability to inspire. No longer wolves of Wall Street, but people who are able to govern complexity with humility, enthusiasm and determination. To the question “who will be a future leader” nobody gave an answer. Aurelio Regina talked about ethics as a key element. Ibarra and Mirtillo about change and sustainability. Massolo about networking as one of the factors necessary for the Country’s development.
According to Patuano, leadership is a function of vision for elevated execution with high values. If the vision is zero and the execution 100, and vice versa, the product will be zero. On the other hand, the company’s strategic vision multiplied by the work method and technical preparation give a result which is bigger than the simple sum of parts and which, if supported by values, is potentially able to exceed any expectation. Matter-of-fact, the case history of Pietro Salini exceeded all expectations: starting from a dream, together with Impregilo, he created one of the leading international construction and engineering companies. Ambassador Massolo talked about an ethics-driven growth and the opportunity of a transparent public-private relationship in order to support the Italian system. The Director of the Information Department touched issues such as responsibility of the leaders, highlighting the difference between doing something and being somebody.
Catia Tomasetti, President at Acea, talked about the leader as a person with the ability to innovate, to anticipate change and to provide a vision even when everything seems to call for stability. She devoted all her energy in supporting the transformation of her company in a digitalized multi-utility. This transformation involved the insertion of the ICT in all the service components and personnel to support professional growth. On the job training is also pivotal at Procter & Gamble. Sami Kahale manages transformation as a process, which starts with the recruitment of talents and carries on with the evaluation of individual and group performances. According to him, there is no leader without followers.
The debate also touched the issue of e-leadership with Nunzio Mirtillo, Ericsson, a company which is particularly active as far as challenges go. According to his opinion, the leader knows how to manage the complexities arising from technology and the fast changing environment, without forgetting the social impact of his choices. Ericsson has in fact committed each of its top-level managers to the examination of the 17 points which the United Nations task force for sustainable development has agreed to propose at the next General Council to integrate the Millennium objectives, in order to understand how the company can work at their realization.
A great event, and a productive debate aimed to redefine and innovate training.
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02/10/2015
