The digital tour of "Imprese Vincenti 30", the Intesa Sanpaolo program for the enhancement of small and medium-sized Italian enterprises, which are often little known but fundamental for the vitality of the production system, capable of expressing examples of entrepreneurial excellence and made in Italy, engine of supply chains and production districts. Despite the Coronavirus emergency, there are many companies that have responded positively to the invitation to participate in the Intesa Sanpaolo enhancement programme and the project partners Bain&Company, ELITE and Gambero Rosso and, starting this year, Cerved and Microsoft Italia. Launched in January and now in its second edition, this year Imprese Vincenti has collected on its website the self-nominations of around 4000 companies, meeting the requirements required to participate in the programme.
144 were selected, active in various production sectors and - new this year - also in the third sector, in a comparison between the profit and non-profit world in the logic of sustainability and full enhancement of the impact on the territory of all types of enterprise. The winning companies of the 2020 edition were identified on the basis of the success factors that make them 'champions' of their territory, with particular attention to the social impact and the ability to generate value in terms of sustainability, innovation, investments in its human capital, ability to plan the generational handover, internationalization, link with the territory and with its production chains.
The selection was therefore not limited to predefined product categories but opened up to the more transversal horizon of the industrial districts typical of one's territory of roots. What emerges is a group of companies capable of expressing an average growth in turnover of 18% before covid, 20% employee growth and 34% average ROE. Moreover, they are companies that – even in this difficult phase – are making an effort to stay on the market, to adapt their business models to the context and to support their business. The signals coming from many of the selected companies, capable of resilience and knowing how to set strategies for the future, reinforce the belief that 'champion' companies exist in our territories, examples of entrepreneurial excellence and Made in Italy that continue to drive the economy and which, especially in this delicate phase, can contribute to the relaunch of the country.
Thanks to the Imprese Vincenti program, growth and visibility paths will be reserved for these companies, as well as the enhancement of their competitive strategies and success factors. Already in the first edition, the characteristic of Imprese Vincenti is that it gave voice to 120 entrepreneurs from all over Italy, who told their business story to other entrepreneurs, the ability to face and overcome the economic crisis. The second edition of 'Imprese Vincenti' also aims to highlight the signs of reaction and willingness to restart of a large part of the Italian entrepreneurial fabric, through the direct testimony of entrepreneurs on the digital tour which starts today from Milan and which will cross the whole Italy, in 11 stages dedicated to the stories of companies and territories: Turin, Cuneo, Bergamo, Brescia, Padua, Bologna, Florence, Rome, Naples and Bari, to which is also added a stage dedicated to companies in the third sector.
For each stage, 12 Winning Enterprises will be presented, who will talk about their experience and the growth path they are facing to an even wider and digital audience, in response to the extraordinary context created by the Covid-19 emergency. The path of Imprese Vincenti 2020 will end in November, with a final forum dedicated to SMEs. Main Partners of 'Imprese Vincenti 2020' are confirmed as Bain&Company, ELITE and Gambero Rosso, who will provide the selected companies with growth support tools such as advisory dedicated to understanding the company's strategic positioning on its reference market and identifying possible guidelines for development, comparison with the ELITE community and with international best practices, participation in training courses, workshops or dedicated sessions on topics of a strategic nature.
New among the partners: Cerved, which contributed to the creation of the selection model for winning companies, and Microsoft Italia, which will accompany SMEs with training and technological support services to accelerate digital transformation processes. Intesa Sanpaolo Forvalue, Intesa Sanpaolo Formazione and Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center will accompany the development programs offered by 'Imprese Vincenti' with targeted interventions. “The crisis induced by the Covid-19 – commented Stefano Barrese – underlined the need for a broader vision of the common interest and forced us to research, define and propose new solutions, including credit solutions, with a new solidarity and social sensibility rooted in territorial ties and in social and economic networks. With Imprese Vincenti 2020, our SME enhancement program strengthens the meaning of the bank-company relationship, a fundamental result for tackling this further crisis. Companies find in the bank a partner capable of supporting liquidity and investments but also of assisting them in the difficult analysis of the context and growth opportunities".
