Elserino Piol, a former Olivetti manager and a leading figure in information technology, still recalls with pleasure and interest his meetings with Steve Jobs, one of these in particular. “It was the early 90s – he tells Firstonline – e Steve Jobs came to visit us in Ivrea: he was very fascinated by the attention we Italians paid to design and image. I remember that he was upset when we told him that the architect Pellini, who designed our models at the time, was in Milan: he insisted on going to the Lombard capital and meeting him. Above all, I have kept a great human memory of that meeting, of a passionate and communicative person”.
In that very period, in fact, at the beginning of the 90s, Piol had the opportunity to meet a young and rampant Steve Jobs several timesjust got out of the Apple Lossless Audio CODEC (ALAC),, a company he had co-founded in 1976, to devote himself to setting up a new company, la NeXT Computers (which will later also acquire Pixar Animation Studios).
Elserino Mario Piol was born in the province of Belluno and was for over 40 years a point of reference in the Italian and international information technology market, and the backbone of Olivettiwhere he worked by 1952 to 1996, holding various prestigious positions, both in Italy and in the United States. He was also vice president and president of the Olivetti Telemedia division of the Ivrea company. Starting in the 80s, he began managing venture capital businesses, initially for Olivetti, then for 4C Ventures, Pino Venture Partners, and Kiwi di Madeira.
“While a few years later – continues Piol – I had proof of his immense business capacity. I was in venture capital at the time Power Computing, a subsidiary of Olivetti, which had been commissioned by Apple to produce the famous "Mac clones", i.e. Mac-compatible PCs".
However, Jobs, who in the meantime had returned to lead the "apple", didn't like this thing. “In fact, he firmly opposed it – recalls Piol -, but instead of engaging in a long and inconvenient legal battle, diplomatically he put a certain amount of capital at our disposal to finance the closure of Power. In that circumstance he showed all his entrepreneurial skills and intelligence".
And the future of Apple, now orphaned by her father? “In my opinion it will still be very positive, because Jobs has left an imprint, a Winning and innovative DNA, which will not be lost over the years, at least in the short to medium term. In the next 4-5 years I still see Apple as the market leader, after which I challenge anyone to make a prediction. The world is changing, the market is constantly evolving. Who can say, for example, what is the Google's potential after the purchase of Motorola? What is certain is that Apple has been a great company and will continue to be so”.
Il hallmark of success of the Cupertino company? “The fact that behind every product there is a business vision. An example above all: the iPod. There are many digital players, they can sell more or less, but the idea of iTunes came only to Jobs: a systemic agreement with suppliers to create the platform as well as the object. Another example is the iPhone: it's not the phone itself, which perhaps also has a nice design and considerable utility. But do we want to talk about the market of applications related to the iPhone? Apple's secret is the induced activities that it is capable of creating on its products”.
But let's go back toman Steve Jobs: his famous 2005 Speech to Stanford Graduates? “Extraordinary, but unfortunately followed by a few young people, who hardly look to the future with confidence and have the courage to take risks. In any case, it is right to remember it, precisely in this moment of difficulty for the boys ”.
And the future of Italian market? Is there any company that could become the new Olivetti? “I'll tell you the truth: none. There is some interesting reality, but too small. There are no longer big investments and not even big intentions. Olivetti itself has become a division of Telecom Italia, which only serves to guarantee that market share necessary to make ends meet. There is no innovation, momentum, creativity”.
What is his experience with Apple products? Which ones does he own? “I own them all: Mac Book, Ipod, iPhone, Ipad. They are all incredible tools, which have changed my habits and those of all of us. I couldn't choose one in particular, it's the combination that makes the difference. Apple and Steve Jobs have made a cultural revolution, which should not be evaluated on the single product, but on the concept of all its jewels, all revolutionary and efficient not only as telephones or computers themselves, but as tools for everyday life".
