Sustainability: this was the key word that served as the backdrop for TOP 500 Udine, the fifth stage of the series of events connected to the release of the insert attached to the newspapers of the Nord Est Multimedia Group (Nem), with the aim of taking a snapshot of the different territorial economies through research promoted by the thematic hub Nordest Economia, in collaboration with the newspapers of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, together with PwC Italia and with the support of the Universities of Padua, Ca’Foscari Venezia and Fondazione Nord Est.
In a packed auditorium inside Fantoni (Osoppo), it was highlighted that the value of this well-established initiative lies above all in its ability to not stop at mere numbers, but to show the faces that have made this wonderful area of the country and its production realities great. It was Paolo Fantoni, president of the group of the same name, taking his cue from the event’s title “Changing course. Sustainability across the board” to introduce the topic. “We live in a historical period in which sustainability is directing the business strategies of all supply chains in an exciting way. This makes us look proactively toward the future. However, let’s not forget that we live in a framework where the goals of the Green Deal often become conflicting with the constraints of European budget stability.”
Then it was the turn of the research on the performance of the territory’s best companies, curated by the Northeastern Foundation and PwC Italia: the regional GDP in 2022, compared to initial forecasts of +5%, closed at only +2.7% growth. In 2023 it is expected to stop at +1%. In this scenario, the top 500 Fvg companies (by turnover) grew by 36%, adding the revenues. Removing the average inflation of 8.1%, growth was higher than 10% overall.
Regarding Sustainability, 2 out of 3 companies adopt measures to improve the well-being of the workers, reduce the environmental impact and increase the safety.
This is when the discussion moderated by Nem Group journalist Roberta Paolini took place; At the round table were featured: Arianna Arizzi, marketing & CSR manager Maddalena; Alberta Gervasio, CEO of Bluenergy Group S.p.a; Maria Raffaella Caprioglio, president of Umana; Luca Ceccarelli, president Ceccarelli Group; Renzo Chervatin, UniCredit’s North East territory development manager, and Giorgio Simonelli, partner PwC Italia.
In Maddalena the singular and innovative initiatives are very common. “In our opinion” Arianna Arizzi recounted “social sustainability is the one aspect that impacts the business strategy the most. Over time we have implemented two important work-family reconciliation projects: the company summer camp dedicated to the children of our employees free of charge and the introduction of the figure of the company butler, whose task is to take care of the needs of the colleagues, big or small”.
The evening ended with the dialogue between Piana, Mosanghini and the president of Confindustria Udine Gianpietro Benedetti whom is convinced that sustainability goes hand in hand with innovation.
