Data first of all. It is a game that is worth a total of 350 billion in investments and in which the challenge of ecological transition is played. Where even companies (small and large) intervene in an important way by introducing their own resources into the system. A constantly evolving scenario, described during the conference entitled “Digital and sustainable: new business performance” which opened the two days of Sap Now conferences, organized in collaboration with Il Sole 24 Ore, and with the participation of over 50 Partners, which sees the entrepreneurial system engaged in a journey in the name of ecological transition, sustainability and the circular economy. Among the protagonists of the intense debate was Marco Gay, president of Confindustria Piemonte: “The ecological transition – he said – is estimated for Italy at 350 billion in investments, if we think that only on this issue the Pnrr provides for 6 to percent of the allocation of resources it is clear that the rest of the investments must come from the same companies – said Gay, who is also president of Anitec-Assinform -. In this challenge many companies are present and active, others are still behind, and still others are committed to recovering those who are left behind ».
AI at the service of sustainability
And it is precisely in this path full of obstacles (which many companies have already undertaken) that the theme of long-term strategic objectives and the most suitable tools to achieve them begins to become central; for example artificial intelligence, also applied to the issue of sustainability which, as Emmanuel Raptopoulos, CEO of SAP Italia underlined: “It is not just an issue linked to ethics” and where the circular economy plays an increasingly important role . “If we manage to apply the most innovative technologies available to these issues too – says Raptopulos – companies will have a better chance of competing better on the world market”. A challenge that passes from the exploitation of “data” to which the transformation of services is linked, with particular attention to the young people of the “generation Z”.
Technologies and environment
The topic of technologies in the course of the debate also appeared important from another aspect: that of sustainability as a binding constraint both in terms of costs for businesses and more generally for the Italian system. In other words: how much the concept of environmental sustainability is also economically sustainable. And it is here that technique and technology, in its various forms, become important. This was underlined by the undersecretary of the Ministry of Ecological Transition Vania Gava: “to protect the environment we must not stop everything – she said – and it is precisely technology, which is the result of investments and research, the tool that can help us to continue in the process of ecological transition which is the fundamental factor and translates into sustainable development ».
The users of the technologies
Fabio Tomassini, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of Gruppo Risparmio Casa, a group active in retail distribution, specialized in products for the home and family, analyzed the topic of technologies from the point of view of its users: “From our point of view, The theme of innovation does not arise so much from the side of the design of new technologies, as in adopting them and exploiting their full potential to reach our innovation and sustainability targets ». Matteo Bianchini, Chief Digital Officer of Design Holding, a holding specialized in the development of talents in the field of high-end design, appeared along the same lines.
Innovation and tradition
In this complex framework in which both innovative and traditional companies operate, the issue of digitization becomes necessary and indeed fundamental, as emphasized by Alvise Biffi, Vice President of Organization, Development and Marketing of Assolombarda. «The positive theme is that there is room for growth on Italian companies – he says -. There is a long way to go but the pandemic context has accelerated this process, generating constraints that have forced even the most reluctant companies to throw their hearts over the obstacle in digitalization processes ». As for risks, “the transformation of skills to change within the corporate asset and the perimeter of Cyber security.” Carrefour also plays the card of digitalization and technological innovation, as remarked by Cio Alessandra Grandel and Melany Libraro, chief digital officer of Ariston group, who underlines how “digital is the necessary tool for the smart home, generating savings, energy consumption and costs”.