Milan hosted the event organized by H-FARM Business School in collaboration with Forbes, focused on the launch of the new Strategy & Leadership Competence Center whose Scientific Director is fabio Tomassini, which explored the challenges of contemporary leadership in the era defined as "exponential."
"With the Strategy & Leadership Competence Center we aim to provide companies with concrete tools to deal with increasingly complex scenarios," explained Tomassini, a manager with nearly 30 years of experience in business transformation projects.
The Center is distinguished by an approach that integrates practical experience, theoretical knowledge and emerging technologies. "We don't just train managers, but leaders capable of using artificial intelligence to optimize decision-making and operational processes," Tomassini emphasized. "Our faculty is composed of active professionals in the field who bring real-world experiences to the classroom."
Alessandro Petrillo, CEO of H-FARM Business School, opened the event by highlighting the transformations taking place in the world of work: "Today we have to learn to unlearn. Skills change faster than we can learn them." Petrillo pointed out that only 7 percent of Italians, according to a Gallup report, feel actively involved at work, a figure that calls for a rethinking of leadership strategies. Alessandro Petrillo highlighted how H-FARM Business School's approach to training, characterized by its Centers of Competence populated by leading figures in business and academia, aims to prepare the leaders of the future, in an age when adaptability and innovation is the true competitive advantage.
The event continued with a "Talk with" hosted by Tomassini, who interviewed Simone Dominici, CEO of KIKO Milano, offering a concrete example of transformational leadership. "Our vision is to become an iconic brand, not just a recognized brand. To do that we have to enter people's cultural conversation," Dominici explained, recounting the company's transformation from retailer to global brand. Dominici emphasized the importance of serene leadership that can convey confidence and vision: "We import stress and export serenity. This is the role of leaders. A company that is stressed at all levels cannot function."
At KIKO, where the average age is 27.8 years and 97 percent of the staff are women, engagement also comes through digital tools: "We have created an internal app where we communicate with 8,000 people, share results, listen to opinions. It is a leadership that opens up and dialogues." Tomassini took the opportunity to highlight the importance of experimenting with "intergenerational collaboration" that is already in the training programs, highlighting how for the first time young people entering the job market are ready to bring value to the organization and lead generations of colleagues who have less experience with AI.
Digital transformation, corporate purpose and the balance between corporate and local cultures are other central elements in KIKO's strategy. "To be successful in countries like the United States or India," Dominici continued, "you need a glocal culture. The corporate must provide the framework, but you also need to listen to the needs of local markets." On the issue of integrating new generations, Dominici noted, "Today young people are entering the company with tools and skills that we did not have. But above all they want to feel part of something that makes sense. Purpose is the new driver, more than career." A clear purpose, according to KIKO's CEO, makes it possible to attract talent and spur innovation. "We created an in-house team of content creators to speak the language of Gen Z and anticipate trends: a gloss that went from 70,000 to one million pieces per month thanks to a viral video proves this." Tomassini concluded by highlighting that "with the Strategy & Leadership Competence Center, we are creating a laboratory where theory and practice come together, where the experience of senior managers meets the innovative energy of the new generation, and where emerging technologies become concrete tools to drive change."
The event offered a concrete insight into how companies and institutions of higher learning can work together to address the grand challenges of the present. H-FARM Business School has created within its ecosystem Centers of Competence populated by leading figures in business and academia, who work together to research, understand and anticipate change, and create educational pathways that can transfer these skills to companies that want to be ready and equipped to face current and future challenges.