6
«
PEOPLE ARE
THE SOURCE OF
INNOVATION»
T
HE
I
TALIAN MOTORSPORTS INDUSTRY MAY HAVE A SIGNIFICANT ROLE TO PLAY IN THE ECONOMIC
RECOVERY IN
I
TALY
,
PROVIDED IT IS PREPARED TO LOOK TO THE FUTURE
,
INVEST IN HUMAN
AS WELL AS TECHNICAL CAPITAL AND INCREASE INTEGRATION BETWEEN THE EDUCATION SECTOR
AND THE WORKPLACE
,
IN CONJUNCTION WITH OTHER LOCAL PLAYERS
.
E
NGINEER
P
ONTREMOLI
,
CEO
OF
D
ALLARA
A
UTOMOBILI
,
TELLS ABOUT THE NEXT CHALLENGES FACING THE COMPANY
Andrea Pontremoli
Engineer Pontremoli, to what degree can the
Italian motorsports industry make a
contribution to the economic recovery in Italy?
«
Its contribution depends on the extent to which
it is regarded as an industry, taking example
from Great Britain, where it is viewed as a niche
industry using highly advanced technologies
that have the potential to be implemented in
other industrial sectors. In contrast to other
sports, which concentrate exclusively on
competition and entertainment, motorsports is
heavily reliant on innovation and technology:
two areas where Italy has always excelled on
the world stage».
How has Dallara positioned itself as a business
model for companies wishing to take up the
challenge of expanding from a local base?
«
As I always say, the most important thing to
bear in mind is that company cannot expect to
be competitive if it is not competitive in its own
territory. In a global market, the competition is
increasingly played out at a local level, rather
than in terms of single companies.
With this in mind, we have been concentrating
on establishing close working relationships with
our neighbours, with companies located in the
Emilia Romagna region, with our customers
and suppliers, and local schools and
educational establishments with the aim of
getting back to the idea of learning a trade, of
knowing how to do or make something. This is
not valid only for Dallara and our local region,
but for all those Italian companies that cannot
count on the advantages of economies of scale
or low labour costs, and are therefore obliged to
rely on specialization and differentiation in
order to compete on a global level».
What is the basis for a “people friendly”
factory capable of competing at a global level
in terms of excellence?
«
It’s born out of the concept that a company is
not innovative because it has innovative
technology, but because it has innovative
personnel. It’s important to make the distinction
between innovation, which is a state of mind,
and technology, which is the product of
innovation. A company must build its future on
the passion, motivation and innovation of the
people who work for it».
How important is the integration between the
world of education and the workplace? And
how should it be managed?
«
The distinction between education and the
workplace is vanishing fast. Nowadays people
will change jobs at least ten times during their
working lives and it is vitally important that
they continue to learn and never stop studying.
It is important to introduce students to the
working environment as early as possible,
through visits and work experience schemes, so
that they begin to form their ideas about the
world of manufacturing and production while
they are still at school. This relationship should
then be allowed to develop over time, so that
young people gradually spend more time at
work, and less time at school, but without ever
completely abandoning their studies. The other
important concept is that the employment
market is rapidly polarizing into two distinct
categories: intellectual jobs and highly manual
and skilled jobs that require workers to learn a
trade. Both categories have the same prestige
and it is essential to maintain one's studies in
order to be up to the numerous challenges that
they present. The remaining types of jobs - all
those that involve carrying out relatively simple
and repetitive activities - will sooner or later be
performed exclusively by machines or robots».
