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Carlo Bagnoli
Business Administration

What has given you the greatest satisfaction in your career?
My greatest professional satisfaction is that I have managed to bring together the academic world and the business world, research and enterprise. In essence, this means managing to translate theory into practice. This is what is known as the 'third mission' of University, which still has a long way to go, but with Strategy Innovation we can say that Ca' Foscari has been a forerunner. This approach distinguishes me as a lecturer and is also connected to my personal history. I come from a family of businesspeople, I like to say that I am a failed generational transition.

What's an area you have always wanted to be involved in but have not yet had the opportunity to explore?
The area I would like to explore in the future is the opportunity to incorporate art in a very broad sense into business strategies. I believe that art can be an inspiration for business people not only to imagine new products but also to imagine new businesses. Artists are those people in society who are more sensitive to how the world is evolving and so they should also be a stimulus to understand how organisations should structure themselves to address these changes and the challenges ahead.

What are you most passionate about in your research?
What fascinates me most about research is seeing how those who work on strategy and innovation must have the ability to link different disciplines. When we talk about leadership and entrepreneurial style, we are looking at psychology. When we talk about digital transformation, we talk about computer science. When we want to tell the story of companies, we talk about storytelling. The ability to connect the dots between so many different disciplines is fundamental and is very fascinating because of the perspectives it opens up.

Why should someone choose Ca’ Foscari?
There are two fundamental reasons for choosing Ca' Foscari, one professional and one personal. Ca' Foscari is a good public university that is always at the top of the rankings even though it is not among the elite because we do not offer engineering and medicine, but if we look at the level of research and the level of teaching, they are very good here. Personally, I believe that living and studying in Venice can be life-transforming experiences. Combining the crucial transition from adolescence to adulthood, which the university should somehow support, with the possibility of living in a city like Venice is a unique chance for personal enrichment.

Which degree programme would you recommend to a young graduate and why?
The most obvious answer would be to recommend the latest programme we launched, "Data Science for Business and Society", because it will produce data scientists and data analysts, who are currently among the most sought-after profiles in the job market. I believe, however, that university should be seen as an opportunity for both professional and personal growth, and the prospect of finding a job once you have finished is only one of the parameters, which is important but cannot be the only one. Personally, I would choose a philosophy programme, but I say this now that I am fifty and have a lot of experience behind me.

Last update: 27/02/2024