The “Now, I know how!” is an Erasmus+KA2 project involving three European countries, Italy, Bulgaria and Czechia, and 29 young people (from 16 to 30 years old) coming from these countries.
The objectives of this Erasmus+ course stem precisely from the “Made in Italy” brand, with the aim of extracting technical, lifestyle and personality patterns of its best protagonists (“how to do” and “how to be”) that can offer inspiration for the formalisation of a business idea or become exportable models for innovative projects, that would in any event be linked to the peculiarities (raw materials, cultural identities, development models) of the respective economies.
The “Now, I know how!” course is structured in two experiential modules, each lasting five days and taking place in Lombardy and Umbria, alternated with virtual learning.
The curricula are tailor-made to the specific group of students and include a mix of a great variety of guided visits to companies, ateliers, artisan workshops, classroom talks with “Made in Italy” entrepreneurs, theoretical and practical learning carried out by entrepreneurs, university lecturers and business consultants, as well as individual career guidance. In this context, the stories of accomplished entrepreneurs – presented in order to trace the path of an enterprise from the formalisation of an initial idea up to its broader development – constitute a truly valuable educational opportunity, an impactful one for young people, who will undoubtedly be able to gain food for thought and enriching stimuli both for a successful integration into the professional world and for launching their own business project.
Module I
Programme
“NOW I KNOW HOW!”
27 September – 1 October 2021
Umbria, Borgo Lizori – Campello sul Clitunno (PG)
The training course kicked-off with an experiential module in Italy, in Borgo Lizori located in the heart of Umbria, between Assisi and Spoleto. Lizori is a medieval hamlet with more than 2000 years of history. Recently redeveloped, after years of neglect, it is now a venue suitable for organizing courses, events or exhibitions, also on an international scale.
In the course satisfaction survey, the venue of the hamlet received the highest score of the entire course from the participants: 9.7/10. The beauty of the place has charmed our young participants, but not only them, lecturers and entrepreneurs who got to know it during the course also found it delightful.
The thematic line ‘Lifestyle and Personality’ was introduced on the opening day of the course and it covered topics such as ‘How to enter the professional world’. A forum was opened on the course platform and students could express their view on what are the important points in their view. The topic became a sort of thread common to all the course sessions and was be taken up directly and settled in the last module (cf. chapter The Three Points for Entering the Professional World, Module V).
The thematic line Lifestyle and Personality was addressed also in a philosophical key, with the lecture “Beautiful therefore good: the ethics of aesthetics from the classical roots of ancient Greece”, and it was then further developed to deal with the importance of contact with nature as well as the importance of contact with nature through, among others, walks in one of the most beautiful olive groves of Europe.
There was also a workshop of cinelogy – a teaching tool that will be explained in this chapter – with the movie “The Devil Wears Prada”, dealing with the topic of young people and the professional world.
Within the thematic line ‘Enterprise and Culture’, aspects linked to ‘territory, landscape, recycling, energy, biodiversity, permaculture’ were treated, drawing on the centuries-old roots of the Umbrian model. This topic was explored further in Assisi, with a guided visit to the Basilica, an experience that was particularly appreciated by a high number of participants.
Getting to know the excellence of some Umbrian entrepreneurs was an important and inspiring opportunity. the guided visit to the atelier led by the founder of the international TUUM brand; a talk with the CEO of Marfuga – company producing the best oil in the world 2021 according the international Flos Olei ranking – and the visit to the Tenuta Castelbuono estate, to the Carapace sculpture that was created to fulfil the dream of the Lunelli family of witnessing the creation of a wine cellar that would look like a treasure trove for wine.
Finally, within the thematic line How to do and How to be, the topics of product and service of excellence were extensively covered, with the lecture on the “12 points of service psychology of Made in Italy”. Several workshops took place where participants carried out practical activities: from metal processing and cooking to photography, about which we will be reporting.
Borgo Lizori (Umbria, Italy) where the first training module of the Erasmus+ project “Now I know how!” took place in September 2021.
Paolo Bianchi during the lecture “The beautiful and the good”
Students of the course “Now I know how!” in Borgo Lizori
Students accommodation, a window view in Borgo Lizori – September 2021
Students of the course “Now, I know how!” in Assisi
Visiting the Carapace of Tenuta Lunelli
MODULES II, III, IV
Programme
“NOW I KNOW HOW!”
II module – on line 15-16 December 2021
In this module, highlights of the topics addressed during the experiential module held in Lizori were recalled. The notion of the “Apprentice Leader” was then introduced, continuing with the importance of organising one’s daily routine. Finally, the topic of the job interview was tackled through videos and practical examples.
III module – on line 7-8 February 2022
From scratch to business. The topic was how to enter the professional world, both on a self-employed basis and with a view of working for a company, while starting from scratch. The lectures focused on theoretical requirements for those who want to start from scratch and lecturers provided practical cases.
Alessandro Fracassi, founder of Mutui On Line Spa, one of the most relevant first-generation entrepreneurs in Italy, conveyed his own experience as a speaker guest. He described his own beginnings, literally from scratch, when not only he and his future partner had no financial resources but did not even have a business idea to start on. In his intervention, he also indicated the key criteria that he nowadays uses in selecting start-ups in which to invest.
Another presentation was given by Duilio Forte, an Italian-Swedish architect and artist, who showed young participants how art that fulfils also the desires of the market can be done. In so doing, he was able to find resources without having to invest. He also told the students how his double Italian-Swedish nature enabled him to create original works, fruit of these two cultures.
The third presentation was given by Guido Martinetti, partner in Grom Spa, one of the most successful exits in the Italian entrepreneurial world following its sale to the multinational company Unilever. Martinetti told the students how important it is, in business, to be clear about one’s individual goals in order to transform business into a tool for achieving what motivates us deep inside.
IV modulo – on line 21-22 March 2022
Before we begin. While the previous module featured speakers who are accomplished professionals, to this fourth module we invited young people who have been placed on the Forbes list of Italy’s most promising young leaders. The point was to show students how important lifestyle and further learning is even prior to entering the world of work. Further, it was also illustrated how can the years of classical school education be used to experiment with business or career paths.
The topic of S.M.A.R.T Goals and the importance of setting one’s goals clearly was addressed, how not to waste time and how to actually achieve the goals, were questions discussed with benefit.
Francesco Ventre was among the speakers, student of Engineering at the Polytechnic and one of the founders of a company that is providing flying taxis to Italian administrations, Enrico Saverio Pagano who created, while studying to be an orchestra conductor at the Milan Conservatory, his own orchestra made up exclusively of young musicians, and Arianna Pozzi who, still as a high school student, launched her own start-up on clothing tailored to the mood of the moment.
A snapshot of the online lecture by Nellie Gospodinova “The apprentice leader”
Guido Martinetti during his lecture for “Now, I know how!” course students at Mura Mura – May 2022
MODULE V
Programme
“NOW, I KNOW HOW!”
8-14 May 2022
Lombardy, Marudo (LO)
The topic of the fifth module was: understanding the techniques and the logic of “Made In Italy”, with the aim of gaining a useful tool for entering the professional world. During the first day, the task assigned to the students right at the start of the whole course was taken up: how to enter the professional world as a lead, discussing the subject also in the light of lessons learnt in the training modules. The subject of how to save and manage money was then tackled by Vania Franceschelli. At the end of the first day, students engaged in a cooking workshop consisting in a team game.
The second day was dedicated to learning more about “Made in Italy” in Milan, the business capital of Italy. In the morning, students were divided into three groups, according to their field of interest, and were hosted at Luiss Lab and Istituto Marangoni. At the Luiss Lab, the students met startuppers and financiers in an ecosystem aimed at fostering new entrepreneurship. At Marangoni, they learned about the world of Fashion and the world of Design, in one of the most prestigious institutes in the world. In the afternoon, students were divided into five teams in order to try their hand at ‘Milano Express’, a game that took them to visit some of Milan’s highlights, such as La Scala, the Cathedral or the Pinacoteca di Brera, by solving enigmas. At the end, they were received and celebrated at the city hall by the deputy mayor.
On the third day, the students discovered the value of “Made in Italy” in Piedmont. In the morning they were guests of Aurora Pen, one of the largest international luxury pen companies. In the afternoon they were received by Guido Martinetti at his Mura Mura estate where the founder of Grom Spa has created a luxury boutique with biodynamic crops. On the fourth day, students visited one of the most prestigious factories in the world: the Ferrari factory in Maranello with a subsequent visit to the Ferrari Museum. In the afternoon they watched a film based on the life of the Ferrari founder.
On the fifth day, in the afternoon, Vito Lomele, one of the most famous serial entrepreneurs in the digital world, in particular with the million dollar exit of his first company, Job Rapido, directed a workshop aimed at steering the students’business ideas. Simultaneously, another group of young people learnt about techniques to best write a CV. The students were then involved in a group session on ‘difficult types’, learning about how to manage the most typical individual problematic cases arising in working teams. The course ended with the last lecture on ‘Self-knowledge.
The group of the “Now, I know how!” course during the second experiential module in Italy, Marudo, Foil headquarters – May 2022
lessons at Foil headquarters
workshop at the Marangoni Institute in Milan
Our students at Ferrari!
Vito Lomele and our students during “Now, I know how!” course in Marudo, May 2022
Ready for “Milano Express”!
Ready for “Milano Express”! Our students at Pinacoteca of Brera with the General Director James M. Bradburne, during one step of “Milano Express”
