Fernando Napolitano

Fernando Napolitano

Fernando Napolitano, President & CEO of Italian Business & Investment Initiative
Born Fernando Napolitano
(1964-09-15) September 15, 1964
Naples, Italy
Education Harvard Business School (MA)
University of Naples Federico II
Polytechnic Institute of New York University
Notable credit(s) Booz Allen Hamilton enterprise, former senior vice president and managing director (1990–2011)
Innogest SGR, member of the international advisory board (since 2010)
Enel, board of directors (since 2002)
BEST Program, chairman of the steering committee (since 2010)
Mind The Bridge, member of the advisory board (since 2010)
Title President & CEO Italian Business & Investment Initiative[1]
Website www.italianbusiness.org

Fernando Napolitano (born September 15, 1964) is a businessman and the president and CEO of the Italian Business & Investment Initiative (IB&II).

In 2010 he founded IB&II, an independent organization that aims at facilitating investments from Italian Small to Medium Enterprises (SME’s) and high-tech startups in the US organizing gatherings with US investors in New York City. Since 2012, he manages the yearly New York summit Italy Meets the United States of America[2] with the purpose of directing dialogue between Italian and European leaders from government and industries with US investors and opinion makers. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Enel S.p.A. and a member of the international Advisory Board of Innogest SGR venture capital fund, Mind the Bridge Foundation in San Francisco, Alma Business School in Bologna, Magna Carta Foundation in Rome, Chamber of Commerce of Rome. He is a member of the US-Italy Council in New York. Lately he became member of The Economic Club of New York.

Biography

Businessman, former water polo National team player, interested in Italy’s robust SME and start-up sector, Napolitano was born in Naples on September 15, 1964. His father, Luigi Gerardo Napolitano (Naples, June 2, 1928 – Denver, July 24, 1991), has been a well known engineer, scientist and professor, and former head of the Institute of Aerodynamics at the University of Naples.[3] He was appointed as the inventor of the “MIcrogravity”.

As water-polo player he has been the captain of Circolo Canottieri Napoli team (Naples) and a member of the Italian national team Under 21, European Champions in 1984.[4]

Napolitano currently lives in New York with his wife and three children.

The Italian Business & Investment Initiative and other roles

In 2010 Napolitano founded the Italian Business & Investment Initiative, an independent organization that encourages the encounter between Italy’s entrepreneurs and top U.S. venture capitalists, policymakers, academics and other key opinion formers.

He is also an independent member of the board of directors of Enel S.p.A.[5] (since 2002) and member of the international advisory board of Innogest SGR S.p.A.venture capital fund[6] and of the USA-Italy Council in New York. He currently serves as chairman of the steering committee of BEST Program scholarship and member of the advisory board of Mind The Bridge Foundation and Alma Business School at University of Bologna. In 2013, he became investor in Mind The Seed, the first US VC fund for Southern Europe.

Career

Napolitano served as senior vice president and managing director in Booz Allen Hamilton Italy (1990–2011 - Booz & Co from 2008),[7] where he led the Organization and Strategy practice, specializing in the telecoms, media, aerospace and energy sectors. His previous professional experience includes marketing at Procter & Gamble Italia and Laben S.p.A.

Previous appointment and membership

From 2002 to 2006 Napolitano served as non-executive independent member of the Board of Directors of CIRA (Italian Aerospace Research Center).[8] In the same years he has been appointed by the Italian Minister of Communication as industry expert within the Digital Terrestrial Television Commission. He has been as well member of the board of directors of the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy,[9] and took part at the International Advisory Board of Harvard Environmental Economics Program. He has been as well member of the International Advisory Board of the Harvard Environmental Program and member of the board of Aspen Institute Italy.

Education

Napolitano graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Economics from the University of Naples Federico II, holds a Master of Science Management from Brooklyn Polytechnic (now NYU-Poly), and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.[10]

The Italian Business & Investment Initiative

Under the leadership of Napolitano, the Italian Business & Investment Initiative has assembled a team of representatives among American and Italian academics, media, politicians, corporate institutions, such as Intesa Sanpaolo-Start Up Initiative, Innogest SGR and Mind The Bridge of San Francisco.

Napolitano has also launched in New York on February 11, 2013 the summit “Italy Meets the United States of America”[11] whose objective is to facilitate a direct dialogue between European and Italian leadership and representatives of government, corporations and civil society — and US investors and opinion makers.

Best Scholarship

Best Program[12] is a scholarship serviced by the Fulbright Commission in Italy[13] promoted by US Embassy to Italy, Best Program Steering committee and Invitalia.[14] Napolitano serves as chairman of the steering committee of the BEST program,[15] a scholarship whose objective is to create high-tech entrepreneurs in Italy.

The program targets Italian high tech PhDs and graduates who have an innovative business idea deriving from their scientific research. From 2014 the scholarship is also open to design & fashion scholars. Over the last 6 years, 60 Italians went through this scholarship and 26 high tech startups have been created in Italy.

Publications and other achievements

Napolitano is a columnist for Panorama magazine and Panorama - This is Italy[16] web magazine. In 2002, and later in 2007 he managed to organize at Harvard Business School for the very first time, two cases about Italian economy: “Italy: A New Commitment to Growth”[17] by Richard H.K. Vietor and Rebecca Evans and “Italy: If not now, when?”[18] by Richard H.K. Vietor and Julia Galef.

He is also the co-author of the book, “Megacommunities: How Leaders of Government, Business and Non-Profits Can Tackle Today’s Global Challenges Together”,[19] published in 2008. In 2010, he curated the biography of his father, Lo spazio, il quarto ambiente. Storia di Luigi Gerardo Napolitano, pioniere della microgravità di Giovanni Caprara, published by IlSole24Ore Edizioni.

In 2014 Napolitano was awarded the One To World Fulbright Award for Cross-Cultural Leadership, in honor of his passion for building a bridge between the US and Italy.[20]

Articles and interviews

Napolitano appearance on Italian and International media:

Il Giorno: Dec. 30, 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/il-giorno-interview-on-options-to-make-expo-the-2015-place-to-go/
CLASS CNBC: Dec. 18, 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/class-cnbc-fernando-napolitano-interview-12172013/
RAI: Oct. 15, 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/fernando-napolitano-on-tgr-piazza-affari-15-oct-2013/
SKY TG 24: Oct. 15, 2013c - http://italianbusiness.org/fernando-napolitano-on-sky-tg24-pomeriggio-15-oct-2013/
Panorama: Sept. 26, 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/destinazione-italia-f-napolitanos-view-panorma-9262013/
Panorama: Apr. 4, 2013 - http://economia.panorama.it/mondo/Start-up-in-Usa-Fernando-Napolitano-che-bell-idea-ti-trovo-i-dollari
Panorama, Fernando Napolitano (Op-eds) - http://www.thisisitaly-panorama.com/topic/fernando-napolitano/
Corriere della Sera Jun. 13, 2013 - http://www.corriere.it/economia/13_giugno_18/usa-investitori-italia-startup-hi-tech_c770aefe-d821-11e2-98e6-97ca5b2e4e27.shtml
Financial Times Sept. 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/fernando-napolitano-financial-times-09-2013/
Il Sole 24 Ore Jun. 21, 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/an-hi-tech-bridge-between-italy-and-the-u-s-il-sole-24-ore-21-jun-2013/
CNBC, Jan. 2013 - http://italianbusiness.org/napolitano-cnbc-interview-on-pope-feb-11-summit/
SKY TG 24 - Aug 14, 2013 - SKY Tg 24 Pomeriggio, Startapp
Bloomberg Television, Nov. 14, 2011 - http://www.bloomberg.com/video/80312668-new-italian-government-europe-stock-strategy.html

References

  1. ↑ http://italianbusiness.org/leadership-2/
  2. ↑ "Italy Meets the USA Summit Presentation". Italianbusiness.org. January 10, 2012. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
  3. ↑ Treccani Encyclopedia - Luigi Gerardo Napolitano
  4. ↑ it:Nazionale di pallanuoto maschile dell'Italia
  5. ↑ "ENEL S.p.a. - Board Of Directors Lists". ENEL S.p.a.
  6. ↑ "Innogest SGR - Advisory Board List". Innogest SGR.
  7. ↑ "Fernando Napolitano: Executive Profile & Biography". Bloomberg Businessweek.
  8. ↑ it:Centro italiano ricerche aerospaziali
  9. ↑ "Fernando Napolitano: Biography". Italianbusiness.org.
  10. ↑ "Harvard Business School Website".
  11. ↑ "BAIA Network Website".
  12. ↑ "Il Sole 24 Ore - Article about BEST Program".
  13. ↑ "Fulbright Program Italian Website".
  14. ↑ "Corriere della Sera, BEST, il programma che apre le porte degli Usa".
  15. ↑ Among the steering committee components: John Phillips, Massimo Bergami, Vito Camps, Fedele Confalonieri, Sergio Dompè, Nicholas J. Giacobbe, Fernando Napolitano, Luigi Nicolais, Gaetano Pellicano, Francesco Profumo, Elisabeth Robinson, Massimo Sarmi, Ronald Spogli, Francesco Starace, Claudio Giuliano, Marco Pinciroli "BEST Program Italian Website".
  16. ↑ "Panorama This is Italy Website".
  17. ↑ "Harvard Business Review, Aug. 2002".
  18. ↑ "Harvard Business Review, Jun. 2007".
  19. ↑ Megacommunities How Leaders of Government, Business and Non-Profits Can Tackle Today's Global Challenges Together by Mark Gerencser, Reginald Van Lee, Fernando Napolitano, Christopher Kelly; Foreword by Walter Isaacson, Palgrave Macmillan, March 2009 ISBN 978-0-230-61132-0, "US Macmillan Website".
  20. ↑ "One To World". One To World. Retrieved Received May 20, 2014. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)

External links

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