XVII BBS REUNION: imagining the future together
19 September 2025The XVII REUNION of Bologna Business School opened on Friday, September 12, right after the Graduation ceremony in Piazza Maggiore, with an evening of conviviality and music: a DJ set by Andrea Pontremoli, CEO of Dallara and Alumnus of the School, together with the band SMOMA, kicked off the annual gathering of the Community and Alumni.
An informal dinner and live music set the tone for a full day of dialogue and vision that unfolded on Saturday, September 13, at the BBS Multicampus, bringing together the historic Villa Guastavillani and the innovative spaces of the new Campus.
The morning began with the Power Breakfast and the Managerial Meditation led by Father Antonio Spadaro, Undersecretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Culture and Education. In his lecture, Spadaro reminded the audience that entrepreneurship is born from a spiritual and creative act: “We live immersed in a world that rewards what is measurable, but true innovation stems from a spark, an intuition, a vision.”
Following this, participants engaged in the imagination workshops, ten discussion tables exploring the great challenges of the future: from people at the center with Michele Antoniazzi (CHRO, Ferrari), to leadership as narrated by Ettore Messina (Head Coach, Olimpia Milano), and the new fashion frontier with Gaia Rialti (CEO and Founder, Menabòh). Other topics included technological challenges with Barbara Carfagna (RAI) and Max Ciociola (Founder and CEO, Musixmatch), venture capital with Massimiliano Magrini (United Ventures), longevity with Giovanni Domenichini, and geopolitics with Alec Ross, Distinguished Professor at BBS.
The debate culminated in a dialogue between Maurizio Marchesini, Vice President of Confindustria and President of Marchesini Group, and Max Bergami, Dean of BBS, moderated by Agnese Pini, Editor-in-Chief of Quotidiano Nazionale.
Marchesini highlighted the challenges of tariffs and global tensions: “The world has changed, even if tariffs disappeared tomorrow, because trust and reliability have collapsed.” He added: “Responsibility is the most mature form of power, not as domination but as care: for entrepreneurs, for employees, for the territory. Trust is the currency that keeps the economy moving.”
Bergami reaffirmed one of the School’s defining values: “The theme of responsibility is central here at BBS. I believe that those who studied at this School and today are entrepreneurs or professors measure themselves against this level of responsibility.”
And what about imagination? For the Dean, it is an essential resource for everyone, at every level, as long as we remember that “we imagine better together than alone.”
The afternoon was dedicated to the project “Imagining the Gift”, promoted by the Alumni Association, featuring the contributions of Federico Chinni (CEO, UCB Pharma), Dario Ciampoli (ACI Informatica), and Vittorio Martinelli (Olympus Corporation), moderated by Ottaviano Salerno, President of the Association.
The XVII REUNION BBS concluded with an appointment for next year, once again confirming its role as a privileged moment to strengthen the bonds of the Community and to foster dialogue on the challenges awaiting businesses, institutions, and society.
