The study

We need to rally round to support businesses, navigating the balance between bureaucracy and innovation

The Civis Centre at LIUC highlights how regulatory complexity and environmental challenges require a concerted effort to enable entrepreneurs to operate effectively.

by Davide Madeddu

29 June 2026

Aggiungi Il Sole 24 Ore
ai preferiti su Google

2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

The survey of small and medium-sized enterprises
Research Focus Areas
From slogan to digitalisation
The role of local areas

2' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

There is an immediate need for a “general mobilisation” to create the conditions that will enable entrepreneurs to do their jobs, as bureaucracy and red tape mean there is a strong “temptation to throw in the towel”. This is highlighted in a study by the Civis Centre for Culture, Innovation and Entrepreneurial Values for Development at LIUC Cattaneo University.

The survey of small and medium-sized enterprises

The survey focused on small and medium-sized enterprises operating in sectors representative of the region’s industrial fabric, involving interviews and site visits to a sample of 15 manufacturing firms with at least 30 years’ history; a turnover in 2024 of between 5 and 232 million euros and a workforce of between 25 and 1,500 employees. The companies studied also included family-run businesses.

Research Focus Areas

The research focuses on two areas: ‘How is the role of the entrepreneur evolving?’ and ‘What choices and actions are businesses with entrepreneurial governance adopting to address environmental challenges?’.

The study focused on corporate values, initiatives relating to the circular economy and digitalisation, and welfare policies.

An analysis of the results highlights the significance and strength of the company’s values: ‘The company is a private asset of public interest,’ the study emphasises. ‘Consequently, what really matters is the good of the company.’

From slogan to digitalisation

I note the strategy and also the slogans – whether or not they are useful to the cause. Innovation processes are important, ‘managed with sound pragmatism, despite the crushing weight of bureaucracy’. ‘Work is also being carried out on areas such as the circular economy and digitalisation, which are not easily tackled by smaller companies,’ the study continues. ‘Welfare policies have a long history and are continually being enriched with new initiatives, tailored to the needs of individual companies.’

The role of local areas

Then there are the regions that continue to play an important role precisely because they ‘provide resources and expertise and foster relationships and synergies’. However, there is no shortage of challenges. ‘The ecosystem presents many challenges,’ the study continues, ‘the constraints on entrepreneurial activity are becoming increasingly onerous, and there is enormous scope for improvement involving a wide range of stakeholders.’

According to Federico Visconti, director of Civis, who points out that ‘entrepreneurs have never shied away from a challenge, nor are they doing so these days’, what is needed is ‘a general mobilisation that creates the conditions for entrepreneurs to do their job. And to do it well’. This is also because, he adds, ‘business and entrepreneurial activity must be legitimised, protected and nurtured with the utmost care. Alternative socio-economic models? Personally, I have never seen any and I do not see any. I hope I’m wrong’. The study has been incorporated into the book *Entrepreneurs and the Good of the Enterprise – An Indissoluble Bond*, published by Luca Antonelli, Mario Fontanella Pisa and Federico Visconti.