The opinion

The House of illycaffé is heading for its seventy-fifth anniversary this year. When approaching these milestones the need to stop and ponder, to do a bit of stock-taking, to snap a self-timer shot of corporate performance and achievements thus far, is felt more than ever. The very title of one of the major events to celebrate, with all our collaborators, crossing this dateline, and namely The Art and Science of Espresso Coffee since 1933. A wider orizon – reflects this need for taking a pause to think over the ground so far covered. As we look back to consider what’s been done, our gaze encompasses a vast horizon reminding us that where we’re heading owes much to where we come from. Whatever our future plans, we’re more than ever aware that their success depends on never losing sight of how well planted and deep our roots are. In a way, it may truly be said that our history is our future, in a never-ending stream of growth, development and innovation; if we’re always to get our bearings right and hold our course, we’re never to lose sight of our great legacy.

There’s no need to wait for an anniversary though to stand back and take a look at oneself, like snapping one’s photo in the self-timer mode. It’s important feedback that pays off at any time of a business enterprise’s existence. It helps to sift out what works and works best, to identify one’s strong points. As far as we’re concerned, the picture that emerges highlights our mission, passion and obsession for quality; a permanent drive for innovation; a cosmopolitan vocation; and a high standing based on rock-solid foundational values and on the awareness of being a stakeholder company out to always improve the quality of life of anyone with whom it may have dealings, starting from its consumers and customers through to its collaborators, suppliers and community of reference at large, and finally, but truly and only finally, to its shareholders.

It’s also worth adding that, metaphorically speaking, snapping a picture in the self-timer mode of what a company is up to innovation-wise can be an eye-opener. In fact, since innovation essentially means always focusing on quality improvement, regular stock-taking on this score permits prompt identification of any discrepancy between consumer quality expectations and brand performance, and of whatever corrective action may be called for.

Such a picture portraying business trends is also important for assessing corporate performance. The annual balance sheet, for instance, affords a typical example of such a self-timer shot that provides a picture of corporate accounts, assets and earnings. Of course it’s far from a complete picture. What’s missing, in fact, is a proper portrayal of corporate sustainability in social, environmental and economic terms. And yet such a picture would provide essential information to all stakeholders involved.

Taking a break to snap one’s own picture for a bout of honest selfscrutiny can also be very revealing individually, and no less corporately relevant. After all, a corporate business organisation is made up of so many individual women and men. Anything than can help us to never lose sight of our good and bad points is an excellent tool for self-improvement, both on the job and at home. When the time given over and the dedication to one’s profession by a great number of individuals are considered, some solid selfawareness gained on the job can help us carry the values underlying our professional achievements over into our social and private lives.