The three awards to virtuous companies are one of the novelties of the fourth edition of the Osservatorio Donne e Moda. And it was interesting to note the prevalence of leather in the awarding of the three titles, on the occasion of the presentation (Milan, 8 May) of the annual report that il Foglio della Moda and PwC Italia produce to keep the pulse of female empowerment in the Italian fashion system. The data, albeit with differences in performance between categories and between companies, are generally encouraging: compared to the first edition in 2020, for example, female participation in BoDs has increased by 26%.
To encourage
But there is still much to be done, writes Erika Andreetta (PwC Italia) in il Foglio della Moda: “The data confirm an important growth of the female component in top positions. Although, however, women represent more than two-thirds of the workforce in fashion, the higher you go up the hierarchical level, the smaller the percentage becomes in favour of their male colleagues”. This is why the organisers of the Osservatorio have come up with encouraging initiatives, such as degree awards with Milano Bicocca and Bocconi universities, and awards to virtuous companies. Identified, on the recommendation of trade associations, on the basis of objective criteria, such as certifications, reading balance sheets and company registration reports, projects and interviews.
The shortlist and the jury
The shortlist of candidate companies was submitted to the vote of the jury, whose members include Fulvia Bacchi, General Manager of UNIC – Italian Tanneries and CEO of Lineapelle, and Simona Olga Binetti, President of the School of Science of the University of Milan Bicocca. Not only. There were Carlo Capasa, president of CNMI, Giovanna Ceolini, president of Micam and Assocalzaturifici, and Annarita Pilotti, president of Confindustria Moda. As well as Elena Salvaneschi, CEO TheOne Milano, and Claudia Sequi, president Mipel and Assopellettieri.
The awards: Cucinelli
Collecting the award for the Brunello Cucinelli group in the category “C-Suite: female presence in top roles” is co-president and creative co-director Carolina Cucinelli. The reasons are quickly stated: “It is one of the companies with the highest presence of women on the board of directors: 46% against the Italian average of 29.7%. In 2022, it made 567 hires globally and 59% of them were women, with no gender pay gap”.
The prevalence of leather
The Osservatorio Donne e Moda “Welfare Policies category” prize went to Gruppo Mastrotto. Why? The Veneto-based tanning group “offers birth bonuses for each child to be spent through company welfare, provides scholarships for the third and fourth year of high school and bonuses for the fifth year and the first year of university, has established procedures with trade unions to combine private life and work, and offers after-school services for primary and secondary school children”. Giovanna and Chiara Mastrotto, accepting the award, commented: “This recognition gives us even more strength to continue on our path, which began in the 1990s. We are attentive to hospitality and our resources, and we dedicate the award to all the women but also to all the men in our company”.
Empowerment
Last but not least, Elisabetta Pieragostini, with Suolificio Da.Mi, won the category “Empowerment, Cultural Policies for the Development of Women’s Careers in the Company”. The managing director represents the second generation at the helm of the Marche-based company and is also, in addition to being a novelist, the author of an essay on overcoming the gender gap: “We have always been very attentive”, she says, “to gender policies”.
Read also:
