I can only speak from the American perspective, but expats arriving in Italy in the hopes of starting a business are not prepared for this shock, even after they\u2019ve read these types of reports. We grew up with the ideals of meritocracy and entrepreneurship, which were firmly established, at least symbolically, by Emerson\u2019s famous 1841 essay on \u201cSelf-Reliance.\u201d We prize individual achievement over social support systems. In my youth, even mentioning the word \u201ccommunism\u201d was condemned with much more vitriol than any foul-mouthed profanity that teenagers are inclined to invent. It\u2019s not just Italy, but Europe in general leans much farther to the left, preferring to keep the bell-shaped curve as narrow and symmetrical as possible. Although I still shake my head when I recall President George W. Bush infamously ranting, \u201cThose damn French! They don\u2019t even have a word for \u2018entrepreneur!\u2019\u201d (Uhh\u2026Mr. President? \u201cEntrepreneur\u201d IS a French word.)<\/p>\n The problem is that the Italian system does not reward hard work and innovation. It rewards staying at the same dull job for 30 years waiting for a nice pension. Although today\u2019s youth aspire to much more, this was the \u201cItalian Dream\u201d in past generations.<\/p>\n There are cultural obstacles to overcome in Italy, as well. For example, data from eCommerce sites have shown that Italians are much less likely to purchase products online than folks in the U.S. or U.K. I don\u2019t know if that comes from a distrust of the technology, or the fact that Italians want the \u201cexperience\u201d of buying something as much as the object itself.<\/p>\n When purchasing a scarf, for example, an Italian wants to touch it, to examine the stitching, to smell the fabric. Americans, on the contrary, just want more \u201cstuff\u201d to satisfy the pressures of conspicuous consumption. Needless to say, eCommerce and web marketing are extremely effective when targeting the American consumer. Italians aren\u2019t as impressed by slick websites and electronic shopping cart convenience.<\/p>\n Or there could be a third theory.<\/p>\n Italians are reluctant to buy online since the mailman won\u2019t leave a package outside of your door\u2014because you can bet your balls one of your neighbors will \u201caccidentally\u201d pick it up, assuming it was theirs.<\/p>\n So if you aren’t home, the postman will leave a card saying that you have to go to hell\u2014I mean, the post office\u2014to retrieve your package. In this case, you might need to ask permission from work to trek across town to the specific branch\u00a0at the time they’re open.<\/p>\n Of course, if you show up too soon, your package might still be in the postman\u2019s van. If you show up too late, they might have already returned it to the sender. But even if you show up on time, you\u2019ll have to demonstrate the proper documents to prove your identity in order to take possession of your parcel. And to send someone else to pick it up for you, you\u2019ll need to sign a delega<\/em> (power of attorney) with notarized copies of said documents and a sample of your DNA.<\/p>\n The private couriers aren\u2019t much better. They schedule delivery times that are rarely respected. Then they, too, will simply send your package back, OR you must retrieve it yourself at their office, which it’s normally located just beyond the ass of the moon.<\/p>\n Are you SURE you still want to save 2 Euros to buy those mutande<\/em> online??<\/p>\n In the U.S., employees are encouraged to be self-motivators, to \u201cthink outside of the box,\u201d or at least try to look busy.<\/p>\n Italians don\u2019t appear to be burdened by such concepts. Don\u2019t get me wrong, some actual work does manage to interrupt the constant string of coffee and cigarette breaks. But the project at hand is regarded a mere annoyance, an afterthought, to the real task of discussing soccer or comparing family recipes for lasagna.<\/p>\n While working for a large American pharmaceutical corporation in Rome, I occasionally observed the unwanted intrusion of an American-style business philosophy. They even tried to inject a fair amount of American vocabulary into the workplace. Terms such \u201cstaff meeting,\u201d \u201cmanager,\u201d \u201cproductivity,\u201d \u201ccompetiveness,\u201d and \u201cshowing up to work on time,\u201d have now found their way into the corporate lexicon in Italy. (Nonetheless, the actual meaning of these terms still tends to get lost in translation.)<\/p>\n Again, I don\u2019t blame the Italians themselves for this. The system is designed to quash any individual ambition. New ideas and creative thinking just aren\u2019t valued, so not many people have the drive to fight against this attitude.<\/p>\n The style of management is also different in Italy than in the United States. The Italian structure is still very much a \u201cTop-Down\u201d model, where all decisions must follow the chain of command. Very little autonomy is granted to the worker, which seems like an antiquated (and frustrating) mentality to most Americans working in Italy. There are also social rules that permeate the business environment, which I partially discussed in a post on customs and etiquette in Italy<\/a>. These include the (over)use\/abuse of titles, addressing your superiors with the \u201cLei\u201d form of speech, and so on. Being informal with your boss is considered extremely impolite. Often an employee will address their comments to their equivalent peers while flat-out ignoring people who they regard as being of a lower status within the company.<\/p>\n Even in larger companies, operations are often controlled by the original founding family who makes all the decisions, big and small, with little or no input from their management team. Furthermore, the labor laws in Italy do not make it easy to transfer an employee to an office in another city (in other words, away from their<\/em> family) against their wishes.![\"americans](\"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/dollar-653241_1280-1024x633.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/the-italian-post-office\/\"](\"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/poste-italiane-993x1024.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nDoing Business in Italy<\/h2>\n
![\"3-The-Godfather-quotes\"](\"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-The-Godfather-quotes.jpg\")
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\nI could go on, but the point I wanted to make here is that it\u2019s not \u201cjust\u201d the red tape that impedes both natives and expats doing business in Italy. There are societal and cultural norms that must be surmounted, as well.<\/p>\nPromoting Italian Businesses<\/h2>\n
![\"card\"](\"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/card-300x171.png\")
<\/a>As a writer who blogs about Italy\u2019s many enchanting travel destinations and rich cultural heritage, I take pride in doing my small part in promoting Italian businesses. Despite the aforementioned obstacles, I\u2019ve met several individuals that are doing their best to succeed in a difficult business environment.<\/p>\n