Every year PMI Day, organized by Confindustria Bergamo in collaboration with Confartigianato Imprese Bergamo and Confagricoltura Bergamo, brings together local schools and companies to promote dialogue between generations and transmit business culture to young people.
Through company visits and direct experience of the work processes of small and medium-sized Italian companies, the initiative enhances the contribution that these companies offer to the national economy, with a view to orientation and bringing young people closer to a career in the industrial sector.
After the first day, which took place with a visit to our production areas by young people from one of the first level comprehensive schools in the area, the PMI Day continued this time with a visit by our production director Giulia Ghidini, in three third grade classes in the schools of Serina and Costa Serina (BG).
Also accompanying Giulia on this day were Simona Paolati from Confindustria and Laura Quarteroni, Sales Manager at Meccanica Gervasoni and Molinari Recycling: together they described their respective jobs, illustrated the operations of their respective companies and asked the kids what it might have been, according to them, the course of study that had led them to cover their job role.
From the discussion with the students it emerged that both Giulia and Laura have carried out studies that could potentially lead to a totally different professional career, demonstrating that the school career must not be experienced as an overly rigid barrier that will not allow, one day, to pursue the dream of a profession in a sector that is only apparently incompatible.
The discussion then turned to the fact that both found themselves working successfully in a male-dominated environment, and that when there are adequate skills, determination and perseverance, gender is not and must not be an obstacle in the pursuit of one’s goals. Finally, more vertical discussions regarding work operations were addressed, such as the soft skills and hard skills necessary to be successfully included in a company’s workforce.
Certainly having shared this meeting with another professional allowed us to approach the narrative of the industrial sector in a different way, and made this meeting doubly useful for the students, who were able to visualize a broader overview of what it could mean embark on a professional path in the industrial sector.
As always, engaging with the young generations is a way to experience first-hand the reality of our territory, and to let young people experience first-hand the solidity, prospects and potential of our sector.