Daniela Oliboni, CEO of Hermes Consulting, and Eleonora Ventura, Client Manager, for Harvard Business Review Italia
If we open a window onto Italy today, we see a grey fog.
Thousands of people under 30 feel trapped in meaningless jobs, prefer to leave or reject the traditional corporate world because they find no certainty about the future, do not feel listened to, and see no room for their desire to bring innovation.
People over 50, rich in experience, are all too often considered obsolete—a target group organisations simply stop investing in.
The result? A motivational desert, where only 8% of people feel truly engaged (Gallup State of the Global Workplace, 2024).
Everyone else experiences a sense of detachment from their role. This is an alarming figure that directly affects productivity and the capacity to innovate.
If motivation is the engine of evolution, how can we rebuild it?
The real issue is distance: between who we are and our role, between people with different roles and seniorities, and between generations.
This is why Alleati was born—a project that does not merely talk about intergenerational collaboration, but makes it tangible, turning it into a strategic lever for corporate longevity.
The reality is that all generations are experiencing a crisis of meaning at work. If organisations do not build a system where every generation feels like an active participant, they will lose their ability to adapt to the future.
We asked ourselves: what truly unites people beyond age? We often emphasise differences, feeding a divisive narrative, but the answer is clear: values, the willingness to contribute, and the desire to be recognised. We built Alleati on this foundation.
Alleati was created to make it clear that we are threads of the same fabric. Each generation receives a legacy, transforms it, and hands it on to those who follow.
This is how we develop Intelligenza Intergenerazionale® and shape the future. Our role is not to compete. Yet all too often, we lose touch with this connection.
Alleati restores the most authentic meaning to work, engaging the deepest human dimensions: what drives people, what makes them feel alive and valuable. Alleati creates a safe space where everyone can share their story and discover that, while behaviours and communication styles may vary, values are ageless.
We have structured the programme into four moments of impact:
Alleati has already sparked extraordinary initiatives. In some organisations, it led to the creation of an authentic, bottom-up Employee Value Proposition through which people shared their stories; in others, it gave rise to the Value Innovation Week, where every employee could put forward ideas to bring company values to life in everyday work.
The future does not wait. Either we find new ways to build together, or we will continue to lose valuable pieces along the way.
The choice is ours: remain spectators of decline, or become true Allies.
