Leadership Rooted in Heritage, Looking to the Future
Daniela Oliboni, CEO of Hermes Consulting, for Harvard Business Review Italia
At a time when the concept of sustainability risks losing its meaning and acronyms like ESG generate more confusion than enthusiasm, one certainty remains: the world needs a radical transformation.
This transition demands a new kind of leadership, capable of integrating deep-rooted values, a systemic vision and the courage to act.
Hermes Consulting is dedicated to developing young leaders who embody these qualities within organisations, delivering programmes that combine personal development, inner awareness and the capabilities needed to navigate the new economy.
We draw inspiration not only from international best practices, such as the Inner Development Goals (IDG) framework, which links inner growth to sustainability goals, but also from the roots of our Italian culture: a history of thinkers, artists and entrepreneurs who imagined and built the future by combining beauty, innovation and social impact.
Feeling, thinking, acting
Our philosophy rests on three fundamental pillars of being: feeling, thinking and acting.
We develop emerging leaders who do not merely acquire technical skills, but cultivate deep self-awareness, recognising their own “inner fire” to guide their actions towards goals that deliver a positive impact on the wider community.
Every project we design integrates:
From insight to action
Our mission is not merely to teach, but to transform. Every programme includes practical experiences that allow young leaders to put what they learn into practice.
We build deep cross-generational alliances, creating a genuine dialogue between the innovative energy of younger generations and the experience of senior leaders. This dialogue sparks not only innovation, but a true culture of exchange, where each generation learns from the other.
In a recent project, young leaders redesigned production processes with bold ideas, while senior executives guided their practical implementation.
The result? Solutions that combine efficiency, sustainability and a positive impact on local communities.
Italian heritage as a compass
Italy has a unique tradition of vision and innovation. Consider the Renaissance, where art, science and commerce merged into a vibrant hub of innovation. Or the great twentieth-century entrepreneurs, who brought together quality, beauty and sustainability to build iconic businesses.
This heritage inspires us: we encourage young leaders to use it as a compass to shape the future—not to replicate the past, but to draw inspiration from it and create something entirely new.
A future built together
The leadership of tomorrow is not an abstract concept: it is a daily commitment. At Hermes, our goal is to nurture a new generation of leaders who are not only skilled, but also mindful, connected and grounded in deep-rooted values.
Every young leader can make a difference when given the opportunity to discover who they truly are and to act with courage. Because the future does not build itself: it needs people with the courage to imagine it and the talent to bring it to life.
And we are here to support them on this journey.
To find out more:
Conscious Leadership: Guiding Change towards a Sustainable Future
Beyond the Boundaries of Age: Intergenerational Intelligence® to Unite and Innovate
