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Entrepreneurial Typologies in the History of Industrial Italy (1880–1960)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 June 2012

Franco Amatori
Franco Amatori
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor of Economic History, University of Urbino
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Extract

Those who in the past twenty years have examined the historiography of industrial Italy cannot help but recognize its “backwardness” when compared to similar studies in other countries, particularly those of American entrepreneurial history. Various reasons have been given to justify this “backwardness,” such as the excessive humanistic tradition of Italian historical studies, the relatively scarce statistical data available on Italian industry, and the poor condition of industrial archives. But, above all, it has been observed that “enterprise,” “entrepreneurs,” and “entrepreneurship” are concepts not especially sympathetic to Italian historiographical culture. First, there is an ideological suspicion, which suggests that to investigate these topics implies per se a favorable attitude. Second, there is a diffuse conviction according to which it is necessary to utilize explanations other than free initiative, and, particularly to stress the role of the State, in order to understand Italian economic development.

Type
A Review Article
Information
Business History Review , Volume 54 , Issue 3 , Autumn 1980 , pp. 359 - 386
Copyright
Copyright © The President and Fellows of Harvard College 1980

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References

1 As examples, see Mori, Giorgio, “La storia dell'industria italiana contemporanea nei saggi, nelle ricerche e nelle pubblicazioni giubilari di questo dopoguerra,” Annali dell'Istituto Gian Giacomo Feltrinelli, 1959 (II) 264–336Google Scholar; Cafagna, Luciano, “L'avventura industriale di Giovanni Agnelli e la storia imprenditoriale italiana,” Quaderni Storici, n.22, January-April, 1973Google Scholar; and Bonelli, Franco, “Per una nuova storia della siderurgia italiana,” Finsider (XI), December, 1976.Google Scholar

2 Cafagna, “L'avventura industriale di Giovanni Agnelli,” 149.

3 Ibid., 151–153.

4 Chiesi, Antonio M., “Una ricerca sulle biografie imprenditoriali nell'Italia liberale e fascista. Problemi teorici, analisi empirica e tipologia,” Quaderni di Sociologia (XXVI), n.2, 1977.Google Scholar

5 Bonelli, “Per una nuova storia della siderurgia italiana.” 2.

6 See Romeo, Rosario, “Lo Stato e l'impresa privata nello sviluppo economico italiano,” Elsinore (II), 1965 n. 14—15Google Scholar, and Bonelli, Franco, “Il capitalismo italiano. Linee generali d'interpretazione,” Storia d'Italia Annali I Dal feudalesimo al capitalismo, (Torino, Einaudi, 1978).Google Scholar

7 Even if I mention cases drawn from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in dealing with the typology of the private entrepreneur, given the material reviewed, I thing it wrong, in tackling the problems of the Italian industrial development, to consider this only a succession of phases having as a point of departure the private enterprise tied to the market, totally autonomous from any form of government intervention, and as a point of arrival the predominance of the economic pervasiveness of the State. In reality the two aspects are intertwined from the unification of Italy (1861) up to the present so that it is difficult to explain the economic history of Italy, with its lags as well as its vitality, if one does not consider both.

8 I borrow in part the scheme from Antonio M. Chiesi, “Una ricerca sulle biografie imprenditoriali.”

9 See Cafagna, Luciano, ed., Il Nord nella storia d'Italia (Bari Laterza, 1962)Google Scholar, particularly the contribution of Giuseppe Colombo, “Milano industriale,” 26–51.

10 See Caracciolo, Alberto, ed., La formazione dell'Italia industriale (Bari, Laterza, 1969)Google Scholar, particularly Rosario Romeo's “La rivoluzione industriale dell'età giolittiana,” 115–133 and Luciano Cafagna's “La formazione di una base industriale fra il 1896 e il 1914,” 135–161.

11 See Romano, Roberto, ed., Borghesia industriale in ascesa, (Milano, Franco Angeli, 1977).Google Scholar

12 Avagliano, Lucio, “Un imprenditore e una fabbrica fuori del commune: Alessandro Rossi e il lanificio di Schio,” in Mori, Giorgio, ed., L'industrializzazione in Italia (1861–1900), (Bologna, Il Mulino, 1977), 260.Google Scholar

13 Roberto Romano, “Un piccolo re del cotone: Costanzo Cantoni e la sua impresa,” in Mori, L'industrializzazione in Italia, 244.

14 Avagliano, Alessandro Rossi, 264. The author, unfortunately, never deepens the argument. While the sentence quoted may seem too general to the American reader, it is worthwhile to note that an Italian entrepreneur, usually considered an autocrat at the time, could have delegated some responsibilities in the management of the company to others.

15 Bonelli, See F., “Borsalino, Giuseppe” and “Borsalino, Teresio,” Dizionario Biografico degli Italiana (Rome, 1960–1979), vol. 13Google Scholar; M. Gobbini, “Bocconi, Ferdinando,” vol. 11; C.P. Scavizzi, “Buitoni, Francesco,” vol. 15; M. Gobbini, “Campari, Davide,” vol. 17; V. Castronovo, “Burgo, Luigi,” vol. 15; M. Gobbini, “Breda, Ernesto,” vol. 15.

16 Ibid., vol. 15, p. 99.

17 Lanaro, Silvio, “Nazionalismo e ideologia del blocco corporativo protezionista in Italia,” in Ideologie I, 1967, n.2 p. 90Google Scholar, quooted by Berta, Storio d'Italia, 1084.

18 Berta, Storia d'Italia, 1085.

19 In turn-of-the-century Italy, this type of labor force to command and control was abundant and cheap, so much so that foreign observers were amazed. Most likely the wages, working conditions, social legislation, and situation of the Italian working class was the ivorst of industrialized Europe at this time. See the well-documented two volumes by Merli, Stefano, Proletariato di fabbrica e rivoluzione industriale. Il caso italiano 1880–1900 (Firenze, La Nuova Italia, 1973).Google Scholar

20 Giolitti was the leader of the liberals, opponents of Italy's intervention in World War I (an intervention that led to his political decline).

21 In this respect it is interesting to read Sereni's, Emilio essay “Il nodo della politica granaria” in his Capitalismo e mercato nazionale (Roma, Editori Riuniti, 1966).Google Scholar

22 See Giuseppe Are, “Alla ricerca di una filosofia dell'industrializzazione nella cultura economica e nei programmi politici in Italia dopo l'unità” in Mori, L'industrializza zione in Italia, 171–186.

23 Webster, Richard A., “La tecnocrazia italiana e i sistemi industriali verticali: il caso dell'Ansaldo (1914–1921),” Storia Contemporanea, IX, n.2 (Aprii 1978), 227.Google Scholar

24 Webster dealt with the story of Ansaldo before 1915 in his earlier book L'Imperialismo industriale italiano (Torino, Einaudi, 1974). A shortened version of it has been published in English, Industrial Imperialism in Italy 1908–1915 (Berkeley, 1975).

25 Ansaldo went bankrupt in October 1921, and the Perrones were brought to trial.

26 Terni was chosen as the location of the new plant for military reasons since it is situated right in the center of the country.

27 This is, in my opinion, the best example of a history of an enterprise written in Italian, especially for its focus on the company's strategy at each stage of evolution.

28 See Bonelli, “Per una nuova sttoria della siderurgia italiana,” 4.

29 Participating in the steel trust, Terni could purchase cast iron at a good price. It is worthwhile to note that the shipyard industry was also strongly protected.

30 The company entered the electric sector during the World War, when it had to face the problem of self-sufficiency in the supplying of energy sources.

31 In 1962 the electric sectors of State-owned enterprises also become part of the new public corporation ENEL (Ente Nazionale Energia Elettrica).

32 See also Webster, Industrial Imperialism, Chapter 7.

33 This is the second abridged and updated edition of the book. The first was published by UTET, Torino, 1971.

34 Mori, Giorgo, “La Fiat dalle origini al 1918” in Mori, , Il capitalismo industriale in Italia (Roma, Editori Riuniti, 1977).Google Scholar

35 During the investigation and Agnelli's trial even the Minister of Justice, Vittorio Emanuele Orlando, intervened on his behalf.

36 According to the Parliamentary commission that investigated the war expenses, no one checked the real costs of the products in order to foster the effort of the industrialists.

37 See Agnelli, Giovanni and Cablati, Attilio, Federazione Europea o Lega delle Nazioni? (Torino, Bocca, 1918). The essay was republished in 1979 by the Fondazione Agnelli, with a preface by Giovanni Agnelli, grandson of Fiat's founder and current president of the company.Google Scholar

38 On that occasion, Agnelli declared that Mussolini's deciison to protect the national automotive industry would be engraved in golden characters in Fiat's buildings.

39 See Abrate, Mario, La lotta sindacale nella industrializzazione in Italia (Milano, Franco Angeli, 1967).Google Scholar

40 On the relationship between Fascism and big business, see Sarti, Roland, Fascism and the Industrial Leadership in Italy 1919–1940 (Berkeley, 1971)Google Scholar, with its excellent bibliographical notes.

41 A clear analysis of the link between banks and industrial firms prior to IRI's creation can be found in Saraceno, Pasquale, “Nuovi assetti introdotti nel nostro sistema economico dalle misure richieste dalla grande crisi 1929–1935” in Toniolo, Gianni, ed., Industria e banca nella grande crisi 1929–1934 (Milano, Etas Libri, 1978).Google Scholar

42 See Cianci, Ernesto “La lunga crisi del 1874–1896 e la crisi odierna” in La Riforma Sociale, January-February, 1935.Google Scholar

43 In addition to holding IRI's presidency and other relevant positions, Beneduce also served as president of Crediop and ICIPU (two public institutions set up to finance public construction and utilities) and of Bastogi, the most important Italian private holding company.

44 See Bonelli's biography of Riccardo Bianchi in Economia Pubblica, n.11–12 (December, 1975) and Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. X, (Roma, 1968).

45 ENI was different from IRI since it was designed to be directly involved in industrial activities although its field of action was originally limited to the hydrocarbon sector.

46 Marcello Colitti has been a close collaborator of Mattei and now is in ENI's top management.

47 Mattei, a Christian Democrat congressman from 1948 to 1953, could not rely upon the full support of his party, which was bound to private economic interests. Thus, he formed his own group inside the party and looked to the help of Socialists and Communists who favorably considered, to a certain extent, his actions as a public entrepreneur and supported in a decisive way the creation of ENI.

48 On Mattei's “foreign policy,” see Votaw, Dow, The Six-Legged Dog, (Berkeley, 1964).Google Scholar

49 In 1957 the Parliament passed a bill that forced State-owned enterprises to situate 40 per cent of their new investments in the South.

50 An up-to-date survey on the history and problems of Italian State-owned enterprises can be found in Martinelli, Alberto, “The Italian Experience: A Historical Perspective,” in Yair Ahroni and Raymond Vernon eds., A Special Kind of Business: Government-owned Enterprises (forthcoming)Google Scholar.

51 See Mori, Giorgio, “La siderurgia italiana dall'Unità alla fine del secolo XIX” in La siderurgia italiana dall'Unità ad oggi. (Firenze, CLUSF, 1978).Google Scholar

52 See Franco Bonelli, “La siderurgia italiana dal 1900 al 1930,” in La siderurgia italiana.

53 See Antonella Cardarelli, “La siderurgia italiana nella prima guerra mondiale: il caso dell'I.L.V.A.,” in La siderurgia italiana.

54 See Laura Scalpelli, “L'I.L.V.A. alla vigilia del piano autarchico per la siderurgia (1930–1936)” in La siderurgia italiana, and Margherita Pelala, “Note per una storia della siderurgia italiana durante la depressione” in Tomolo, Industria e banca nella grande crisi.

55 See Valerio Castronovo, “L'industria siderurgica e il piano di coordinamento dell'IRI (1936–1939)” and Luigi De Rosa, “La siderurgia italiana dalla Ricostruzione al V Centro siderurgico,” in La siderurgia italiana. See also Gianni Toniolo's biography of Oscar Sinigaglia in Economia Pubblica, n.8–9 (August-September, 1975), and Amatori, Franco, “Cicli produttivi, technologie, organizzazione del lavoro. La siderurgia a ciclo integrale dal piano autarchico alla fondazione dell'Italsider (1937–1961)”, in Ricerche Storiche, n.1, 1981.Google Scholar

56 I have drawn my information on Falck from a manuscript by Martino Pozzobon, which the author kindly provided me. It is due for publication by the Fondazione Einaudi (title not yet available).

57 Giuseppe Volpato, “Grande crisi e organizzazione scientifica del lavoro nell'industria italiana,” in Toniolo, Industria e banca nella grande crisi; Bigazzi, Duccio, “Organizzazione del lavoro e razionalizzazione nella crisi del fascismo” in Studi Storici (April-June, 1978)Google Scholar; Fiorentini, Paola, “Ristrutturazione capitalistica e sfruttamento operaio in Italia” in Rivista Storica del Socialismo, n.30, 1967.Google Scholar

58 On Olivetti's experience, see also Caizzi's, BrunoGli Olivetti (Torino, UTET, 1962).Google Scholar