Mediobanca prize

Annually awarded to companies which stand out for their high growth rates and good profitability

This initiative is intended to highlight the most dynamic Italian companies belongig to the Fourth Capitalism which are also the most promising in terms of their potential to become large businesses. In addition to growth rates in terms of sales, priority is given to governance arrangements, internal organization, emphasis on innovation in terms of process and product, and acquisition of significant market shares within Italy and elsewhere.

Each year two prizes are awarded to businesses (industrial companies or service companies with industrial content) which in the foregoing three-year period have seen growth rates of not less than 40% in terms of sales and net profit margins equivalent to not less than 4% of turnover. The first prize is awarded to a company reporting turnover of below €330m with a workforce of 499 staff or below; the second prize is awarded to a company which has exceeded the above limits but has still not achieved €3bn in sales volumes. Participation in the competition is governed by the relevant Terms and conditions.

Candidates are selected by the Research Department of Mediobanca, which, on the basis of the objective parameters that can be found in the annual survey of leading Italian companies, draws up profiles to be submitted to a technical committee comprised of independent members; the committee then makes the final decision regarding the successful companies. The prizes are awarded by the senior management of Mediobanca at a conference arranged at its headquarters. The business histories of the successful companies are available for download from this site.

F.A.Q. - Frequently Asked Questions

What does the term "fourth capitalism" mean?

The fourth capitalism refers to companies of intermediate size, i.e. neither large nor small, which are generally distinguished by having an international presence and in part at least have links to local production systems.

Have any publications been issued on the fourth capitalism?

The term "fourth capitalism" was coined by Giuseppe Turani in the mid-1990s in his book entitled "I sogni del grande Nord" (Bologna: Il Mulino, 1996). Turani identified medium-size companies as the main protagonists in this new form of capitalism, describing them as "pocket-size multinationals". In 2002 Andrea Colli analysed these companies historically. Colli's research, published in his "Il quarto capitalismo" (Venice: Marsilio, 2002) was based in part on information taken from data published by Mediobanca. The term was then taken up again in 2006 by the Mediobanca Research Department to identify the fields for data to be recorded for use in the "Laboratory for the competitiveness of companies" established in conjunction with Confindustria's European Committee.

What are the limits of the fourth capitalism?

The fourth capitalism comprises the intermediate bracket in terms of company size, between small businesses and large groups. Traditionally it encompasses both medium-sized companies (which according to the Mediobanca-Unioncamere definition are joint stock companies with a workforce of between 50 and 499 staff and a turnover of between €15m and €330m, and the first bracket of large scale enterprise (companies with more than 499 staff and turnover of below €3bn). These are not absolute limits, but they may be taken as a basis for ensuring rigour in terms of empirical research carried out on this group of companies.

Who are the main protagonists of the fourth capitalism?

The most important companies are regularly covered by the Research Department of Mediobanca, which publishes data on individual companies in its Leading Italian Companies publication and on aggregates in Financial Aggregates for Italian Companies. Details on medium-size companies (e.g. concentrations in districts and local production systems) may also be found in the annual Mediobanca-Unioncamere surveys of medium-size businesses.

Is the fourth capitalism a residual phenomenon?

No. Taken together, the companies that go to make up the fourth capitalism derive from the gradual transformation of Italian industry driven by global competition and declining performances by the largest Italian industrial groups. The origins of the phenomenon may be traced to the 1970s, and the key end-markets for it are European countries, largely those in the Eurozone, and more recently Eastern European countries. The companies of the fourth capitalism tend to produce in facilities located in Italy (chiefly in North-East, Central and North-West Italy), and are distinguished by their quality, and those of intermediate size in particular for their customer service.

Is it fair to describe the fourth capitalism as an Italian miracle?

No. Miracles are defined as extraordinary phenomena which cannot be explained on the basis of existing knowledge. The emergence and structure of the fourth capitalism is entirely ordinary as a phenomenon, and functions according to well-known laws.

Is the fourth capitalism a niche phenomenon?

The commercial model of the companies should not be confused with the relevance of the phenomenon itself. The companies of the fourth capitalism tend to specialize in terms of individual products, which are placed in market niches deliberately created in order to defend positions against both manufacturers in low-cost countries and large-size multinationals, which are able to leverage on economies of scale and relocated production facilities. An approximate valuation of the phenomenon, based on the individual companies, would come to roughly a quarter of national Italian manufacturing production, or 1.7x the contribution of the largest Italian-controlled groups; this rises to just under 40% if affiliated industries are also included. As is well known, the manufacturing segment is chiefly comprised of companies that are small in size (around half a million in 2005), mostly organized into local production systems and clusters - partly attributable to the "filières" of the fourth capitalism companies themselves - which generate by far the largest share of Italy's foreign trade surplus.

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