- Francesco Starace is the first Italian and the first representative of the energy sector to receive this award due to his many years of commitment to innovation
- The award is conferred upon global leaders who promote and practice open innovation and is presented at Berkeley’s annual World Open Innovation Conference
Rome, December 13th, 2019 - Enel CEO and General Manager Francesco Starace received today the 2019 Global Leadership Award conferred by the University of California, Berkeley. Mr. Starace is the first Italian and the first representative of the energy sector to receive this prestigious award, which is given to global leaders who promote and practice open innovation for worldwide impact.
“I am honored to accept this important recognition from UC Berkeley, which underscores Enel’s commitment to opening our company to innovation,” said Enel CEO and General Manager Francesco Starace. “This award is concrete evidence that innovation is essential to effectively embrace sustainability in a company’s strategy. At Enel, we decided to combine these two drivers into what we call Innovability®, which we have embedded in our business model and all our operations with the aim to create shared value for the company and our stakeholders.”
Enel’s CEO was awarded due to his many years of commitment to creating and promoting innovation and use of technology to expand markets around the world.
In the past, the University of California, Berkeley has recognized great political and business leaders, reformers and statesmen who were responsible for stimulating national and global economic growth.
The award ceremony was held within the 6th Annual World Open Innovation Conference, which is Berkeley’s Flagship Annual Conference on Open Innovation. This year the conference was held for the first time in Italy, in Rome, and the theme was Opening Up for Managing Business and Societal Challenges. The event brought together thought leaders in academia and industry to discuss on how businesses can find growth opportunities in societal challenges to enable transformation.