On 26 April the Board of IIT approved the Foundation’s 2020 Financial Statement.
The report analyses a period that was notoriously complex due to unforeseeable events. All the same, the reaction of IIT’s scientists and managers was resolute and well-organised, and the results of the financial year highlight the resilience of the Institute, which prevailed through the socio-economic downturn produced by the pandemic without any notable shocks – as IIT President Gabriele Galateri di Genola pointed out in his introduction: “During the first lockdown, the reaction of our researchers, laboratory technicians, managers, employees and collaborators was marked by a considerable spirit of responsibility and loyalty, with total implementation of the necessary distance working protocols. The Foundation continued to pursue its scientific objectives, further improving its performance and strengthening its fundamental work in technology transfer. It has made its own contribution in successive phases of the emergency by designing and manufacturing medical and monitoring devices. In this period, perhaps more than ever before, the value of research, particularly pharmaceutical research performed with the aim of developing a vaccine for protection against COVID-19, has been understood by the general public, and likewise the importance of scientists’ work in improving our future, safeguarding it by means of sustainable technology that enhances the environment and quality of life”.
The Report begins with a comment by Giorgio Metta, Scientific Director at IIT, underlining the concrete results of the Institute’s activities, demonstrating the commitment of all its divisions. In fact the Institute is still at the top of the research sector in Italy, in various sectors: “Our activity has continued in all the fields established by the Strategic Plan, obtaining important results that highlight the application of the principles established by our dual mission: the scientific aim of performing cutting-edge research, generating new knowledge that is scientifically and technologically revolutionary, and the objective for technology transfer that makes technology available for the manufacturing system and the whole of society. It is specifically in this area of work that our commitment has led to results comprising, over the course of 2020, the filing of 31 new inventions (95 patents registered), 13 licences/options, 5 joint labs, and 2 start-ups. Amongst the many projects that are currently running, some are of particular socio-economic importance, for example those launched with INAIL (Istituto Nazionale Assicurazione Infortuni sul Lavoro, National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work), in which our scientists are involved in various projects for the development of innovative technology for safety at work and transportation, and which have received new funding from the Institute headquartered in Piazzale Pastore. As usual, we performed exceptionally well in terms of international recognition, receiving nine ERC (European Research Council) grants: five Starting Grants, for young researchers who will use the funding to independently construct their own research groups and perform pioneering studies in various areas, two Consolidator Grants, and two Proof-of-Concept Grants. Twenty starting grants were obtained by Italy, across fourteen universities and research centres; IIT ranks first in Italy for the highest number of grants awarded”.
Gianmarco Montanari, Director General at IIT, highlighted the resilience of IIT’s organisational model during lockdown and throughout the entire period of the pandemic: “Obviously in years past, no-one could have imagined that we would have had to reconfigure the ICT infrastructure, as well as the design of internal processes and the development of the research support staff’s expertise in function of a disaster recovery of this magnitude, but nonetheless, the crash-test was passed with flying colours. In my view, this result reflects the choices that have always been made in these areas, inspired by the drive for continuous innovation, in addition to investment and the trust that we place in our employees. Nowadays there are frequent references to ‘purpose’ when considering the human-centred organisational development models designed to win the challenges of today’s complex situation: I think that we can say that 2020 proved that everyone working at IIT has a sense of purpose based on ethical values of the highest order. Not only did everyone do their part, adapting to the emergency conditions in which we had to work, but the adoption of the ‘Covid protocol’ even before this was legally mandatory, and the sense of responsibility showed by all concerned, also made it possible to achieve a result of zero infections on IIT premises from February 2020 up until today”.
“As regards financial aspects”, continued Gianmarco Montanari, “the Institute has preserved its economic and financial balance by the optimal management both of the resources allocated by the State in its annual contribution, and the resources acquired through external projects, involving programmes of undisputed scientific impact. Management activities were virtually unaffected by lockdown: the way in which information systems are structured and the rapid recalibration of operational procedures ensured the necessary support for the research units’ activities, by means of the prevalent use of smartworking. The rapid reconfiguration of the administrative support units made it possible to use the work premises to best advantage for the scientific units, ensuring compliance with interpersonal distancing and the intelligent use of the Institute’s infrastructures. For several years now, the IIT has been pursuing a policy of enhancing the time available to its human resources, using flexible working systems and IT equipment capable of permitting patterns of work that are independent of staff’s physical location and that enhance the tangible results thus obtained.”
As highlighted by the expressions of thanks in all the introductory contributions for the 2020 Financial Statements, these results, achieved in such a difficult period, are due to the unflagging efforts by the entire IIT team, which has helped to attain these positive outcomes at all levels.
The financial information and the analysis of the Departments’ activities are collated in a volume, available online or in hard copy, produced with the collaboration of all the Departments at the Italian Institute of Technology. Special thanks are due to Andrea Caporali, IIT’s Administrative Director, and Alessandro Roscini, Management Control Director at IIT.
Editorial coordination was performed by Valeria delle Cave and Valentina Polini, Communications and External Relations Department, and graphic design coordination was by Luca Caridà and Nicholas Dring, with assistance from Simone Angioni, Research Organisation Department.
IIT’s 2020 Financial Statement is available in the ‘Transparency’ section of the Foundation’s website at the following link: https://www.iit.it/it/financial-reports
The hard copy version can be requested from the Communications and External Relations Department by writing to the following e-mail address: mediaoffice@iit.it
