Meeting the 2023 EEPA Jury – Giovanna Gregori

Each year, as part of the European Enterprise Promotion Awards (EEPA), we take the opportunity to introduce you to our esteemed jury members. They are responsible for selecting the most innovative and exciting competition entries, ultimately determining the recipient of the Grand Jury Prize. In this post, it is the turn of Italian Family Business Association Executive Director Giovanna Gregori, who shares her thoughts on the EEPA awards.

Giovanna brings a wealth of expertise to the EEPA Jury 2023. As the Executive Director of AIDAF, the Italian Family Business Association, and as Senior Corporate Reputation and Sustainability Advisor, she has a deep understanding of sustainability and corporate reputation. Giovanna is also involved with the European Family Business Management Committee and the Family Business Network Sustainability Committee. Her extensive experience includes consulting numerous Italian family businesses, founding the Regenerative Society Foundation, and holding influential positions at prominent organizations like illycaffé and Louis Vuitton Italia. Giovanna's fluency in multiple languages and experience, coupled with her passion for arts and culture, enables her to offer a unique perspective to the Jury.

What do you think makes this competition unique in Europe?

What makes this award unique is the will to recognize public and private effort to foster an innovative, sustainable, and forward-looking approach to entrepreneurship. This is part of the DNA of European family business, which AIDAF (Italian Family Business) represents and supports. 

Do you have any advice for EEPA participants on how to make their application stand out from the rest and include the information that you need to evaluate the project?

I would suggest explaining in detail their approach, objectives, and measurable results – while not forgetting the true inspiration of their project and the passion behind it. 

What do you think the jury members will be specifically looking for in the EEPA 2023 competition?

I believe we should focus on values that are specific to the European SME culture, awarding all efforts in the direction of a new transformative business model – regenerative for the environment and society – rather than extractive as it was in the recent past.

Which are the top three qualities you will look for in a winning project?

The three qualities that I would like to see are: (1) sustainability, (2) innovation, and (3) the possibility to scale up.

We will introduce you to the other members of the 2023 EEPA jury soon – so make sure to visit the Promoting Enterprise portal regularly and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn for all the latest news.