Innovation & Strategy - POLIMI School of Management

What Innovation & Strategy - POLIMI School of Management does

Innovation & Strategy (also known as Innovation, Strategy and Family Business) is a research group within the Politecnico di Milano's School of Management, operating under the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Gestionale in Milan, Italy. The group conducts theoretical and applied research on innovation, strategic renewal, family business, and governance using an "engaged scholarship" model, organized into three primary service lines: research (Ricerca), training (Formazione), and applied projects (Progetti). It executes its research through a portfolio of specialized observatories (Osservatorio Family Office, Open Innovation Lookout, Osservatorio Purpose in Action, AI4Innovation, Osservatorio Innovazione per la Biodiversità, Osservatorio Fractional Management, Osservatorio Comunicazione Strategica) and additional research initiatives (Next Gen & Wealth, IF! Imprese Familiari, Governance 4 Change Lab), along with advisory services in Corporate Innovation, Strategic Transformation, and Family Business & Governance, and executive training programs.

The group's pipeline generates large-scale empirical outputs: surveys of over 2,000 Open Innovation ecosystem actors and over 100 fractional managers, along with 60+ enterprise interviews, feeding annual observatory reports, webinars, conferences, and co-creation workshops reserved for partner companies. The research brand is anchored by internationally cited faculty, including Josip Kotlar (5,000+ citations), Federico Frattini (200+ publications, Dean of POLIMI Graduate School of Business), and co-scientific director Alfredo de Massis (370+ articles, 18,000+ citations), supported by university resources and corporate sponsorship across multiple partnership tiers.

From a business model perspective, Innovation & Strategy is a non-profit university research group, not a commercial entity. Its primary go-to-market is the multi-tier Observatory partnership program (Strategic Partner, Partner, Insight Partner, Research Partner, Patrocinatori), which provides recurring sponsor companies with access to research, exclusive workshops, and networking. Public events, webinars, and conference dissemination are offered free, and reports are available with registration. Revenue mechanics are not disclosed and are subsumed within Politecnico di Milano's institutional budget; the client base spans Italian family businesses, large enterprises, SMEs, family offices, and institutional partners, with visible logos including Whirlpool, Moleskine, PwC, SAES Group, Monzino, and Alpiq.

Name

Innovation & Strategy - POLIMI School of Management

Legal name

Dipartimento di Ingegneria Gestionale del Politecnico di Milano

Website

https://innovationandstrategy.it

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Innovation & Strategy is a research group within Politecnico di Milano's School of Management that conducts applied research on innovation, strategic renewal, and family business through a portfolio of observatories, advisory services, and executive training programs for Italian enterprises, family businesses, and family offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting and Business Research

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Innovation, Product & R&D Consulting (BPAHACAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Organization Design & Change Management Consulting (BPAHACAD), Talent Management & Leadership Advisory (Succession, Performance, Culture) (BPACAJAH), Organizational Change & Transformation Coaching (EDABANAG), Applied Research & Innovation Universities (EDAHAEAE)

Keywords

• Innovation strategy research
• Family business advisory
• Management consulting services
• Executive training programs
• Strategic transformation research

Headquarters

HQ city

Milan

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Innovation & Strategy is an integrated research group within the School of Management at Politecnico di Milano that conducts theoretical and applied research on innovation, strategic renewal, family business, and governance. The group delivers impact studies, applied research projects, and observatories at national and international levels, complemented by advisory services and executive training programs for businesses and family entrepreneurial families.

Product overview

Innovation & Strategy (ISF) is an integrated research group from the School of Management at Politecnico di Milano that operates as a platform of observatories, advisory services, and training programs. The portfolio includes multiple specialized research observatories (Osservatorio Family Office, Open Innovation Lookout, Osservatorio Purpose in Action, AI4Innovation, Osservatorio Innovazione per la Biodiversità, Osservatorio Fractional Management, Osservatorio Comunicazione Strategica) alongside advisory services in Corporate Innovation, Strategic Transformation, and Family Business & Governance, plus executive training programs. The observatories function as annual research programs providing systematic analysis, reports, webinars, workshops and conferences on specific topics, while advisory services offer research-based, personalized support for business transformation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Osservatorio Family Office: Research observatory dedicated to studying Family Office phenomena, strategies, organization, and impacts on the Italian economy. Editions from 2021-2026.
• Osservatorio Open Innovation Lookout
• Osservatorio Purpose in Action
• Osservatorio Fractional Management
• Osservatorio Innovazione per la Biodiversità

Products and services

• Osservatorio Family Office

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• OpenKnowledgecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic Partner for the Purpose in Action Observatory, collaborating on research methodology development and content co-creation for organizational purpose implementation studies.
• Centro per il Family Business Management - Libera Università di BolzanocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Family Office Observatory research, providing academic expertise and research coordination for systematic investigation of the Family Office phenomenon in Italy.
• YOURgroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic collaboration with YOURgroup for the Fractional Management Observatory, focused on understanding and promoting fractional management as a strategic lever for growth and professionalization of Italian SMEs.
• IMD Business School (Switzerland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic affiliation with IMD Business School where Alfredo de Massis serves, facilitating international research collaboration on family business topics.
• Lancaster University Management School (UK)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic affiliation where Alfredo de Massis directed the Center for Family Business until 2016 and maintains visiting professor position. Josip Kotlar recognized as honorary researcher.
• Zhejiang University (China)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVisiting Professor position and Chairman of Academic Board at the Institute for Entrepreneurs and Family Business at Zhejiang University.
• Scuola Superiore Sant'AnnacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Alberto Di Minin, Full Professor at Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, as Research Fellow at Berkeley and co-editor of R&D Management journal for Open Innovation research.
• POLIMI Graduate School of ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe research group is part of POLIMI Graduate School of Management, with Federico Frattini serving as Dean. Provides institutional framework and academic infrastructure.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SDA Bocconi School of Management: Italian top-tier business school's research and advisory arm, operating at the intersection of strategy, innovation, and family business research. Directly competes for Italian corporate research budgets, executive education, and family business thought leadership.
• The European House – Ambrosetti: Italian strategy consulting firm producing influential research (e.g., 'Rapporto sulla competitività'), executive events, and corporate advisory. Comparable in combining research output with senior-management advisory for Italian enterprises.
• Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna: Italian public university with an Institute of Management that conducts applied research on innovation management and Open Innovation (Alberto Di Minin is Full Professor there). Active research partner and directly comparable in the Italian innovation research category.
• IMD Business School: Swiss-based business school with a global reputation for executive education, strategy, and family business research. Active partner of Innovation & Strategy (Alfredo de Massis affiliation) and directly comparable in the family business research category.
• Luiss Business School: Italian business school with research and executive education programs in strategy, innovation, and family business. Competes for the same Italian executive education and applied research engagements.
• European Family Businesses (EFB): European federation representing family businesses and producing applied research on family business dynamics. Directly comparable in family business research, policy advocacy, and corporate membership models.
• MIP Politecnico di Milano (Graduate School of Business): The business school's executive MBA and executive education arm within Politecnico di Milano. Shares the same faculty pool and competes internally for executive training budgets while complementing research output.
• Energy & Strategy - Politecnico di Milano: Sister research group within Politecnico di Milano's Dipartimento di Ingegneria Gestionale, focused on energy and digital innovation strategy. Operates the same observatory/partner model and shares the same institutional infrastructure and faculty base.

Broad incumbents

• Roland Berger: European-headquartered global strategy consultancy with a strong innovation management practice and family business advisory. Competes for the same corporate strategy and transformation mandates, but at much larger scale and broader scope.
• KPMG Italy (Family Business & Private Enterprise practice): Big 4 firm with a dedicated Italian family business and private enterprise advisory practice. Overlaps with the group's family business and governance advisory services, but offers broader audit, tax, and consulting capabilities.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/innovation-and-strategy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Innovation & Strategy - POLIMI School of Management