Poliste Società Benefit B Corp

What Poliste Società Benefit B Corp does

Poliste Società Benefit B Corp is a Cagliari-based strategic and organizational consulting firm founded in 2003, operating as a Società Benefit (2021) and B Corp-certified (2022) private limited company with approximately 21 employees led by three founding partners (Serenella Paci, Luca Melis, Andrea Lorenti). The firm serves Italian public administrations, enterprises, life sciences organizations, and rural/local actors, delivering services through six Business Units: Sustainable Development, European Project Design, Business Innovation, Public Management, Lifescience, and Agrifood. Its technical core is a set of certified participatory and consensus methodologies — most notably an exclusive Italian license to Metaplan® (facilitation, originating in Germany in 1972), supplemented by Delphi analysis, Nominal Group Technique, EASW® scenarios, and a self-hosted instance of the Decidim open-source participation platform powering partecipa.poliste.com — augmented with standard collaboration tools (Mentimeter, Brevo email).

Name

Poliste Società Benefit B Corp

Legal name

Poliste srl SB

Website

https://poliste.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Poliste is a Cagliari-based strategic and organizational consulting firm serving Italian public administrations, enterprises, and life sciences organizations, specializing in certified participatory methodologies (Metaplan®, Delphi, NGT, EASW®) and B Corp-aligned sustainability advisory.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting Services

NAICS

Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Sector & Policy Consulting (BPAHACAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Organization Design & Operating Model Consulting (BPAHAGAB), Organization Design & Restructuring (BPACAJAB)

Keywords

• Strategic consulting services
• Participatory process facilitation
• Organizational development consulting
• Sustainable development advisory
• ESG transition consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Cagliari

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Strategic and Organizational Consulting: Core consulting engagements covering strategic planning, organizational development, ESG transition, and participatory process design for public administrations, enterprises, and local actors. Revenue is generated through project-based professional service contracts, often publicly funded (EU, regional, national).
2. Training and Capacity Building: Training-intervention programs for executives and managers (e.g., Project Management course, Soft Skills, Metaplan® certification). Delivered as instructor-led sessions (in-person or online), structured in modules. Revenue generated through course fees paid by organizations or funded via public programs.
3. Event Design and Facilitation: Design and facilitation of engaging events, workshops, and laboratories that inspire and generate value for clients. Includes communication campaigns, email marketing, and social media management for clients (e.g., Summer School communication, Natura 2000 campaign).
4. Productized Consulting Packages: Structured consulting products such as ESG workshops for SMEs, B PLAN for regenerative organizations, entrepreneurial development plans, and merger accompaniment. Sold as defined service packages with fixed scopes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Poliste provides strategic and organizational consulting, including productized programs (B PLAN regenerative organization transformation, ESG workshops, merger accompaniment, business development plans, Delphi and NGT expert-consensus studies) and bespoke training-intervention and facilitation services. Its Lifescience unit delivers methodologies for clinical consensus in healthcare, while its Public Management and Sustainable Development units drive participatory processes and CLLD strategies for Italian public administrations and Sardinian territorial actors, using Metaplan® and Decidim as core delivery tools.

Product overview

Poliste is a benefit company providing strategic and organizational consulting services through six specialized Business Units: Sustainable Development, European Project Design, Business Innovation, Public Management, Lifescience, and Agrifood. The product portfolio consists of branded consulting service offerings including ESG workshops (ESG&PMI, B PLAN), organizational merger support, business development planning, expert consensus methodologies (Delphi Analysis, Nominal Group Technique), project management training, and personal potential development courses. Core methodological tools include Metaplan® facilitation (as exclusive Italian partner) and Decidim-based digital participation platforms. The offering is structured as a service-based consulting model rather than a software product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Metaplan Italia: Poliste is the sole Italian partner of Metaplan Group, which created the methodology in Germany in 1972 and operates globally. Metaplan Italia helps companies improve their internal structures, making work more effective and streamlined.
• B PLAN
• Poliste Lab
• partecipa.poliste.com

Products and services

• ESG&PMI Workshop — Introdurre i criteri ESG nelle PMI A 3-hour participatory workshop on ESG criteria for Small and Medium Enterprises, led by certified facilitators, covering environmental, social and governance topics with practical self-assessment and stakeholder-engagement tools.
• B PLAN — Realizzare la tua organizzazione sostenibile Structured consulting path transforming enterprises toward regenerative models using ESG criteria, including co-design for Benefit Company status, B Corp certification support, and stakeholder engagement using Metaplan® methodology.
• Accompagnamento alle fusioni organizzative Strategic consulting for organizational mergers including economic-financial due diligence, cultural integration, strategic planning, and governance restructuring across five phases.
• Piano di sviluppo imprenditoriale Strategic consulting to define business development plans in three phases: current-situation analysis, strategic and operational planning, and governance/technostructure definition.
• Analisi Delphi Structured method for collecting and synthesizing expert opinions from researchers, physicians and healthcare professionals using iterative multi-round questionnaires, enabling consensus measurement for complex clinical topics.
• Nominal Group Technique (NGT) Single-day structured workshop methodology for measuring consensus among experts, using silent idea generation, round-robin presentations, structured discussion, and individual voting, deliverable in-person or remotely.
• Project Management per la gestione di progetti di Qualità 24-hour training program (six 4-hour sessions) covering project planning, resource management, budget control, and AI-based tools, designed for project managers and team leaders with up to 15 participants per cohort.
• Scopri le tue potenzialità 16-hour in-person course (2 days) for discovering and developing personal character strengths using PLE and ACT methodologies, capped at 10 participants.
• Metaplan® Italia (Facilitation Services) Exclusive Italian partner of the Metaplan® group providing certified facilitation methodology for improving internal organizational structures and optimizing work effectiveness through structured communication processes.
• partecipa.poliste.com — Digital Participation Platform Digital meta-space powered by the Decidim open-source platform for managing participatory processes including proposal collection, structured interest manifestations, voting-based selection, and event registrations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Supported 8 GALs in Sardinia to develop participatory local development strategies under the CLLD approach, with 80M+ EUR in public funding at stake
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Metaplan® Group (Germany)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 1972Poliste is the sole Italian partner of the Metaplan® group, which created the methodology in Germany in 1972 and operates globally today. This exclusive partnership gives Poliste access to a certified facilitation methodology and a global network of practitioners. Metaplan® is used for organizational analysis, process optimization, and stakeholder engagement across all of Poliste's consulting engagements.
• DecidimcoreTechnology or IntegrationDecidim is an open-source participatory democracy platform created in 2016 by the City of Barcelona. Poliste has installed Decidim on its own servers and created partecipa.poliste.com, a meta-digital participation space for managing inclusive activities such as proposal collection, structured manifestos, voting processes, and event registrations. This is a technology integration partnership enabling digital participation services.
• RTI KPMG – CogeacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPoliste was engaged as a subcontractor within an RTI (Temporary Association of Companies) led by KPMG-Cogea to provide technical support, consulting, and facilitation for participatory local development strategies for Regione Sardegna. This was a major engagement enabling Sardinia's unique CLLD approach at national level.
• Fondazione PromoPAcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPoliste co-manages the Sportello Appalti Imprese service with Fondazione PromoPA, providing support to Sardinian enterprises on public procurement. This partnership has been operating for over 10 years and serves as the primary channel for enterprise client engagement in the public procurement segment.
• PAAdvice SPAminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPoliste worked in sub-contract within the RTI led by PAAdvice SPA to deliver training and institutional capacity building for Regione Sardegna's FSE and FESR programs (2014-2020), including the implementation of Communities of Practice on public procurement and state aids.
• Regione Autonoma della SardegnacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste has a longstanding strategic partnership with Regione Sardegna, acting as a technical partner for multiple EU-funded programs including Natura 2000 conservation, FSE/FESR optimization, CLLD strategies, and energy transition platforms. The relationship spans multiple years and dozens of projects.
• CeSSMed – Jean Monnet Centre for Sustainability Studies, Università di CagliariminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste provided communication strategy and execution services for the CeSSMed Summer School on Coastal Systems and Climate Change Transitions (2nd edition, September 2024), managing social media, email campaigns, and WhatsApp communications to promote the event and build engagement.
• IUAV di VeneziaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIUAV University of Venice collaborated with Poliste during the CeSSMed Summer School, delivering the 'Vertigine Creativa del Gioco Serio' laboratory — a workshop using game-based methods for addressing marine spatial planning challenges.
• Severe Asthma Network Italy (SANI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste's LifeScience team supported SANI (Severe Asthma Network Italy) in a Delphi consensus study that defined clinical remission criteria in severe asthma, involving over 80 Italian experts. The study resulted in a peer-reviewed publication in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.
• Farmacia PoliticaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste provided technical support for the 'Un Patto per la Sardegna' project, promoted by the Assessorato alla Cultura della Regione Sardegna together with Farmacia Politica, focused on collaborative governance of common goods (patti di collaborazione).
• IAL SardegnaminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPoliste collaborated with IAL Sardegna and AIPD Oristano on the 'Verso il Lavoro' project, creating inclusive work opportunities for young people with Down syndrome through participatory workshops and employer engagement.
• Città Metropolitana di CagliaricoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste provides consulting and accompaniment to the Città Metropolitana di Cagliari for the participatory process defining the Contract of Laguna Santa Gilla, including stakeholder analysis, communication campaigns, territorial animation, and multi-stakeholder facilitation.
• Sardegna RicerchecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste participates in the Energy Innovation Platform of Sardegna Ricerche as a member of the permanent consultation table dedicated to Energy Transition Innovation (ITE), which will manage part of the resources assigned to Sardegna Ricerche under the PR FESR 2021-2027. Also co-manages the Sportello Appalti Imprese service created by Sardegna Ricerche.
• Sardegna RicerchecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPoliste designed and conducted workshops and roundtables for the 'Sportello Appalti Imprese' project, promoting co-programmazione and co-progettazione among Sardinian cooperatives and cultural enterprises, resulting in a regional memorandum of understanding for public-private partnerships.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights14 records

Broad incumbents

• EY Italy: Big Four firm with established public administration, ESG, and European funds advisory practices; competes for and complements Poliste on sustainability transformation and PA capability building engagements in Italy.
• The European House – Ambrosetti: Italy's leading strategic consulting firm with a broader corporate and institutional advisory portfolio; offers overlapping capability on EU affairs, ESG, and public-private collaboration but at much larger scale and corporate focus.
• Deloitte Italy: Big Four firm with deep public sector, sustainability, and human capital practices; overlaps with Poliste on PA transformation, ESG strategy, and large EU-funded program support across Italian regions.
• KPMG Italy: Big Four firm with sizeable public sector and sustainability advisory practices in Italy; Poliste has worked alongside KPMG-Cogea in RTI consortia on Sardinian public tenders, evidencing overlapping capability and competition on large EU-funded mandates.

Others

• Fondazione per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile: Italian not-for-profit foundation advancing sustainability policy and ESG adoption in Italy; not a direct competitor but operates in the same policy and advisory ecosystem in which Poliste's clients operate, providing thematically adjacent context for impact.

Direct peers

• Avanzi – Sostenibilità per Azioni: Italian B Corp-affiliated sustainability and stakeholder engagement consultancy serving PAs, enterprises, and non-profits on ESG strategy, reporting, and CSR — directly comparable in size, Italian geography, methodology-led positioning, and B Corp orientation.
• Reos Partners: International facilitation and multi-stakeholder strategy consulting firm pioneering participatory methodologies for complex social, sustainability, and organizational challenges — comparable as a methodology-first, facilitation-led advisory.
• ISMERI Europe: Italian/European policy research and consulting firm supporting public administrations, regions, and EU institutions on cohesion policy, evaluation, and territorial development — directly overlapping in EU-program advisory and PA clientele.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/poliste

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Poliste Società Benefit B Corp