The first edition of the Advanced Program “Strategic Management Skills and Hybrid Leadership for Managers of IT In-House Companies” has successfully concluded. Developed by SDA Bocconi School of Management, with the support of Assinter, the program represents a strategic investment aimed at strengthening the leadership capabilities and strategic vision of managers working in IT in-house organizations across Italy.
This unique initiative engaged 29 participants from 12 organizations, offering immediately applicable skills to lead institutions operating in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

A custom-designed program to address the challenges of IT in-house companies

The program is grounded in SDA Bocconi’s decade-long research conducted within the Assinter Academy, which has allowed the School to develop a deep understanding of the challenges facing IT in-house organizations.
Research clearly shows that these organizations require distinctive competencies: they are hybrid entities, expected to generate public value while maintaining a market-oriented mindset. Rather than being anomalies to “fix,” the tensions between public and private logics are inherent to their nature.

These findings highlight the need for specific hybrid-management capabilities—precisely the focus of the program, which approached these competencies from an applied perspective. Strengthening these skills enhances the ability of IT in-house organizations to achieve a more strategic positioning, effectively navigating between public-sector and private-sector dynamics.

The training was delivered over 15 days on SDA Bocconi’s Milan campus, combining lectures, case studies, contributions from key sector stakeholders, and group work. Topics covered included hybrid strategic positioning and business modelling, service management and the relationship with public shareholders/clients, people management, process and project management, strategic procurement, investments, and new forms of public-private partnerships.

Thirteen innovation projects for the national IT in-house system

A key outcome of the program was the development of 13 innovation projects designed by participants with the guidance of SDA Bocconi faculty-tutors.
These projects were conceived not only to improve processes within individual organizations, but to generate tangible impact on the performance, services, and strategic positioning of IT in-house companies at national level.

They fall into three main areas:

• Strategic positioning of IT in-house companies, including proposals to strengthen their role as strategic partners for public administrations.
• Management tools and models for shareholder relations, grounded in principles of collaborative governance.
• Enhancement of operations and internal processes, through solutions focused on sustainability, service quality, and operational efficiency.

For Assinter, these projects constitute a valuable repository of ideas and applicable case studies with national relevance, contributing not only to the development of individual organizations but also to its mission of fostering the sharing of scalable best practices throughout the public ICT ecosystem.

An investment in the future leadership of IT in-house organizations

The success of the program confirms the strategic importance of investing in advanced managerial skills within a sector—IT in-house companies—that is increasingly central to the digital transformation of Italy’s public administration.

“With this program, SDA Bocconi and Assinter strengthen a collaboration that supports the development of people and organizations, building a managerial community capable of addressing today’s and tomorrow’s challenges in the public IT landscape,” stated Paolo Pasini, Academic Director of the program, SDA Bocconi.

Assinter views this first edition as a pivotal milestone in building a managerial cohort with a shared identity—able to drive change with vision, method, and collaboration. As highlighted by President Pietro Pacini:
“The value of this initiative goes beyond training: it creates a common language, generates shared projects, and reinforces the identity of the IT in-house ecosystem. For Assinter, it represents an essential piece of our mission to build a national network capable of guiding public-sector digital innovation with solid competencies and a long-term perspective.”

SDA Bocconi School of Management