Rome Business School Corporate Education, in collaboration with Winning Women Institute, hosted the workshop “Organizational Culture and its Impact on DE&I”. The event brought together managers and HR directors from leading organizations such as Enel, ItaliaCamp, Polo Strategico Nazionale (National Strategic Hub), Numia, and Subdued, who shared perspectives and experiences on how organizational culture shapes diversity, equity, and inclusion practices.
The discussion highlighted how corporate culture, expressed through declared vision and values, must translate into a lived organizational culture, manifested in daily behaviors, relationships, and decision-making processes. Defining values is only the first step: the real challenge is rooting them in everyday life. As emphasized by Esterina Perrotta, HR Director of Polo Strategico Nazionale: “The real challenge is not just defining company values, but ensuring people embrace and live them every day.”
Testimonies illustrated how culture shapes organizational life in different ways. In a young and growing company like Numia, Roberta Ficorella, HR Director, observed that “true performance emerges when people embrace and identify with the company culture,” emphasizing the importance of authentic alignment with values.
In larger organizations, the challenge takes on a wider scope. Donatella Pugliese, Head of People Care at Enel, stressed that culture cannot remain confined to Human Resources but must permeate the entire company: “Corporate culture is authentic only if it is shared throughout the organization, reaching the operational workforce, which is the true heart of the business.”
The topic of younger generations was raised by Luca Ferretti, Global HR Director at Subdued, who highlighted the importance of balancing inclusion with clear and constructive feedback, especially in sectors where communication and representation have a direct impact on market perception. Luigi Mazza, CEO of ItaliaCamp, emphasized how changes in leadership can reshape company values and priorities, making cultural consistency crucial during organizational transitions.
The discussions revealed that DE&I cannot be reduced to a single universal model. It takes on different nuances depending on the sector, cultural context, and individual experience. In consumer-oriented companies, such as fashion, for example, the representation of diversity through products, communication, and testimonials involves sensitive choices, shaped by regulations, social perceptions, and personal identities. Diversity is therefore not just a KPI, but a lived reality that changes according to countries and individuals.
The workshop reinforced the idea that organizational culture is a strategic lever: it influences performance, innovation, and engagement and is essential for long-term sustainability. However, participants also noted that pushing too hard on DE&I, treating it as a rigid set of rules, could risk negative reactions. Authentic inclusion stems from balance: clear principles, solid governance, and the ability to adapt to diverse sensitivities without imposing a single model for all.
Among the key ideas that emerged was the ambition to create an observatory on organizational culture and its impact on DE&I, aimed at studying the complexity of different business contexts and providing tools to better understand and address them.
