The Charge of the Bergamo 400

Four hundred alumni: this is the light brigade of people charging from the renewed Bergamo Area Chapter of the Bocconi Alumni Association (BAA). Area Leader is Jacopo Palermo, 38 years old and General Director of the Percassi Real Estate Group. The chapter recently hosted a roundtable on the market for retirement homes in collaboration with the Real Estate Topic of the alumni association. The Bergamo chapter has a cross-industry approach: "We are working to organize events that have to do with SMEs and the local economy, and have several cultural events and career and networking initiatives throughout the year."

Concerning culture, the program is already in full swing: "In June, BAA members were offered a reserved visit of the exhibit featuring the paintings of Jacopo Palma the Old, at Bergamo GAMEC. In September we did a tour of the Vallombrosano Monastery in the D'Astino Valley, whose restoration works have just been completed. We also had a social dinner there." On the career front, Bergamo's BAA has organized a seminar with Claudio Ceper, and is planning another one for February, in order to achieve "a quarterly frequency in professional career events." Finally, there is pure social networking: meetings, dinner parties etc. Underlying all this, there is attention and care for the local region and its economic, cultural, and natural resources. "We are developing all our activities in this direction," the Area Leader adds. More specifcally, Bergamo's BAA is working with Confidustria to develop initiatives devoted to small and medium firms: "SMEs are the economic lifeblood of our province and all of them are dealing with the challenges of internationalization and generational renewal".