The very high number of micro companies and the average old age of entrepreneurs in Italy also contribute to further hamper the country's modernization thus productivity, the expert added.
"These are structural problems," he said. The reduction of labor and wage costs, and increased flexibility in the labor market at the center of a "productivity agreement" signed late on Wednesday by the government and trade unions will not provide any "shortcuts to tackle the system weaknesses."
A courageous way to break this downward trend, Pianta pointed out, would be instead "to increase demand by easing the austerity measures made of tax hikes and budget cuts being carried out by Prime Minister Mario Monti's technocratic government to tackle the debt crisis."
Another important move would be implementing structural reforms aimed to join private and public resources to stimulate research, he added noting the examples of successful Italian companies in the world prove that the innovation path is what leads to success.
"Our strategy for success is continuously investing in innovation," said Mario Moretti Polegato, the Chairman of GEOX group, which has been ranked the 1st footwear brand in Italy and the 2nd worldwide in the life-style casual footwear segment.
"A company like ours that produces shoes, which in theory should be a sector with little added-value in terms of technology, continues to invest two percent in research and development every year," he told Xinhua.
Moretti Polegato said the main reasons for low productivity in Italy are lack of competitiveness, which has led to a late internationalization, and lack of long-term view in a country that is the second "oldest" in the world, after Japan.
"Moreover, our group invests a lot in education and training of human resources, both senior and young," he added stressing that there is plenty of highly qualified resources in Italy that, however, are often forced to leave the country due its "scarcely meritocratic" labor system.
The chairman said the austerity measures adopted by the Monti emergency cabinet trigger an unavoidable recession effect in the medium term. However, he wished the current economic crisis by highlighting the weaknesses of the Italian industrial system will also provide a strong consciousness raising thus a platform to re-start growth with a more courageous and future-oriented view
Landmark building should respect the public's feeling
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