10. SUMMARY OF STRENGHTS

The global analysis of attractiveness factors of Treviso province didn’t detect particular records within Treviso economy – even though some have been registered in the past – and the production system is currently undergoing a process of reorganization, as in the most dynamic among Italian provinces, in order to face globalization challenges more strongly. However, the system keeps presenting its usual excellence, and is developing and consolidating new virtues too.
In order to restrict the analysis to the most evident phenomena and not to anticipate incompletely expressed positive trends, suffice it to mention three relevant aspects:

1. The openness to foreign countries and the high levels of exports: Treviso is the second province in Veneto as for exports (over € 10 billion per year) and as for trade surplus – exports minus imports: nearly € 6 billion; Treviso is ranking among the first provinces in Italy also at the national level, not to mention the elevated foreign-to-foreign turnover by Treviso companies with production plants abroad;
2. The success of medium-sized enterprises, and more generally of operators dealing with foreign countries and operators of advanced sectors: Treviso is the second province in Veneto, and among the first in Italy, as for local units employing between 50 and 250 people (over 700 units) with very good performances concerning development, productivity and profitability, according to the analysis carried out on the aggregate accounts;
3. The influx of human resources and credit resources from outside: it is the first province in Veneto and among the first in Italy as for number of resident foreigners and foreign entrepreneurs (both EU and non-EU citizens), and the first province in Veneto and second in Italy as for loans/deposits ratio (2.8) and first in Veneto as for bad debt ratio (1.8%).

It is then possible to argue that:

1. Competitiveness on international markets – more competitive than internal ones – is vital for development and it could represent an excellent way to compensate for the recurring crises of domestic market, as world demand is expected to grow much in the medium-long term, by virtue of emergent countries’ development – unless unpredictable conflicts arise or the world climate of confidence experience a setback – ;
2. Medium-sized enterprises become more and more established as leaders in particular niches in the market or sectors, and include the whole industrial chain – that is, many small companies that must keep being innovative and efficient – in their successful process. The above-cited companies are joined by some smaller ones that possess one or both of the following features, despite their non-affiliation to such industrial chains:
• they habitually work with foreign countries, even if they belong to traditional sectors; thus, they reorganized and restructured their production for a higher added value, in order to maintain their competitiveness on international markets. In doing that, they sometimes renounced to higher margins, due to bad performances as for productivity;
• they developed substantial innovations, not only technological ones but also concerning organization and market; as a consequence, they can offer products and services of excellence both within the internal and external market.
3. There exists, within the territory, a considerable immigration of external human resources – not only non-EU citizens, and not only unskilled labour –, which heighten competences and economies of scope and cooperation, so that the base for further improvement and for a favourable climate to attract new skilled resources is laid. Such a climate is already satisfactorily perceived by banks, whose funding to provincial system exceed savings; on the other hand, banks receive verification of their commitment from a lower bad debt ratio.

While the above elements highlight a situation of excellence, official statistics don’t often show a comprehensively brilliant scene, for two reasons:

• Short-term economic performances don’t display long-term trends and the economic structural situation;
• There is a wide area in the production system – non-innovative and non-internationalized – that keeps operating in precarious conditions just looking to the short term, as it is strongly influenced by short-term difficulties and internal market’s inefficiencies. Obviously, these complications lower the average comprehensive performances within Treviso economy.

Anyway, potential new investors or workers should not desist from their intentions, as in any case this framework enjoys a proper range of excellence to address their preferences.
If anything, they should make a self-evaluation in order to choose the most suitable solutions and activities for themselves.
To this end, it is convenient to point out the leading sectors in the provincial production system, that is, the ones in which it is more probable to find excellence as above described:

• sports footwear;
• wood – furniture;
• machining;
• production of machinery;
• vine-growing and wine-producing;
• food processing;
• some sub-sectors of ICT;
• waste processing;
• among agricultural production: cereals, vegetables and animal husbandry;
• fashion system;
• plastic materials;
• non-metalliferous minerals;
• electrical equipment;
• advanced business services;
• advanced public services.

Obviously, the province of Treviso, as all the other Italian provinces, suffers from the presence of disorganization and inefficiency within the Public Administration, and that’s why administrative simplification and federalism could represent the right remedy. However, it must be noticed that:

• local administrations in the North East of Italy are more active than elsewhere in minimizing the inconveniences to citizens and enterprises;
• cases of excellent performances occurred and will occur anyway, notwithstanding PA’s difficulties and the lack of infrastructures within the territory.

A last preliminary note for our potential operators: there are all the conditions for a remarkable growth in the medium-long term, subject to a constant commitment in order to improve human capital and innovation. On the other hand, there is neither space for easy and immediate profits, nor for short-term results, which would be inevitably nullified as time goes by.

Renato Chahinian