A few words with Lorenzo Parrini, Tuscany representative for the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy

The transatlantic relationships are growing public interest, politically and economically, so we tried to learn more information about the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy (AmCham), an important institution that operates with the aim to develop and promote economic and cultural relations between the United States of America and Italy, promoting and protecting the interests of its members as part of business between the two countries.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Italy (AmCham) is a private non-profit organization, affiliated with the Chamber of Commerce in Washington DC, the Confederation of the United States, whose members include more than three million businesses. AmCham is also a founding member of the European Council of American Chambers of Commerce that promotes free trade between the European Union and the United States. The AmCham headquarters is located in Milan (Italy), but Am- Cham is also present in the major Italian cities and the United States through a network of local representatives.
We met Dr. Lorenzo Parrini, Tuscany representative for the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy and we asked him a few questions.

Florence is You: Dr. Parrini, very recently you appointed a Tuscany Local Representative of the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy. What are your thoughts on this?

Dr. Parrini: I am very honored with the recent appointment because I believe that an association such as the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy (basically the American Confindustria) can make a very important contribution towards entrepreneurship. In Tuscany we have many honest businesses with a strong bias towards exports for which the American market represents an opportunity for commercial development. Let’s not forget that the U.S. is arguably the largest market in the world with a strong flow of imports from foreign countries, and with a growing trend even in sectors in which Tuscany has significance.

FIY: What initiatives is the American Chamber of Commerce promoting? What is a project that is particularly important to you?

LP: The first objective aims to promote the knowledge of the American Chamber of Commerce with Tuscan businesses, through a series of local initiatives in collaboration with Confindustria Toscana with whom we have signed a Memorandum of Understanding. And in fact it is important to know our organization which can provide support services to businesses that want to grow in America and also assists with the needs of the enterprises themselves to better calibrate the support that can be provided.

FIY: What objectives, strategies and outlook do you see, short-term and long-term, for Tuscany?

LP: In the short-term I would love that it would create a kind of local business community united by an interest in the development and promotion of trade and cultural relations with America, to be involved in the various initiatives that AmCham will organize at the national level, as well as favoring relational networking that would be very useful to entrepreneurs who are often alone to face certain problems. At the same time I’d try to make a contribution to make the system stimulate the cooperation between different institutions in the Region which have been working to support the internationalization of companies (from the Region of Tuscany’s association Confindustria and craft).

FIY: What was your career path? What contribution do you believe that this experience can make to AmCham?

LP: I began my profession as a chartered accountant in the study of Prof. Bompani. Then I entered the consulting firm Deloitte, of which I became a member in 2007. In particular, I deal with assistance to companies in corporate finance transactions (mergers and acquisitions, valuations, financial planning, etc.). I am also Adjunct Professor of Advanced Corporate Finance at the University of Florence. I think I can make a contribution to the Tuscan companies leveraging professional experiences, including international experience gained in the context of my work, and through the international network of AmCham.

FIY: What plans does AmCham have to promote relationships with the universities of Florence?

LP: It might be interesting to create a link between the American academic world and the Tuscan which is characterized by large centers of excellence. A greater transatlantic link would also be able to spread overseas and result in the attraction of foreign investments in our region.