When establishing the Foundation and designating it as his heir, IED’s founder, Francesco Morelli, set a social purpose not only for the Foundation itself but also for all the companies within the Group, requiring them to contribute to the achievement of the Foundation’s objectives while embracing its principles and values.
IED becomes a Benefit Corporation
Date
12 December 2022
With this in mind, in 2022 IED decided to pursue its transformation into a Benefit Company (Società Benefit "S.B"), a corporate model that, while conducting economic activity and generating profits for shareholders, also pursues one or more objectives of common benefit and operates in a responsible, sustainable and transparent manner towards individuals, communities, local areas and the environment, as well as cultural and social assets and activities, organisations, associations and other stakeholders.
The Benefit Company is a corporate model introduced and regulated under Italian Law No. 208/2015. Its adoption requires companies to include specific provisions in their articles of association concerning corporate purpose, governance and oversight. Under this legislation, Benefit Companies must amend their corporate purpose to incorporate, alongside their profit-making activities and objectives, the common benefit purposes they intend to pursue.
In light of IED’s mission and its ongoing commitment to ensuring access to education through scholarship programmes, IED has identified the following areas of common benefit:
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promoting talent and meritocracy, while facilitating access to educational and employment opportunities for disadvantaged groups;
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promoting and advancing an educational model that creates value through dialogue, exchange and collaboration between businesses, professional communities and the younger generations who represent their future;
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fostering awareness and understanding of design culture in Italy and internationally, highlighting its ethical and economic contribution to shaping sustainable development pathways;
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developing, supporting and delivering projects that serve as instruments for sustainability, collective and individual responsibility, and social inclusion.
In balancing shareholders’ economic interests with the pursuit of common benefit objectives and the interests of stakeholders, Benefit Companies are required to prepare an annual Impact Report, through which they transparently and comprehensively assess the impact they generate, the actions undertaken, and their objectives and plans for the future.
The Impact Reports produced by IED S.B.p.A. can be consulted in this section.
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