The concept of the Annual Report 2023
For the first time in history, five different generations, which the social sciences have classified as Traditionalists (or Silent, born from 1928 to 1945), Baby Boomers (from ’46 to ’64), Gen X (from ’65 to ’80), Millenials (or Gen Y, from ’81 to ’96) and Gen Z (from ’97 to 2012), each of which brings with it profoundly different cultures, lifestyles, knowledge and experiences, coexist in the same workplace.
The Pirelli Annual Report 2023 recounts this multigenerational coexistence, - a true cohabitation, as suggested by the title "Cohabiting The Future - Dialogue Between Generations" - through the direct experience of the different generations present in the company and with textual and multimedia contributions by journalists, illustrators, essayists, poets and international authors.
The book features contributions by writer Douglas Coupland, anthropologist Ian Tattersall and geneticist Rob DeSalle, respectively curator emeritus and member of the entomology department of the American Museum of Natural History, philosopher of science and geneticist at the University of Padua Telmo Pievani and a poem by Italian poet Vivian Lamarque. The texts are accompanied by illustrations by Jean Michel Tixier, a French illustrator, comics enthusiast and entirely self-taught, who has dedicated an illustration to each generation.
Using the narrative format “A Breakfast With”, five colleagues from different generations were brought together in a dialogue on the meeting points and differences of their personal and working lives. The unusual encounter between generations - which gave rise to a video that is itself part of the Annual Report 2023 project - was moderated by journalist and TV presenter Alessio Viola, who also produced a text in which he recounts his first-hand experience and reflections on the encounter.
Letters to stakeholder
Jiao Jian
Chairman of the Board
Dear Stakeholder,
Since assuming the role of Chairman of Pirelli in August 2023, I have had the privilege of witnessing the great competence and resilience with which the company has navigated the complexities of the current global context, characterized by economic and geopolitical challenges, while maintaining its position as a leading technological innovator.
This all contributed to Pirelli recording an excellent financial performance in 2023 and successfully meeting its annual targets. Another key to this achievement was its effective execution of the strategic initiatives contained in the Industrial Plan (2021/2022-2025), which spans vital areas such as business model optimization, innovation, competitiveness, operational efficiency, and digitization. These initiatives have become crucial factors driving the company’s evolution and growth.
Alongside the pursuit of its financial goals, Pirelli continued with its strong commitment to sustainability, pushing forward with the decarbonization of the value chain and determinedly pursuing carbon neutrality by 2030. This effort was recognized when Pirelli obtained, among other awards, the highest overall score by far in the Auto Components and Automotive sectors on the 2023 S&P Global Dow Jones Sustainability Index and a place in the 2023 CDP Climate A list as a global leader in the fight against climate change. Establishing and maintaining this leadership gives the group a significant edge over competitors and is one of the factors ensuring future growth.
Looking beyond strictly business-related matters, Pirelli’s activities in the cultural sphere, which are an integral part of the company’s identity, benefit both the brand and the communities in which the company operates. The 2024 Pirelli calendar is a recent example with its beautiful images and socially engaging theme. The contributions of Pirelli Hangar Bicocca, the group’s world level contemporary art space, and the Fondazione Pirelli, which houses the archives of the company’s long history, are equally admirable.
As we look ahead to the coming years, through the lens of the successes of 2023, the group has demonstrated that it is on the right path, maintaining its strategic focus on the high end of the market and staying at the forefront of technological advancements. In essence, a path that builds on and extends Pirelli’s competitive advantage.
With the strength demonstrated in 2023, the excellence of its people and its impressive track record, there is every reason to believe in Pirelli’s continuing and growing success. This would not be possible, of course, without the effort and dedication of every “Pirelliano” and I wish to express my sincere respect to the management and all Pirelli employees.
Chairman of the Board
Andrea Casaluci
CEO
Dear Stakeholder,
The year 2023 was characterized by extreme macro-economic and geopolitical volatility. The context notwithstanding, we achieved results above expectations, exceeding for the first time the one-billion-euro level in Adjusted Ebit, with profitability at 15.1%, among the highest in the sector, and with a net cash flow before dividends of 509 million euro, which permitted a further reduction of financial leverage to 1.56 times Adjusted Ebitda.
These results were made possible by the constant commitment, competence and passion of everyone at Pirelli, the invaluable support of our stakeholders and a business model focused on High Value, inspired by the strategic vision of Executive Vice Chairman, Marco Tronchetti Provera, 20 years ago.
Looking at the future, we are living in a time of great changes in society and mobility, guided by digitalization and the need to contain climate change. Pirelli is facing this transformation in the knowledge that, together with challenges, responsibilities and duties, it also brings great opportunities linked to the product world (electric vehicles, connectivity, sensors to name just a few), processes and, above all, the manner in which we conceive of industry itself.
Pirelli’s distinctive drive to technological innovation puts the group among the protagonists transforming the automotive and mobility industries. One example is our Elect technology, applied to the entire family of products destined for electrified cars where today we are partners with all the Premium and Prestige carmakers, or CyberTyre, the sensor-fitted tyre which represents a significant competitive advantage in an ever more connected automotive world.
We will reinforce our global leadership in the High Value market at the same time setting ourselves the goal of remaining the sector’s reference point for the sustainable transition of products and the entire value chain. This in 2023 saw us improve in all areas of sustainability: on the environmental front, particularly, we are proud to have reached our CO2 reduction targets two years ahead schedule while pushing forward to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 and Net Zero in 2040, the most ambitious in our industry.
In addition, we will continue to sustain the strength of the brand through our presence in Motorsport, where we have renewed our contract as the sole supplier to Formula 1 until at least 2027, in sailing with Luna Rossa and Alla Grande Pirelli and in culture thanks to the Fondazione Pirelli, Pirelli HangarBicocca and the Pirelli Calendar.
Pirelli stands for innovation, passion, and an entrepreneurial culture. Values built on the strength of skill and commitment of the many colleagues who, from this year, I am thankful and honored to support in the role of Chief Executive Officer.
To them, and to you dear stakeholders, my deepest gratitude.
CEO
full document
Jean-Michel Tixier's illustrations
Passionate about comics and illustration since childhood, he is entirely self-taught. He began his career illustrating record covers for his friends’ music label, Record Makers, before his work attracted the attention of major labels and major publications. Jean-Michel Tixier draws inspiration for his irreverent universe from his favourite French, Belgian and Dutch illustrators (Joost Swarte, Serge Clerc, Hergé, Chaland…). With his style, solid colours and large cast of characters, his work undoubtedly belongs to the light line movement.
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A Breakfast with, five generations side-by-side
In this format, Pirelli involved five colleagues from different generations, who were brought together in a dialogue on the meeting points and differences of their personal and working lives. The unusual meeting between them was moderated by journalist and TV presenter Alessio Viola.
Read the text by Alessio ViolaThe five protagonists of our project
Traditionalist
"While the demonstrations were raging I met a girl and decided to get married at the age of 25. There used to be a will to build something of one’s own in the future, it was a more concrete thought that went beyond making noise in the street".
Baby Boomer
"I grew up in a period of history that was quite dramatic for our country, yet unlike the younger generation, the future was a promise. I felt like doing without the worry of not finding a place for me".
Generation X
"We strive to keep up, to bridge the generation gap in the use of new technologies and even if they are not completely part of who we are or what we do, we try. And above all, we do not give up".
Millenial
"We inherited on the one hand the rigor and tradition of the previous generations and on the other that sense of being able to balance private life and work that Generation Z has made its own. We represent the generation of transition".
Generation Z
"We spend entire evenings deciding which movie to watch that we often miss the movie itself. Our generation has access to such an infinite amount of information that we sometimes find it difficult to choose".