Leaders4Future
Third Sector Management and Innovation
The mission of Leaders4Future is to support Directors and Executive Directors in their leadership capacity, maximizing their impact on their organizations and on the Third Sector.
Leaders4Future represents the most in-depth systemic initiative ever undertaken in Europe for the development of top-level managers and their organizations.
The network has no representative function; on the contrary, it supports representative bodies (such as the Third Sector Forum, AOI, CINI, etc.). Its members include the General Directors of the main Italian organizations, coming from very diverse professional and personal backgrounds. Diversity is regarded as a plurality and a source of richness, grounded in the shared need to effectively manage one’s role, leadership, stakeholders (from Boards to Assemblies), and teams. In all cases, members are willing to: support one another, engage with trust, and reflect together on the development of the Third Sector.
Membership is by invitation only and requires the recommendation of at least two existing members.
The community (entirely secular and not affiliated with any entity other than the Third Sector) is based on a collaborative management model: for example, a problem encountered by one member has very likely already been addressed and solved by someone else; if a policy or KPIs need to be defined, members can rely on internal discussion or coordination support; if facing a new thematic area, they can engage with sector leaders who operate within it.
Together, we reflect on how to anticipate and manage trends (such as engagement and alignment with younger generations, institutional relations, new funding models, systemic crises) and on how to support representative networks while fostering the development of the Third Sector.
Leaders4Future operates in two ways:
Development of the professional and personal quality of Directors and Executive Directors (through peer exchange, leadership coaching, and knowledge sharing).
Development of member organizations: being part of the network provides a strong competitive advantage thanks to the unparalleled level of knowledge exchange and support. In particular, development initiatives and coaching programs for middle management are planned.
Development of the Third Sector (cultural and political influence, innovation, people management).
Regarding the third area, two system-wide initiatives are underway for 2025–2030:
Advancement of Women’s Leadership — Leading Together, Women Leadership Programme: the goal is to achieve over 50% female General Directors among the top 100 Italian organizations by 2030.
Talent Intelligence (acquisition and management): aimed at increasing the quality of HR departments and the level of internal talent through the initiative Space T — Talent Intelligence & Acquisition Lab, also based on AI methodologies for recruitment and people management.
The system-wide initiative for 2022–2025 on the introduction of Artificial Intelligence in the Italian Third Sector has now been completed.
The following are members of Leaders4Future:
Roberto Barbieri (OXFAM), Ileana Bello (Amnesty), Cristina Cornelli (Soleterre), Stefano Di Carlo (Médecins Sans Frontières), Daniela Fatarella (Save the Children), Francesco Farnesi (ENGIM), Paolo Ferrara (Terre des Hommes), Simone Garroni (Action Against Hunger), Guglielmo Micucci (AMREF), Rossella Miccio (Emergency), Francesca Ottolenghi (Legacoop-Halieus), Francesco Petrelli (OXFAM), Francesca Pieraccini (COSPE), Martina Pignatti Morano (Banca Etica), Stefano Piziali (CESVI), Alessandra Prampolini (WWF), Paolo Pastore (FAIRTRADE), Paolo Rozera (UNICEF), Giorgio Zampetti (Legambiente), Massimo Maggio (CBM Italia), Chiara Campione (Greenpeace Italia), Stefano Ottolini (Missoni Bambini), Katia Scannavini (ActionAid), Lorenzo Eusepi (ActionAid).
Marco Crescenzi (Founder and Coordinator – Social Change School and Crescenzi & Partners).
Our Community operates as follows:
It runs on a private chat (WhatsApp), a space dedicated to members — lively yet discreet — using thematic hashtags such as #Help (for support requests), #Alert (in case of political or media attacks, etc.), #Sharing (to share relevant content), and others. We even exchange birthday wishes — unusual, but… nice.
It has a members-only area with an archive of materials produced by the network.
We meet online for “Wednesdays Together” from 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM on the last Wednesday of each month, for discussion, partner presentations, and in-depth exchanges on specific topics.
Retreats: three full-immersion days per year of open or thematic discussion, held in Rome and Milan, with participation, lunch, and aperitif included in the annual membership fee (accommodation and travel not included).
Annual Conference of Italian Third Sector Executives, held in February and open to dialogue with other leaders.
Informal symposia — aperitifs or dinners hosted at members’ homes — two or three times per year.
Access to exclusive services or preferential conditions for members (and their organizations).
The network was founded and is coordinated by Marco Crescenzi and is supported by Social Change School.
Partners: Vita non Profit (S. Arduini), Impresa Sociale (G. Marocchi), Info-Cooperazione, Job4Good.
Membership and Requirements
- To ensure authentic and in-depth exchange, the number of participants was limited to 20 Directors in 2025 (fully booked) and to 25 in 2026 (5 places available for new members).
- Admission takes place upon the nomination of at least two members and in the absence of objections from at least two others. Marco Crescenzi collects suggestions from members regarding potential new candidates, meets them personally, gathers the required clearances, and formally proposes their membership.
- Membership is formalized by December, with validity from January 1 to December 31.
- The annual fee is €2,700.00 (VAT exempt and payable in two installments), to be covered by the member’s organization.
- Membership is limited to Directors, General Directors, and Secretaries General (or, exceptionally, Presidents only if they hold an operational role), who are willing to support one another, engage with trust, and reflect together on the development of the Third Sector.
- Everything originated from informal “Symposia” (hosted in members’ homes on a rotating basis), traditionally accompanied by prosecco — still considered “the oil in the engine” (therefore, being teetotal could pose a challenge).
- It is not for those who believe “we are different” and are unwilling to engage; who are not open to discovery, experimentation, and trust in colleagues; who behave as free riders; or who are interested only in their own competitive advantage and not in the development of the Third Sector.
