Founded in December 2018, Assobenefit is the Italian association of the Società Benefit (SB) — companies that have embed social and environmental objectives directly into their business model and company’s purpose statement. The SB model was introduced in Italy with the Law No. 208/2015 making Italy the first sovereign country in the world to adopt this specific legislation.
This step paved the way for a new economic paradigm based on transparency, responsibility, and impact measurement.
Società Benefit: 10 years of growing development
In Italy, the number of Società Benefit is more than 5,500 companies and continues to grow steadily. “The law attracts interest because the model is both virtuous and credible,” notes Mr Marco Morganti, President of Assobenefit. “An increasing number of Italian companies, including multi-utilities, are choosing this model to formalize medium to long-term objectives and report on them publicly. Purpose-driven companies address the most pressing challenges – both social and environmental – through their core business activities while the legal framework provides a strategic and transparent corporate structure that translates corporate social responsibility into concrete commitments, coherent actions, and measurable results.”
New challenges: triggering large-scale change
Ten years after the introduction of the legislation, the challenge now is to consolidate the system. “We need a shared set of guidelines capable of strengthening commitments and reducing the risk of ‘washing’ practices,” Morganti emphasizes. For this reason, the association has launched a working group involving benefit companies to define common standards. The goal is to foster a “horizontal acceleration” of the SB model — not only along supply chains but also across territories—by connecting companies and local districts to generate systemic impact. From this perspective, alongside public action financed by general taxation, a second lever of collective interest may emerge: entrepreneurs who invest in long-term projects in dialogue with local communities as well as the public sector.
The role of Assobenefit
In this context, Assobenefit strengthens its role as a common home for member companies. The association supports scientific research, promotes dialogue with institutions, and accompanies the evolution of the purpose-driven model through national and international partnerships, offering member companies a space for exchange on common purpose, impact assessment, and communication.
Within the association operate a Scientific Committee and several working groups focused on implementing the SB model and its regulatory framework. Training and networking activities connect member companies to share and disseminate best practices, while the National Day of Società Benefit has become the principal annual event and the leading forum for dialogue between businesses, the financial sector, and public decision-makers.
The importance of joining
The aim is ambitious yet tangible: to transform purpose-driven companies from a virtuous experience into a stable and widely established business model within the Italian economy — one capable of connecting supply chains, local communities, and civil society within a competitive and resilient ecosystem.
With this objective in mind, Assobenefit invites all purpose-driven companies to join the association. Becoming a member of Assobenefit means contributing to a cohesive entrepreneurial network that safeguards the identity of the model, promotes its evolution, strengthens institutional recognition, and reinforces the role of benefit companies as responsible actors — made up of people and human value.