Finding yourself at the helm of a business
Ten CEO stories tell ten life stories
CEOs, yes, but first and foremost human beings, with all their dreams but also their problems, their aspirations and their anxieties. People who often find themselves unexpectedly running businesses and succeeding at it, driven by their innate sense of self. This is what Marco Rosetti, an entrepreneur with a background in industrial psychology, shares in ten interviews in his book ‘CEO per caso’ (CEO by accident), with a subtitle that speaks for itself: ‘Vite, imprese, probabilità’ (Lives, businesses, chances).
Rosetti explores territory that is rarely touched upon in the world of management: the role of chance, the unexpected, and vulnerability in the lives and careers of company leaders. As mentioned, he achieves this through a collection of ten authentic and face to face interviews with the CEOs of well-known companies such as Geox, Artsana and Omnicom Media Group Italy, who share their experiences of discontinuity, uncertainty and disorientation that led them to where they are today. So these are not stories of machines programmed for efficiency, but true stories of real people’s lives, which are all enlightening for those who read them.
They are about human beings grappling with the adventures of doing business.
However, all this comes with a warning: the book doesn’t aim to teach you how to become a CEO. Instead, it explores the value of intuition, adaptability, and imperfection in an age that celebrates control and planning. What’s more, the author considers how the digital economy legitimises what the traditional economy has always rejected. Success is not always the result of a linear trajectory or rational choices; sometimes, on the contrary, it stems from setbacks, coincidences and mistakes.
In the ten stories contained in the book, readers won’t find any acts of arrogance or presumption, but they will find ambition and willpower. Empathy is also evident, in the way people are involved in the projects, and loneliness during those final moments of decision-making (companies, however attentive to nuances and differences, ultimately require clear decisions). These are all attitudes, characteristics and ways of being that stem from an awareness of inevitable mistakes, limitations and frailties. Something we can all relate to during difficult times.
Marco Rosetti’s book is well worth reading. It helps to raise awareness of the fact that the lives of true entrepreneurs encompass much more than just efficiency and profit. They have a responsibility to act as social and cultural agents of change, driving progress and improvement in the world in which we live.
CEO per caso. Vite, imprese, probabilità
Marco Rosetti
Guerini Next, 2025
Ten CEO stories tell ten life stories
CEOs, yes, but first and foremost human beings, with all their dreams but also their problems, their aspirations and their anxieties. People who often find themselves unexpectedly running businesses and succeeding at it, driven by their innate sense of self. This is what Marco Rosetti, an entrepreneur with a background in industrial psychology, shares in ten interviews in his book ‘CEO per caso’ (CEO by accident), with a subtitle that speaks for itself: ‘Vite, imprese, probabilità’ (Lives, businesses, chances).
Rosetti explores territory that is rarely touched upon in the world of management: the role of chance, the unexpected, and vulnerability in the lives and careers of company leaders. As mentioned, he achieves this through a collection of ten authentic and face to face interviews with the CEOs of well-known companies such as Geox, Artsana and Omnicom Media Group Italy, who share their experiences of discontinuity, uncertainty and disorientation that led them to where they are today. So these are not stories of machines programmed for efficiency, but true stories of real people’s lives, which are all enlightening for those who read them.
They are about human beings grappling with the adventures of doing business.
However, all this comes with a warning: the book doesn’t aim to teach you how to become a CEO. Instead, it explores the value of intuition, adaptability, and imperfection in an age that celebrates control and planning. What’s more, the author considers how the digital economy legitimises what the traditional economy has always rejected. Success is not always the result of a linear trajectory or rational choices; sometimes, on the contrary, it stems from setbacks, coincidences and mistakes.
In the ten stories contained in the book, readers won’t find any acts of arrogance or presumption, but they will find ambition and willpower. Empathy is also evident, in the way people are involved in the projects, and loneliness during those final moments of decision-making (companies, however attentive to nuances and differences, ultimately require clear decisions). These are all attitudes, characteristics and ways of being that stem from an awareness of inevitable mistakes, limitations and frailties. Something we can all relate to during difficult times.
Marco Rosetti’s book is well worth reading. It helps to raise awareness of the fact that the lives of true entrepreneurs encompass much more than just efficiency and profit. They have a responsibility to act as social and cultural agents of change, driving progress and improvement in the world in which we live.
CEO per caso. Vite, imprese, probabilità
Marco Rosetti
Guerini Next, 2025