Learning how to do business
Research that has become a thesis explores the ways in which know-how can be passed on
Business traditions turn into a culture to be handed down and teachings that help establish new companies. This is what can often be achieved when we manage to weave a thread that brings together past and present while looking to the future. And it is what Andrey Felipe Sgorla relates with his research, which now forms a thesis presented at the University of Siena’s Department of Social, Political and Cognitive Sciences.
“Bottle-Fermented Craftsmanship: Business Practices Linked to Passion, Work and the Local Area” is in fact a piece of research that addresses the topic of building new forms of work. Its starting point is the experience of craft brewers, seeking to understanding the relationship between learning, professional pathways and entrepreneurship in the context of the craft economy. This example can tell us much in general terms about the need to create job opportunities in an economic and social system in difficulty.
The development and growth of microbreweries, explains Sgorla, are an opportunity for
entrepreneurship in the craft sector, as they provide a growth area for
entrepreneurs seeking to create and promote high-quality products,
while leveraging local resources and contributing to the economic dynamism
of local areas. More generally, this case study makes it possible to study the process of
incorporating specialised knowledge, skills and expertise that takes place
through working practices. And all without neglecting the opportunity to understand the path to learning a previously unknown trade, of exploring a conjoining aspect of the local economy and its link with the area. In addition to all this, as the author is at pains to point out, the experience of craft brewers is part of a global phenomenon of individuals deciding to invest in new craft professions and give a fresh direction to their lives – a choice guided by autonomy, flexibility, pleasure and passion for their
work. And, on closer inspection, these are all important characteristics for anyone wanting to go into business.
Andrey Felipe Sgorla, however, looks at brewers and how they pass on their knowledge, starting from an exploration of contemporary craftsmanship before taking an in-depth look at the themes of training, professionalism and entrepreneurship. Subsequently, the research delves into both craftsmanship and the topic of know-how, before looking at the themes of collaborative innovation and storytelling. And it is precisely from narrating know-how that the potential for handing down trades that then become business opportunities begins to take shape.
Andrey Felipe Sgorla’s research is an example of how you can draw general guidelines from a particular case study.
L’artigianato fermentato in bottiglia: pratiche di imprenditorialità legate alla passione, al lavoro e al territorio (Bottle-Fermented Craftsmanship: Business Practices Linked to Passion, Work and the Local Area)
Andrey Felipe Sgorla
Thesis, University of Siena, Department of Social, Political and Cognitive Sciences, PhD in Learning and Innovation in Society and Work, “XXXVI°CICLO”, 2024
Research that has become a thesis explores the ways in which know-how can be passed on
Business traditions turn into a culture to be handed down and teachings that help establish new companies. This is what can often be achieved when we manage to weave a thread that brings together past and present while looking to the future. And it is what Andrey Felipe Sgorla relates with his research, which now forms a thesis presented at the University of Siena’s Department of Social, Political and Cognitive Sciences.
“Bottle-Fermented Craftsmanship: Business Practices Linked to Passion, Work and the Local Area” is in fact a piece of research that addresses the topic of building new forms of work. Its starting point is the experience of craft brewers, seeking to understanding the relationship between learning, professional pathways and entrepreneurship in the context of the craft economy. This example can tell us much in general terms about the need to create job opportunities in an economic and social system in difficulty.
The development and growth of microbreweries, explains Sgorla, are an opportunity for
entrepreneurship in the craft sector, as they provide a growth area for
entrepreneurs seeking to create and promote high-quality products,
while leveraging local resources and contributing to the economic dynamism
of local areas. More generally, this case study makes it possible to study the process of
incorporating specialised knowledge, skills and expertise that takes place
through working practices. And all without neglecting the opportunity to understand the path to learning a previously unknown trade, of exploring a conjoining aspect of the local economy and its link with the area. In addition to all this, as the author is at pains to point out, the experience of craft brewers is part of a global phenomenon of individuals deciding to invest in new craft professions and give a fresh direction to their lives – a choice guided by autonomy, flexibility, pleasure and passion for their
work. And, on closer inspection, these are all important characteristics for anyone wanting to go into business.
Andrey Felipe Sgorla, however, looks at brewers and how they pass on their knowledge, starting from an exploration of contemporary craftsmanship before taking an in-depth look at the themes of training, professionalism and entrepreneurship. Subsequently, the research delves into both craftsmanship and the topic of know-how, before looking at the themes of collaborative innovation and storytelling. And it is precisely from narrating know-how that the potential for handing down trades that then become business opportunities begins to take shape.
Andrey Felipe Sgorla’s research is an example of how you can draw general guidelines from a particular case study.
L’artigianato fermentato in bottiglia: pratiche di imprenditorialità legate alla passione, al lavoro e al territorio (Bottle-Fermented Craftsmanship: Business Practices Linked to Passion, Work and the Local Area)
Andrey Felipe Sgorla
Thesis, University of Siena, Department of Social, Political and Cognitive Sciences, PhD in Learning and Innovation in Society and Work, “XXXVI°CICLO”, 2024