The lesson that we draw from the Vespa example highlights two ingredients that, still today, are crucial for successful innovations: human capital and what can be called “managerial capital”, i.e. the availability of managers with a risk taking attitude, able to use the latest technology, and capable to think out of the box.
While it is difficult to maintain a high propensity to innovate in ageing societies, naturally tending to be averse to “the new”, this is a key challenge for policy, and it requires to keep investing to strengthen the education system at all levels and to promote an entrepreneurial culture in the population, especially among the youths.