“I always try to do what I cannot do, in order to learn how to do it.”
Pablo Picasso

I am Francesco Raphaël Frieri, a public sector executive with experience leading complex organisations. My professional background brings together resource management, European policies, organisational innovation and digital transformation. I am interested in understanding how organisations can change by supporting their people and using data and technology to improve services, strengthen institutions and contribute to regional and local development.

Since January 2026, I have served as Director-General of Lepida ScpA, an in-house technology company serving the full network of public administrations in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. I am responsible for its overall management, in a context where artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, connectivity and large volumes of data are reshaping how public administrations operate and engage with citizens and businesses. In this role, technology governance goes hand in hand with financial sustainability, skills development and the quality of the public service user experience.

From March 2016 to 2025, I served as Director-General for Resources, European Affairs, Innovation and Institutions at the Emilia-Romagna Regional Government, also taking on the role of Chief Digital Officer. My responsibilities covered organisational management, human and financial resources, planning and control—including companies with public shareholdings—and European policies, funding and evaluation. My remit also included data governance, ICT and statistics, institutional reorganisation, property management, logistics and procurement. I represented the Region in national and European forums, including through the Conference of Regions and the activities of its Brussels office.

During those years, I worked on the digital and organisational transformation of the regional administration, bringing together technological innovation, work redesign, training and professional development. The introduction of AI architectures, smart working, collaboration around shared objectives and greater individual autonomy formed part of a broader effort to improve administrative capacity, productivity and organisational well-being.

Previously, I served for seven years as Director-General of the Union of Municipalities of Bassa Romagna. I promoted integration between administrations, joint service delivery and organisational change, working to combine efficiency, territorial cohesion and high-quality services for more than 100,000 citizens.

My professional career began in local government finance, as a member of Modena’s municipal executive responsible for budget and citizen participation and, subsequently, as the national lead for Local Government Finance at the Lega delle Autonomie Locali. I also worked on participatory policies, experimenting with consensus-building approaches and engaging directly with participatory budgeting initiatives in Porto Alegre in the early 2000s.

Alongside my executive responsibilities, I undertake university teaching and training and collaborate with scholars in organisation studies, public management and innovation. I work with Italian universities and research centres, regional administrations, local authorities and professional associations on digital transformation, organisational design, performance management and financial planning. I have also collaborated with ministerial working groups focused on innovation and the functioning of public administrations.

I am a member of the Steering Committee of AIMRC, the Artificial Intelligence Multidisciplinary Research Center at the University of Urbino, the Advisory Board of Fondazione Leonardo and the Scientific Committee of Andigel, the National Association of Directors-General.

In my essays and articles, I explore the relationship between technological innovation, work organisation and public value. I have written about the transformation of public administrations, smart working, organisational well-being, leadership, policy implementation capacity and territorial cohesion, publishing in academic journals and newspapers such as Il Sole 24 Ore and Domani.

More recently, I have focused on the adoption of generative artificial intelligence in public administrations. In 2026, I co-authored a study with Rebecca Levy Orelli in Public Money & Management on the impact of AI within the Emilia-Romagna Regional Government, examining its effects on productivity and the organisational conditions required for effective and informed use. This research explores the relationship between work redesign, professional skills and collaboration between people and large-scale models.

I have also extended my work on digital transformation to justice services and cultural organisations. My work on symphony orchestras has allowed me to connect innovation, leadership, listening and creativity, bringing together my professional interests and my passion for music.

Together with colleagues, I co-authored the books “Trasformazione Digitale & Smart Working nella Pubblica Amministrazione” (Maggioli, 2021) and “Le Unioni di Comuni” (Maggioli, 2012).

I hold a degree in Political Science from the University of Bologna, specialising in economics and public administration, and an Executive MBA from Bologna Business School. I continue my professional development through online programmes on artificial intelligence and its organisational and managerial applications, including those offered by the University of California, Berkeley and DeepLearning.AI.

I live in Modena and was born in Urbino, a city to which I remain deeply attached. I have a particular passion for astronomy, symphonic music and classical art.