Rome, August 1, 2025 – In a recent interview, Emanuele Candela, CEO of the Soft Strategy Group, discussed the Group’s evolution and strategic direction. He also expressed his satisfaction with its financial performance. Revenue exceeded €70 million in 2024, while growth continued during the first months of 2025.
The conversation focused on the complementary capabilities of Soft Strategy and Nethex. Together, the two companies combine Consulting, Technology, and Operations to deliver tailored, high-value solutions to clients. As a result, this integrated approach is strengthening the Group’s position in both Italian and international markets.
Candela also discussed the Group’s growth and the skills that will shape its future. In addition, he explored the opportunities created by automation and artificial intelligence.
Consulting, Technology, and Operations are three complementary areas of the Group. What are the critical success factors for creating genuine synergy across them?
What matters most to me is ensuring effective collaboration across the different areas of Soft Strategy and Nethex. Therefore, I spend a significant amount of time working with my team. My goal is to ensure that information flows effectively and everyone feels actively involved in achieving our shared objectives.
As a company grows, strong collaboration across all areas of the business becomes increasingly important. For this reason, I firmly believe in teamwork.
In recent years, the Group has launched new business lines, developed new services, and acquired companies. At the same time, it has achieved significant revenue growth. Which milestones are you most proud of?
We constantly focus on understanding our clients’ needs. However, we also aim to identify needs they may not yet have expressed. In this way, we can anticipate the solutions they will require. At the same time, we continue to measure ourselves against the market and our competitors.
Every milestone is a source of pride for us. This includes winning a tender, successfully completing a project, securing funding, or receiving positive feedback from a client.
Paradoxically, even our mistakes are important. Each one becomes part of a learning process that allows us to grow and improve.
How would you describe a typical day?
I try to follow a 40-30-30 rule:
- 40% of my time is dedicated to clients;
- 30% is dedicated to the team;
- 30% is dedicated to administrative responsibilities.
At the end of each week, I take a moment to review how I have spent my time. With only a few exceptions, the breakdown usually reflects this rule.
Soft Strategy and Nethex continue to grow year after year. Which key indicators best illustrate the Group’s growth and evolution?
I am very proud of the growth we have achieved. We closed 2024 with revenue exceeding €70 million. Moreover, the first half of 2025 produced very positive results. In fact, revenue grew by approximately 20% compared with the same period of the previous year.
The number of clients choosing to work with us is also increasing year after year.
What is your leadership philosophy? How do you apply it in your daily work with employees?
My leadership philosophy is based on two principles: a strong focus on objectives and effective collaboration.
Throughout my career, I have always believed in collaboration and open information sharing. Consequently, I try to encourage both as much as possible. After all, meaningful results can only be achieved by working together.
What are the most important qualities you would look for today in a young professional entering the industry?
Flexibility is essential. When I started my career, we all worked together in the office or at client sites. Today, however, hybrid and remote work have changed many of those dynamics. Therefore, we need to adapt without moving from one extreme to the other.
Technical skills can be developed over time. Flexibility, on the other hand, is an essential quality that comes more naturally to some people than to others.
What new opportunities do you see emerging from the rise of AI and automation?
We strongly believe in the potential of these technologies, and the wider market shares this confidence. For this reason, we established a Competence Center in Bari, where the Group already has a significant presence.
The center is developing several AI-powered solutions, particularly in the field of Generative AI. Our goal is twofold. First, we want to enhance the competitiveness of the services we provide. Second, we aim to bring greater innovation to our value proposition.
To support this development, we plan to hire more than 50 professionals. The new team will include both senior and junior specialists.
Will the Group continue its international expansion in the coming years? Do you see opportunities to establish a presence in additional countries?
Absolutely. Following our expansion into Romania two years ago, we approved the opening of a new office in Saudi Arabia.
Over the past few months, I have personally traveled to Riyadh several times. The market offers significant opportunities. Moreover, engaging with people from different cultures is always incredibly stimulating.
What is the most useful piece of advice you have received during your career?
It has also become one of my personal mantras: if God gave us two ears and only one mouth, there must be a reason.
What is one bold decision you would make again without hesitation?
Rather than describing it as a bold decision, I would simply call it a choice I would gladly make again: joining this Group.
That decision was made more than ten years ago. Looking back, however, it has truly been an extraordinary journey. I have shared it with remarkable people and outstanding professionals, and I am grateful for them every day.
Which skills will become increasingly important in the future?
Technical expertise will be fundamental. AI is already changing the way we work. Therefore, knowing how to use it effectively will become a critical success factor.
Beyond technical capabilities, adaptability and empathy will also become increasingly valuable.
What advice would you give today to the person you were when you first started your career?
I would tell myself to have the same patience that I now ask of the colleagues I work with.
How would you describe Soft Strategy and Nethex in just one word?
I will use two: collaboration and respect.