Two Lives Both Parallel and Divergent: Pasquale Saraceno and Giorgio Fuà

Abstract

These biographical sketches of two well-known Italian public managers highlight both their similarities and their very different visions. The two protagonists acted in a scenario in which the challenge was to fill the development gap between countries. In the 1950s, the main instrument to cope with that challenge was the State intervention. Saraceno remained strictly coherent with this vision; its failure left him in a sort of intellectual desperation. Fuà, instead, was more careful to grasp the new aspects of the Italian economy, leading the way to the discovery of Italy’s industrial districts.