CEOInterviews.AI
Start App
Benedetto Vigna
Benedetto Vigna RACE
Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Ferrari
Watch

Fireside chat with Benedetto Vigna (CEO Ferrari)

📅 Jul 02, 2026 Anthony Ritossa - Global Family Office Summits 24 MIN 17 VIEWS 30 SEGMENTS · 2 SPEAKERS
JUNE 23-25, 2026.

What Benedetto Vigna said

Written from the verified transcript and checked against it. Every figure links to the moment it was said.

Benedetto Vigna, CEO of Ferrari, discussed his transition from a 25-year career in semiconductors to leading Ferrari, emphasizing creativity and emotional value over functionality. He described his first 100 days, during which he held open discussions with 300 employees and flattened the organization from nine levels to five. Vigna highlighted the challenge of balancing tradition and innovation, warning against arrogance in strong brands. He detailed sustainability efforts, including cutting CO2 emissions by half in four years, aiming for a tenfold reduction by 2030, and using only recycled aluminum in Maranello. He addressed Formula 1's budget cap and its role in testing technology and building relationships. Vigna announced a vocational school in Maranello opening in 2029, and clarified a charity raffle for a Ferrari, with proceeds going to the M-Tech project.

Key takeaways

  1. Ferrari flattened its organization from nine levels to five after Vigna's first 100 days.
  2. Ferrari cut CO2 emissions from operations by half in four years, targeting a tenfold reduction by 2030.
  3. Ferrari uses no primary aluminum in Maranello, recycling 1,000 tons of aluminum.
  4. Ferrari will open a vocational school in Maranello in 2029, 100 years after Scuderia Ferrari started.
  5. A charity raffle offers a Ferrari for 10,000 euros per ticket, with proceeds going to the M-Tech project.

Numbers and commitments

FigureWhat it refers toTypeAt
300 people Employees Vigna held one-hour open discussions with in his first 100 days metric 4:43
factor of ten by 2030 Target reduction in CO2 emissions from operations guidance 9:46
1,000 tons Aluminum recycled that had been thrown away metric 9:46
25% Target reduction in emissions from suppliers guidance 9:46
2029 Year Ferrari will open a vocational school in Maranello timeline 14:25
10,000 euros Price per ticket for the charity raffle for a Ferrari price 17:54
100 tickets Number of raffle tickets available for the Ferrari metric 17:54

Chapters

  1. 0:00Career transition to Ferrari
  2. 4:43First 100 days and organizational changes
  3. 7:37Balancing tradition and innovation
  4. 9:46Sustainability and humility
  5. 14:25Formula 1 and future investments
  6. 17:54Charity raffle for Ferrari

Questions asked in this interview

3
  1. 4:37So, what was the first thing you did when you joined Ferrari?
  2. 7:31So, what are the main challenges you're facing in Ferrari?
  3. 21:23You get the money for the car?
Adi 0:10 ↗
We have something very interesting here. I know Benedetto almost 25 years. He used to work with the ships microchips company called RS Electro, and we did a project in Bahrain with Eni and Termomeccanica. He was supposed to be the project manager, but he loved that company and stayed over 25 years. Then he got headhunted by Ferrari. I was expecting him to be like me, with a red heart, but he came in a classical suit. We'll have a nice session. I'll start with his profile and history.
Benedetto Vigna 1:30 ↗
Thank you all for being here. We organized this on a Friday evening.
Adi 1:34 ↗
Friday evening.
Benedetto Vigna 1:35 ↗
I was coming back from the US.
Adi 1:36 ↗
That's impossible, you know.
Benedetto Vigna 1:38 ↗
Friday evening, basically we organized it over the weekend. We found this car to show you, one of our latest born. I worked in a different world for 25 years, dealing with a client whose product is on the table now. With a fantastic team, we started a new business from zero to over $6 billion per year, selling 50 billion sensors that go into every phone. People said there was no market, but now there are 20 sensors per phone. We expanded into cars, space, healthcare, and industrial. But eventually, clients started treating us semiconductor people like slaves, telling us what to do. I didn't feel creative, so when Ferrari offered me this job, I took it. Here, we can be creative and innovative, focusing on the emotional side of the product. Ferrari is emotionally useful, not just functional. My wife said I went from a black-and-white picture to a colored picture. I've been at Ferrari for five years now, very happy. I transitioned from B2B to B2C, which I find more rewarding. I came here because Adi invited me.
Adi 4:37 ↗
So, what was the first thing you did when you joined Ferrari?
Benedetto Vigna 4:43 ↗
I remembered advice from a former CEO: talk to the people. So in my first 100 days, I scheduled one-hour open discussions with 300 people. I asked them, 'If you were in my shoes, what would you do to improve the company?' Many had never spoken to the CEO before. Based on their feedback, I flattened the organization from nine levels to five. I brought the test drivers closer to me because they understand how the car behaves better than engineers. Innovation must start with the client. Enzo Ferrari was a racer, not an engineer. Steve Jobs was not an engineer. Technology is important only if it addresses real needs or delights the client. A leader must dare and move the flag of innovation forward.
Adi 7:31 ↗
So, what are the main challenges you're facing in Ferrari?
Benedetto Vigna 7:37 ↗
The main challenge is blending tradition and innovation. We must be relevant for today and for the next generation. Italy values the past with 61 UNESCO sites, but we must also invest in the future. A company that only values the past becomes a museum; one that only looks to the future disrespects the past. We need both. For example, when asked to bring a car, I brought one traditional and one forward-looking, because different clients have different needs.
Adi 9:22 ↗
Great. Ferrari is all about innovation, sustainability, co-prosperity, humbleness, and humanity. I'd like to talk about that.
Benedetto Vigna 9:46 ↗
You touched on three important things: sustainability, innovation, and humility. In my previous job, I worked with strong brands. A risk for strong brands is arrogance. When a company becomes arrogant, it stops listening, and suppliers no longer love you. You become less innovative. I've experienced this. You need to do more than you're paid for. Success comes from all stakeholders. Regarding sustainability, I say 'green is black' because it can benefit the bottom line. For instance, we cut CO2 emissions from our operations by a factor of two in four years, aiming for a factor of ten by 2030. We recycled 1,000 tons of aluminum that had been thrown away. We challenged the belief that recycled aluminum can't be used in engines. Now we use no primary aluminum in Maranello. We also installed fuel cells and solar panels. We'll cut emissions from suppliers by 25%. Humility means listening to the signals around you.
Adi 14:03 ↗
Before we go to humanitarian reasons, briefly tell us about Formula 1. I heard you spend 700 million euros per year on races.
Benedetto Vigna 14:25 ↗
Formula 1 expenses are regulated by a budget cap, so it's not a free-for-all. For Ferrari, being in sports means three things. First, it reminds us that you can win one weekend and lose the next, so you must stay alert and never take success for granted. Second, it allows us to test technology without homologation for road cars; innovation in F1 moves faster and can be transferred. Third, it's a global platform that helps us build technical and human relationships with partners. We also invest in health and education in our territory. We announced that in 2029, 100 years after Scuderia Ferrari started, we will open a vocational school in Maranello that teaches both brain and hand skills.

15 more exchanges in this transcript

Sign in free to read the rest of this interview. No card required.

Sign in to read the full transcript

Cite this transcript

APA, MLA, BibTeX
APA

Vigna, B. (2026, July 2). Fireside chat with Benedetto Vigna (CEO Ferrari) [Interview transcript]. Anthony Ritossa - Global Family Office Summits. CEOInterviews.AI. https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1055297/

MLA

Benedetto Vigna. "Fireside chat with Benedetto Vigna (CEO Ferrari)." Anthony Ritossa - Global Family Office Summits, 2 Jul. 2026. Transcript, CEOInterviews.AI, https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1055297/.

BibTeX 
@misc{vigna2026_1055297,
  author       = {Benedetto Vigna},
  title        = {Fireside chat with Benedetto Vigna (CEO Ferrari)},
  howpublished = {Interview transcript, Anthony Ritossa - Global Family Office Summits. CEOInterviews.AI},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = {jul},
  url          = {https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1055297/},
  note         = {Speaker-attributed transcript with timestamps}
}