Erika joined Nexi when it was still CartaSi – Gruppo Icbpi in 2017 and contributed to the development of the new Group positioning, as well as creating the Nexi brand. Today she is in charge of all marketing communication activities for Nexi in Italy and across Europe, also supporting the Distribution Partner Banks in their communication initiatives related to credit cards and digital payments.
Since the beginning of 2023 she has been appointed Chairwomen of the Nexi ESG Community. She is also a founding member of Women Empowerment Program, a mentorship program for women leadership involving 28 companies and nearly 200 senior and junior managers.
Nexi Group and ESG: from corporate sustainability to everyday business sustainability
Nexi is Europe’s PayTech company operating in high-growth and technologically advanced European markets. Listed on the Euronext Milan stock exchange, Nexi has the scale, geographic reach and abilities to drive the transition to a cashless Europe. With its portfolio of innovative payment solutions, from traditional in-store acceptance terminals to e-commerce, omnichannel and industry-specific solutions, Nexi provides flexible support for merchants, retailer and banks to increase digitization of the shopping and payment experiences. We believe that every payment will be digital, because it’s simpler, safer and more practical for everyone. This is why we work every day to support the technological evolution of merchants and consumers in their daily shopping experiences.
Digital payments are per se a support to social progress reducing cost of cash, contributing to digitization and tax loyalty, but talking about social commitments Nexi formalized its ESG strategy in 2022, as one of the pillars of the strategic plan approved by the Board of Directors and communicated to the market at the Capital Market Day. The strategy is based on six pillars, which include various commitments and goals.
Among the many activities Nexi is focused on reaching carbon neutrality by 2030 and on creating a full sustainable supply chain. Our commitment for the environment goes beyond the good corporate behaviours and practices, this is why we have decided to use recycled materials and ocean-plastic materials for the production of payment cards and also to stimulate end-customers in growing awareness in their everyday purchases. Recently we have introduced in our payment app, the carbon calculator, which allow customers to assess the level of their carbon footprint on a monthly base of all their shopping paid by cards.
Thanks to several partnerships with trade associations and secondary schools, the Group invests in educational initiatives for the digital and financial inclusion of small businesses, as well as teenagers, based on the core concept that digital payments strongly contribute to progress and to the improvement of the relationship between merchants and customers. In the context of strong growth of digital transactions, Nexi is also committed to data and information security, raising awareness among its customers and end users about the threats of the virtual world and continuous investments in technology to enhance service quality and to mitigate the risk of fraud.
Following the merger with SIA and Nets in 2021, Nexi expanded in new geographies adding extraordinary resources and skills in the field of digital technology and innovation and gradually evolving into a diverse organization in terms of professional and cultural background, including diversity of skills, gender and age. Given this new shape the Group is more than ever committed to creating a dynamic, diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels welcome and able to express their full potential based on their skills, passions, competencies and background. Every single one of our over 10,000 employees dislocated in 25 countries plays a key role in achieving the Group’s ambition to shape the future of digital payments across Europe.
The great diversity of nationalities and cultures within the Group, is one of the reasons why Nexi is working hard to strengthen and promote diversity, equity and inclusion and leverages also on dedicated employee communities to achieve these goals.
At the beginning of 2023 the ESG Community, I am proud to lead, came into life. We have engaged more than 150 colleagues, who are passionate about ESG topics and contribute actively to making sure that Nexi ESG strategy is known and resonant throughout the Group and externally.
Recently the Group Diversity Equity and Inclusion Board (DEI Board) was created to drive the company’s agenda on these topics as well as to set priorities and activities aimed at creating an inclusive culture that represents a strategic value in terms of competitiveness as well as attractiveness for talents. The DEI Board focuses on key structural elements, such as hiring, reward and succession policies, unconscious bias trainings, mentorship programs.
Looking ahead to 2023, our main goal will be to further consolidate our ESG and DE&I commitments, to track our progress very closely, as well as to further empower all the internal communities, related to ESG, Women leadership and LGBT+ inclusion throughout the Group. We believe that only through the participation of most of our people at Nexi we’ll manage to generate a significant impact on they way people pay or accept payments and on society, contributing to everyone’s progress.