August 19, 1985 > August 19, 2024: IBSA talks about itself, waiting to celebrate its 40 years

Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Thus, quoting Steve Jobs, we can say that, in the forty years of IBSA’s history, there has been plenty of courage. Starting from its founder, Arturo Licenziati, President and CEO.

GOING OVER THE PAST WITH A LOOK AT THE FUTURE

With the acquisition of the Ticino company Institut Biochimique SA, which took place on August 19, 1985, IBSA’s President and CEO began what would become a professional and human experience for the talented and young women and men who embraced the project, eager to experience successes and new goals.

Pending the celebration of IBSA’s first 40 years in 2025, if we look at the past we realise how important were the People who have come on board since the beginning of this adventure. The adventure of a company which, from a small reality with around 40 employees, has become a multinational with over 2,300 collaborators, gradually attaining a meaningful role in the international pharmaceutical scenario.

The account of this news (already proposed in 2022 with two historic news, part 1 and part 2), takes us into a world of emotions and memories, recalling the stories of the first people who started working at IBSA. Life stories that make the History – with a capital H – of a company that has grown and is preparing to celebrate its fortieth anniversary.

WHEN ROOTS ARE STRONG

A lot has changed since August 1985: technology, globalisation, expansion towards new markets and new cultures. What hasn’t changed, however, is the pioneering spirit.

That distinctive trait of a company that puts the person and the working environment at the centre is present in all IBSA People today. From Technical Services to Quality Control and Assurance, from office and commercial roles to the scientific sector, the building blocks of that DNA continue to be passed on, without getting lost with time and generations.

This is testified by the narratives of Monia Pieroni, Maria Teresa Gilardoni Buono, Rosalba Brogna, Stefano Rovati and Michela Lazzaroni, which take us back in time to the beginnings of an adventure characterised by challenging moments, great satisfaction and profound human relationships; and strong ones too, similar to those of a large family.

Monia Pieroni, today Sr. R&D Technician, has been one of the first to join IBSA. She vividly remembers the almost family atmosphere and the small work group she started working with:

We had a white counter with square tiles, there were only six or seven people. I knew everyone and it was like being in a big family.

Hired at IBSA shortly after, Maria Teresa Gilardoni Buono, currently Packaging Line Leader Operator, recalls the importance of human relationships:

There were no separate departments; we all worked together and talked to each other constantly. This allowed us to make decisions quickly and feel part of a single project.

The speed and effectiveness of internal communications, in fact, were crucial in those years of rapid growth and transformation.

Rosalba Brogna, Orders Closing Operator, another of IBSA’s pioneers, emphasises how expansion has never compromised the company’s core values:

Even as the company was growing, we maintained a strong human connection. Many of us stayed for decades, and that only happens when one feels valued and respected.

And again, Stefano Rovati, Sr. R&D Scientific Affairs Manager, who over the years has trained several generations of young collaborators, recalls:

I always appreciated IBSA’s focus on personal and professional growth. It was – and remains – a place where you can truly grow and make your contribution.

ATTENTION TO DETAILS: ELEGANCE AND SIMPLICITY ARE IN THE DNA

Among the distinctive features of IBSA, as highlighted by the people interviewed, attention to detail and a taste for beauty play a role which seems to have left its mark.

Michela Lazzaroni, Raw Materials Purchasing Manager, recounts with a smile Arturo Licenziati’s passion for flowers (or rather, for some specific flowers):

Roses have always been a personal pleasure of Dr. Licenziati. I remember the presence of bouquets of roses in the switchboard from my first days of work at IBSA: every Monday there were always new roses to welcome us. “After all, I’m a romantic”, Licenziati would always say. Once, aiming to make an impression, we tried to replace them with a beautiful vase of orchids; they were amazing! But as soon as Dr. Licenziati saw them, he immediately had us restore the classic... roses.

An anecdote that once again highlights the elegance, the attention to detail and the taste for beauty – and, in a sense, also the simplicity and perseverance that permeated the company since the end of the 1980s.

AN UNWANTED AND UNEXPECTED TURNING POINT

The year 1999 arrived; more than a decade had passed since its birth and IBSA had grown, but there was a twist: a fire forced the company to transfer part of its production from the historic headquarters in Massagno to Manno (still in Canton Ticino). 

However, in IBSA’s culture, threats become opportunities. In fact, this event turned out to be a great opportunity to modernise and expand the structures and prepare for the digital wave that the future had in store. 

Monia Pieroni recalls that moment: 

The fire coincided with a technological leap. We switched from using manual tools to computerised systems, significantly improving our efficiency.

A technological step that would allow IBSA to renew itself and – thanks also to this traumatic event – to expand globally. 

Indeed, despite its growth and globalisation, IBSA has kept its values intact. The stories of Monia, Michela, Teresa, Rosalba and Stefano show us, in fact, to what extent the success of a company is measured by people rather than numbers.