University & Industry · Digitalisation · Territory
When university walks
into a company
with real challenges
Clerprem and the "Marco Fanno" Department of UniPD: a digital transformation case study entrusted to students. Real data, authentic competitive dynamics, a deliberately young company team.
What if your next university project were set inside a real company, tackling a real challenge? That is exactly the question Clerprem posed to students enrolled in MGD — Management of Digital Company & Platforms, a postgraduate course offered by the "Marco Fanno" Department of Economics and Business at the University of Padova, during the first quarter of 2026.
Not an exercise. An applicable case study
The difference between an academic exercise and a real case study does not lie in the frameworks used — it lies in the data. Clerprem shared with the university teams real figures, authentic competitive dynamics, and a strategy currently in motion. Not a simulation. A piece of the company placed in the hands of people studying to build the future — including ours.
Clerprem — an Italian company headquartered in Carrè (Vicenza), Tier 1 supplier to the automotive and railway sectors, with an international presence across four macro-regions — opened its doors to students to answer one precise question: how does a complex manufacturing company evolve within the digital economy and in the age of AI?
Two teams, two approaches, one shared goal
Students were divided into two groups, each assigned the same objective: design a roadmap and a medium-to-long-term strategic plan for Clerprem's digitalisation. Working alongside Professor Andrea Ganzaroli, both teams began from the same starting point — an honest picture of where the company stands today.
Starting point
Digital maturity assessment
Software systems in use, active integrations, strategic needs across Automotive and Railway markets. An honest snapshot of Clerprem's current state as the foundation for all subsequent work.
Final output
Phased digital transformation roadmap
From quick wins that can be implemented immediately, all the way to defining the To-Be digital platform — designed to position Clerprem competitively over the long term.
Analysis phase
Current state & digital maturity assessment
Mapping of existing systems, level of integration across departments and facilities, identification of digital gaps relative to Automotive and Railway sector benchmarks.
Strategic phase
Scenario analysis & AI opportunities
Exploration of how digitalisation and artificial intelligence could transform both the product and the competitive positioning of the company in its key markets.
Operational phase
Quick wins & action plan
Identification of high-impact, low-implementation-risk actions: priorities, responsibilities, timelines and resources required to move quickly without losing strategic coherence.
Final output
To-Be digital platform & timeline
A long-term vision of a digitally mature Clerprem: system architecture, monitoring KPIs, and precise steps to navigate change in a scalable, measurable way.
"The practical output remains internal property of the company and the university. That in itself is a strong signal: the work produced has real value — not merely academic value."
The real protagonist? A fresh perspective
There is one element that made the difference in this collaboration — and it is not a digital tool or a strategic framework. It is the freshness of thought that comes from engaging the generation about to enter the workforce.
The students brought new angles, sharp questions, interdisciplinary approaches, and a natural fluency with the digital world capable of challenging the "legacy bias" — that quiet internal voice that whispers: "this is how we've always done it."
Clerprem chose to respond in kind. The company team involved was young — by deliberate choice: to close the distance, speak the same language, and make the exchange genuinely authentic. Not students on one side and managers on the other — people in dialogue, on the same level, equally curious about where the market is heading and how to move within a large, complex organisation.
Why Clerprem chose to do this
Investing in a project like this is not straightforward. It takes time, trust, and a willingness to share sensitive information with people outside the organisation and outside the industry.
But Clerprem has a clear conviction: closing the gap between what is studied and what actually happens inside a company is a collective responsibility. Companies that want to grow must have the courage to own that responsibility — and to act as active promoters of the change.
This project is proof that it can be done. And that doing it well creates value for everyone involved.
What each party takes away
For the students
An experience that stays
The awareness of having worked on something with real, concrete impact. A real budget, a defined timeline, a live market to read — and the people who navigate those markets every day as interlocutors, not as case study subjects.
For Clerprem
An outside perspective
Stimulating and free from internal conditioning. And perhaps a few ideas that will continue to work quietly in the weeks ahead — the kind of contribution no consulting budget can reliably buy.
For the Marco Fanno Dept.
A confirmation
Education and industry are not parallel worlds — they are, or should be, the same story told from different angles. This project demonstrates that clearly.
A shared conviction
Clerprem and the "Marco Fanno" Department of UniPD share one belief: the professionals capable of leading change are not found — they are developed. Together.
Because the Italian manufacturing of the future is not built only on factory floors. It is also built in classrooms — when classrooms have the courage to open their windows to the real world.
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