Abstract

The aim of the paper is to discuss the causes of the relative backwardness observed in some regions of Central and Northern Italy over the past two decades, with specific reference to Marche. Between 2000 and 2019, GDP per capita in real terms fell by almost 3 percent in the regions of the center compared with slight growth in those of the north. The regions of central Italy have experienced a general weakening of their driving force compared to the northern regions and the fading of what in the mid-1970s was christened the «Adriatic Road to Development», within which Marche was the most dynamic region. The analysis of the causes takes into consideration the characteristics of the manufacturing business system starting from the assumption that the manufacturing system is the main driver of development and income creation when sufficiently large territorial areas are taken into consideration. The explanation for the loss of dynamism observed in the last two decades emphasizes two aspects, which are interrelated: on the one hand, the failure to solve the size issue of enterprises, i.e., the excessive weight of employment in micro and small enterprises; on the other hand, the persistent backwardness of organizational and governance models affecting both small and large enterprises. The structural weakness of large enterprises is associated with the lack of attention paid by industrial policies to them. In this regard, the paper considers the evolution of the white goods sector, which is particularly relevant in the region, and which has seen employment levels halved over the past two decades. The crisis in this sector is emblematic of both the shortcomings in the strategies and governance models of large companies, many of which have been liquidated or sold to foreign groups, and the absence of effective industrial policies in the sector.