Filippo Maria Zanetti is a junior controller in our Finance & Controlling team
Tell us about your background and how you came to work for BonelliErede.
I was born and raised in Varese. After graduating in economics from the University of Milan, I started working as an accountant in a small company, where I ended up staying for about three years.
I joined BonelliErede at the end of 2018: after my time at a small, local company, I was looking for new challenges and stimuli, so BonelliErede’s international reach was one of the first things that attracted me. Four years on, I am pleased to say my initial feeling couldn’t have been more spot-on, as I found a completely different world than what I was used to!
Working here has enabled me to grow my expertise of management control, take things up a few notches in terms of quality, and put myself to the test in a more structured and organised environment that provides numerous opportunities.
My duties in the Finance & Controlling team concern the management of the BonelliErede offices outside Italy. This entails dealing with different worlds, not only in terms of work (each country has its own rules) but also culture.
Since I joined the firm, my work has taken me on several trips to our offices outside Italy. This is another aspect of my job that I love and that meets the need to ‘bring myself out of my shell’ that I felt when I started working here. Plus, not many people my age have the chance to go to Dubai or Cairo!
How is your team structured?
The 10-strong Finance & Controlling team is divided into two sub-groups: I’m in the group that deals with financial statements and finance; the other group handles aspects linked to partner performance and helps process data regarding BonelliErede’s revenue trends.
Although each group deals with different – albeit complementary – aspects, we’re a close-knit team and always try to coordinate our work and give each other encouragement when needed! We’re also a very young team – at 29, I’m one of the oldest! We like to spend some of our free time together after work and play a round of table football when taking a break at the office.
In addition to working in a diverse team, BonelliErede has given me the opportunity to face situations that I perhaps wouldn’t have seen in a smaller firm or company.
Just to give you an example, I was part of the team involved in setting up some of our offices outside Italy, which means I’ve been able to watch them grow. Being involved from the very start was and continues to be a priceless training opportunity, as it would be for anyone in my line of work.
Generally speaking, it is also interesting to adapt my profession to the specific needs of a law firm, as opposed to a company, and see day by day how my team provides strategic support in carrying out analyses, making decisions, and thus contributing to firm-wide objectives. It is a responsibility and an opportunity that I would be unlikely to come across elsewhere.
What do you like to do when you’re not busy crunching numbers?
Since I was a child, I’ve been a huge fan of basketball – a must in Varese! – and comics ranging from Japanese manga to European and American graphic novels.
I have cultivated these interests on and off over the years. I used to ‘hit the hardwood’ in my province until a short time ago, when I switched to being a mere spectator. When we were all confined to our homes for so long during the lockdowns, I went back to reading comics that I’d devoured as a child and I rediscovered – apart from pure entertainment – their artistic and cultural merits too.
