POP Report or Popular Financial Reporting is an innovative tool widespread in America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand and adopted by various public bodies and institutions in Italy, including the University of Turin – the first Italian university to implement it as part of its university policies.
It is a form of budgeting that goes beyond traditional financial reports, focusing also on social, cultural and environmental aspects. In particular, the Bilancio POP seeks to highlight the impact of the University’s policies on the community and different population groups, such as students, academic employees, administration staff and citizens.
It is for this reason that in the realisation of its second POP Report, UniTo decided to place a detailed focus on the themes deemed most important by its stakeholders.
Through the expertise and technology provided by the Department of Management- “Valter Cantino” and by the University of Turin, with the coordination of the research group led by Prof. Paolo Biancone, users’ sentiments were analysed with reference to the topics and issues covered in the first POP Report carried out in 2023, mapping more than 40 social networks including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and defining which topics and issues generated negative or positive sentiment.
The topics that attracted the most interest on social media were analyzed by the University Governance, which consequently dictated the drafting guidelines for this document.
All topics covered considering the Integrated Activity and Organisation Plan (PIAO), the Performance Report in coherence with the University Strategic Plan 2021- 2026.
Setting, drafting and application of the approach and compliance with the guidelines and standards were developed by the Scientific Committee (Paolo Pietro Biancone, Silvana Secinaro, Valerio Brescia, Davide Calandra) applied by the Technical Committee (Valerio Brescia, Davide Calandra, Federico Lanzalonga, Federico Chmet, Ginevra Degregori, Michele Oppioli, Lara Demarchi, and Federica Bassano).
The information contained in the Bilancio POP is the result of the processing of data provided by the various UniTo Administrations, in cooperation with the Departments, Areas and support offices and all the UniTo staff involved in achieving the results highlighted in the report.
We would like to thank all those who actively collaborated in finding the information.
Furthermore, we would like to thank all the students, an active part and the beating heart of the university, who guided the focus within the report through their reactions and interactions.
Introduction
This second edition of Popular Financial Reporting, also known as the POP Report, is one of the initiatives that the University has undertaken with the aim of making the academic community more involved and aware and, at the same time, to make its activities better known to the Citizens.
Among the other main initiatives undertaken by the University toward a greater democratic choices sharing, it’s worth mentioning to mention the Participatory Balance Sheet and the Sustainability Report. The Participatory Balance Sheet, adopted by UniTo in 2022 as the first University in Italy, has provided for the active involvement of the University Community for the purposes of the construction of the Budget and – as of this year – has also opened up to discussion with local entities. With the Sustainability Report, on the other hand, the University gives an annual account to stakeholders of the aspects of economic, social and environmental responsibility adopted and share the consequent results. The common thread running through its contents is the explication of the University of Turin’s ethical-practical commitments and impact on the territories and the people who inhabit them.
The POP Report, together with the Sustainability Report, is part of the operational reports that are periodically produced and support the University’s governance in making its decisions. Its distinctiveness lies in complementing the other reporting initiatives by delving into the issues that have emerged from the so-called “sentiment analysis,” an assessment of what the various stakeholders-not just the Academic Community- consider particularly relevant and/or sensitive.
It is therefore with pleasure that I present this second edition of the POP Report: a new step of sharing and transparency for the University, a stimulus that allows an analysis close to the concrete needs of students, faculty and all those who work in UniTo according to an approach that makes it dynamic in content and time.
Il Rettore
Prof. Stefano Geuna
Visit in-depth pages on University of Torino Bilancio POP 2024.
