I meet Paolo Sanvido at the Lugano Casino, we have lunch accompanied by other work colleagues. I listen to them talk and I immediately recognize a particular bond, respectful of hierarchies, but which does not hide a certain complicity, an understanding of each other without too many words. Only at the end of lunch do I discover that his approach towards people is somewhat different, similar to that used in Northern countries. Sanvido, although he is a numbers professional, prefers human contact, dialogue, recognizing everyone's strengths, encouraging people to give their best.

«I am convinced that nothing happens by chance. I like Jung's theory of synchronicity, no event is an accidental fact, but our life is dotted with a set of coincidences. You know, I wasn't always who I am today. I have travelled, I have suffered, I have lost great battles, I have won others, and I am convinced that malice and personal interests are not a solution to our problems. We should all live for the interest of the country."

Your reflections seem to clash with those of an analytical mind, accustomed to numbers and making things add up...

«It is not the type of position we occupy that defines us, but our objectives. It's true, I have an analytical mind, but a very sensitive human resources care. I have several jobs, I can't define exactly what I do, I could give you an idea by telling you that I am a people stimulator. I give enormous importance to relationships, to what people say and desire and I try to stimulate them to do better, to find their right place in the working world. For me, human capital, without always wanting to keep talking the same thing, makes the difference. This in any world. Naturally I deal with finance and therefore I mainly address young people in the Lugano financial center, I try to show them a new approach to work, also because having more experience I can bring proactive input and I really like this".

Since you talked about the Lugano financial center, a topic that is close to the hearts of the Ticinese, what do you think? Should we resign ourselves to having to lose it?

«Absolutely not, but we have to be realistic. The old financial center is dead, there's no point in beating around the bush. There are some nostalgic people who are trying to recover the past, but we must realize that there is no way back and above all stop ruining and hindering what wants to be the new financial center, made up of young people".

But when you say that the old financial center is dead, does that mean it will no longer generate the same numbers?

«In terms of revenue I can't say, but compared to other places it will no longer be at the top of the list. The new Lugano financial center will have to operate in the territory, an important region that also includes Lombardy, Veneto and Piedmont. It must always have the right attention to the customer and focus on the quality of services, so as not to fear the competition. We must also continue to give priority to transparency, in the past we lived on the fear of the customer, who perhaps had a lot of money, but not all of it declared. Today the transparency obtained is essential and it is this that brings a quality of service, let's not forget this."

Today you are the CEO of the Lugano Casino, president of the board of directors of the Cantonal Hospital Authority. I imagine you would never have thought of taking on these roles...

«Actually no, I had other plans. After my apprenticeship in a bank I wanted to start an entrepreneurial activity again, to be independent. But then something didn't work... and maybe it wasn't a bad thing. I don't think I arrived at the Casino by chance, nothing happens by chance in life, I believe in a universal energy that directs us where we need to go or where we need to stay. I think the same about working relationships, when you talk, interact with people, an energy is created which, used well, can create great strengths within a company. When the Casino it needed a new director, initially I didn't think about it, I was only on the board of directors. Then seeing the profile I said to myself: I have to try it too. I suspended myself from the board of directors and submitted my candidacy. Today I am here and I am very happy with this choice and the opportunity that was given to me."

Casinos, forestry companies, EOC, but when do you sleep?

«I sleep my six hours a night and no one can take them away from me. I don't want to go into private matters, but I have fought many important battles in Ticino and over the years I have had to learn to know myself, to find a way to regenerate myself. I spent a period of time not sleeping, so today I'm careful to always take the time to do it. I sleep at night, never during the day, because if by chance I fall asleep for two hours on the sofa in the afternoon, I wander around the house at night (laughs)".

Gaming houses have gone through a very difficult time, let's think about Covid, but also about the renewal of licenses... it has undoubtedly been an uphill road...

«It is a continuous challenge, the Campione Casino has reopened, we have new licenses and we must somehow recover what was lost during the pandemic. Furthermore there is online gaming, for which we have made a huge investment... without forgetting our bond with the City of Lugano, which prevents us from having gray areas, our work must be carried out with maximum transparency".

But you talk to me about transparency and yet gambling destroys lives, pathological gamblers manage to lose everything they have...

«This vision is wrong, we must see casinos as sentinels on the territory, we must use them to stem the deviations of pathological gambling. In any case, it is important to say, gambling addictions are not managed by us, but by the Canton, and it is an aspect that is very close to my heart. When I arrived here, I actively worked to coordinate all cantonal activities dealing with problems related to gambling and abuse in general, such as medications, drugs and alcohol."

Be very careful about human contact, it can be seen with your employees, it can be heard from your words…

«I am convinced that the problem of our society, I think of the various arguments and discontents, is linked to the fact that we no longer sit around a table, we no longer give the right importance to human contact. It is a general problem, because talking, connecting with people, involves time and commitment and, last but not least, altruism. As an excuse we often use "it's always been like this", but no, we have to react, do something, we can't live in inaction, otherwise we'll lose everything."

Do you think we live in an increasingly selfish society?

«It is a fact that many look solely at their interests, especially financial ones, a way of operating that only creates income, but does not improve the social economic fabric. We, as a Casino, want to be constructive actors, for example we make our resources available to others, to encourage the development of the Region. We must stop thinking only about immediate profit, but about long-term investments. I'll give you a concrete example: we organized a forum on cyber security and opened it to everyone. This is what all large companies should do."

In addition to being the director of the Lugano Casino, you are president of the Ticino Hospital Authority...

«Yes, I am lucky, I say lucky because the presidency of the EOC was an exceptional thing. In this case I can say that I arrived at the hospital by chance. In the political subdivision that was the only prestigious seat that the League could aspire to that had become free. What happened after? I met an exceptional company, with trained and willing staff. We have gone through an incredible, dramatic historical moment, Covid has changed the lives of all of us, but you cannot imagine how much it has changed the dynamics within hospitals, when I think about it it gives me shivers. But having survived, together, the various projects linked to the hospital, give me an energy that I transform into the desire to do, to work, to fight to have a university hospital in Ticino as soon as possible."

A new university hospital in Switzerland is a sensitive issue, for Ticino it would mean realizing the dream of many doctors...

«You can't do everything right immediately. In my career I have had to clash with many people, the important thing is not to give up, to fight for your ideals, your beliefs, but only if these reflect a good for society. Returning to the university hospital, Ticino needs its own model, not a photocopy model, furthermore the problem lies in money, because the funds linked to research are always the same and if a new hospital is born the others would lose part of their income. Proof of this is the faculty of biomedicine which immediately, from its birth, brought about imbalances beyond San Gottardo, always for money."

You are from Lugano, you lived your childhood here, I remember that once you were talking about a restaurant...

«It's correct, my family had a restaurant, first in Via Balestra, then in Resega, where I grew up, and where my parents remained until 1981, when my father passed away. I still remember that it opened at 5.30 in the morning for the municipal workers, the firefighters and the police, they were all there once. We worked a lot, noon and night, let's not talk about it when there were hockey games. Just think, we are four brothers, and no one, but I mean no one, has ever thought of working in the restaurant business (laughs). Also because we have always helped our parents. Do you know why I still eat so fast today? Because when I came home from school I had to eat quickly and then go and serve."

You did your apprenticeship in a bank, but your professional life has given you many travels...

«I was curious, I was never afraid of travelling. After the apprenticeship I went to Munich for German and then worked in Frankfurt. In that same period, my accounting teacher contacted me about becoming a federal accountant and so I went back to studying. However, I remained in the banking sector and moved to Paris to collaborate on a project related to cost accounting, which until then had been used in large companies. Then, to test what was still only theory, they sent me to New York and finally I also lived in the Cayman Islands, where I was called to relaunch a bank."

But sorry, with all these trips, where have you found the time to meet your wife?

«She has practically always been there. We were teenagers when we met. I still remember that, when I arrived home to my mother and told her that I was leaving for the Cayman Islands, she said to me... and the Fabiola? What are you going to do…? We got married (she smiles) and she joined me in the Caribbean. She thinks that initially she didn't want to come and then she didn't want to leave. Our first daughter was born here anyway, because we wanted her to be born in Switzerland. The little sister arrived when we were already in Lugano."

I don't think it was easy to return to Lugano...

«We had our families, so on a private level it was nice, but on a professional level I immediately realized that I lacked skills and therefore, continuing as an analyst, I started studying again. In that period I met two forestry engineers with whom I founded some forestry companies. You see, nothing happens by chance (smiles)."

And what do you do in your little free time?

«Family, I run – or rather I drag myself – to clear my mind and I am interested in viticulture. I like looking for small productions, knowing their history, the people who work there, their passion and then their products. I'm almost more interested in the human aspect than in the wine aspect."

I want to ask you one last question, but Ticino is going in the right direction, I think on a political, economic, human level...

«Absolutely not, we are not capable of being a team, this is the problem. There is always an excuse, there is always an underlying envy... we are not capable of getting along, of building something together, for the good of all."

But it is so? Are personal interests always first? We have to give the real answer to ourselves.