Luca’s Method: Attentiveness, Empathy, and Responsibility

He may seem like a relationship-focused psychologist lent to business consulting. Or an experienced, thoughtful strategic consultant who places great value on social intelligence in everyday work. As he talks about himself, Luca Falzarano, Senior Business Consultant at Mashfrog 4 Procurement, does not draw a clear line between technical expertise and cognitive empathy: these are two aspects of his profile that overlap and influence one another, qualities that stand out in unison.

Born in Campania and Piedmontese by adoption, he loves the sea of the land he comes from and supports Juventus - “but with the right detachment” - a symbol of the city where “I feel at home.” He has been with Mashfrog for two years, where he works with our M4P Agentic AI “pioneers,” and has built his professional profile (and not only that) on the pillars of curiosity, responsibility, and a method “that I will carry with me for a long time.”

Tell us about your journey so far.

My background is in economics: I earned my bachelor’s degree in February 2020, right during the strangest days at the beginning of Covid. In the period between my bachelor’s and master’s degrees, I did not want to stand still, so I took a remote SAP course: that opened up a whole world that I have always kept on my radar. After my master’s degree and a master’s program in Economics and Management, I started looking for opportunities in that field. In 2022, I joined Reply and specialized in SAP Ariba, especially in the sourcing area.

What do you remember about your first steps into the working world?

My first projects helped me grow a great deal: first on the technical side, then through collaboration with developers and colleagues on integrated systems. They were intense months, but also very rewarding, because I acquired a working method that I will carry with me for a long time. Over time, I worked with increasingly complex clients and projects, moving from technical operations to more analytical activities, until I found myself in contexts where organization, responsibility, and relationships became just as decisive as expertise.

When did you arrive at Mashfrog, and what brought you here?

The move to Mashfrog came in 2024 and, fortunately for me, I did not lose the working group I had grown with. That carried enormous weight for me: when people who have accompanied you for years, trained you, and recognized your value tell you they want to invest in you, it is both a personal and professional satisfaction.

Colleagues and growth: what matters most?

I cannot really separate the two: the team, trust, and growth go hand in hand. Naturally, when I joined Mashfrog, I also looked at the organization I was entering: a reliable, growing company, one that was able to spark my curiosity and open up new possibilities. Here, I was recognized as having a different level of seniority, and that also meant greater responsibility. I experienced it as a confirmation, but also as a commitment: if the people who helped you grow ask you to put yourself on the line to help shape a new business area, for me the natural response is to be there, take responsibility, and try to bring value.

If you had to describe yourself in a few words, what would you say?

I would describe myself as a very attentive and analytical person. I observe what happens around me and try to understand not only what works, but also why it works. I am very interested in psychology, relationship psychology, and everything related to the way people communicate, collaborate, and react in different contexts. I read and study on my own: Lacan, Freud, Foucault…

Is psychology useful at work?

I believe that technical skills are not enough at work: empathy, social intelligence, the ability to be part of a team, and the ability to read situations also matter. I carry this attentiveness with me outside work as well. I like the idea of equipping yourself with tools to look at yourself “from the outside,” because only in this way can you recognize mistakes, value positive experiences, and make negative ones useful too. In my personal life, I have learned to have more balance: to cultivate passions, like the one for Juventus, without turning them into obsessions; to recognize that a wrong choice can help you discover the right path.

Are attentiveness and analysis the common thread between your professional and personal life?

The thread that connects my professional and personal dimensions is the willingness to face what I do not know. The unknown is frightening, but at work you have to get used to entering it: a new project, a complex client, a system you have never seen before, a broader role. You do not become an expert in one day, but you learn by asking the right questions, to the right people, at the right time. For me, method, responsibility, and the ability to collaborate matter: bringing different skills together, helping a team find rhythm and direction, turning a problem into a possible solution. The same applies in life: stepping out of your comfort zone takes courage, but it is often the only way to grow. I take the same view of artificial intelligence: it is an extremely powerful tool, but it must be used with human and social intelligence. Only in this way can innovation and relationships meet without cancelling each other out.