There are often different methods for going about finding a solution to a problem. You can start from scratch and try to figure out the answer on your own, or you can simply ignore it and hope that it just goes away on its own. The first one, while doable, could take too long. The second option… well that’s not really an option.

There is a third option, and it is the one that Telecom Italia (News - Alert) SpA’s CEO, Marco Patuano, is putting to use. That is the option of finding someone who has already gone through the exact experience that you are going through and seek out their advice.

The economy in Europe has had many problems over the past couple of years. Europe's economic recovery, which began in the second quarter of 2013, is expected to continue spreading across countries and gaining strength while at the same time becoming more balanced across growth drivers. As it is typical following deep financial crises, however, the recovery remains fragile.

One of the companies that have suffered is Telecom Italia SpA. In an effort to revive the indebted former phone monopoly, last month Patuano took a week-long trip to the U.S. He met with several companies while he was here including Qualcomm (News - Alert), Microsoft and Amazon.

In his quest to find some insight as to how he can return his company to monopoly status, he singled out someone with whom he thought that he had a lot in common. That person was Randall Stephenson, who is the CEO at AT&T (News - Alert).

After his U.S. trip, Patuano said, “AT&T is an excellent turnaround case study. Telecom Italia is very interested in their ability to transform their business.” The Italian company is trying to put an end to several years which has seen loses, as well as declines in sales. It is looking for a way to thrive in an economy that is still on a long road to recovery.

So, at this point, you might be asking yourself, “What are the similarities between Patuano and Stephenson?” It is seven years later, but Patuano, who has been with Telecom Italia for 24 years, feels that he is in the same boat that Stephenson was rowing in 2007. That is when he took the reins from AT&T’s previous, long-term CEO.

In October 2013, Patuano was in the same situation when he took over as CEO. Both men took over from long-term CEOs who personified each country’s top carrier. The other similarity is that they were both thrown into a situation with plenty of challenges left to them by their successors.

Patuano is hoping that just like AT&T has earned about $100 billion over the past decade as phone bills were boosted by consumers browsing the Web and downloading videos. Couple with the way that the phone company has increased data speeds and added TV and video offerings to make up for slowing voice revenue, there is the optimism that the same can happen in Italy.

One of the things that Stephenson did that allowed AT&T to start the forward movement was to be the first to offer the iPhone. Telecom Italia is looking to experience the same type of kick start by offering the iPad Air, Samsung (News - Alert) Galaxy S5 smartphones and an ultra-thin Samsung laptop. Patuano said, “Just like AT&T did, the European market and Telecom Italia are moving to flat voice commercial offers without differentiating mobile or fixed-line services.”

Last year, Telecom Italia’s debt was sitting at $37 billion. In an effort to try and stabilize its company finances, Patuano sold Telecom Italia’s headquarters in Milan and its Argentine business. He also scrapped dividends in an attempt to gather funds which are desperately needed for investments to reverse falling sales.

The funny thing is that back in 2007, AT&T was in discussions as it attempted to buy a stake in Telecom Italia. At that time however, AT&T backed down because it was in the middle of political opposition. Not surprising, however is the fact that Brad Burns, an AT&T spokesman, declined to comment on the meeting between Patuano and Stephenson.

The continued deployment of LTE (News - Alert) networks across the U.S. has also added to all the companies being able to deliver faster speeds, which has led to HD quality video at decent speeds. In keeping with this way of thinking, Patuano said “The first target now for a phone carrier is upgrading networks and transform it to a platform for high-value services. This is exactly what AT&T did and what we are calling for.”

This is echoed in his feeling that one source of growth could be an expansion into video delivered over broadband networks. A sentiment that a professor of business strategy at Milan’s Politecnico University, Andrea Rangone, agrees with in saying, “In a market in which prices of traditional services are always under pressure, the future of European telcos is strongly tied to their ability to innovate. Patuano’s strategy has been to focus greatly in the area.”

Patuano is hoping to follow in the footsteps of AT&T as he is taking similar steps in his efforts to return Telecom Italia to its former glory.