MONEY MAY 2017 ISSUE 42

BUSINESS | LIFESTYLE | DESIGN

NEW BEGINNINGS ISSUE ISSUE 42

INTERVIEW

MALTA’S LEARNING DISRUPTORS SILICON VALLETTA

SIMON AZZOPARDI

START-UP

TAKING THE BIG LEAP MEDICAL MARIJUANA

MEET DR FEELGOOD

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CONTENTS

WELCOME

NEW BEGINNINGS ISSUE

MAY 2017

8 GOOD BEHAVIOUR

Behavioural scientist Kora Muscat speaks to Veronica Stivala about how this science can significantly improve our lives.

The 33 days between the announcement of the general election and the actual voting will surely go down in history as the greatest cliffhanger of them all.

In addition to the normal tense political calculations, there is also an unprecedented magisterial inquiry underway which may or may not be concluded before June 3, clearing or confirming the Prime Minister and his wife of corruption – a scenario that Malta has so far not had to consider.

When to call a general election is as much science as art. Polls will tell you how you stand compared to the other party, and your own research should tell you what the voters believe to be the issues that really matter to them.

But there are also perceptions and expectations to take into account, which are not always rational and very rarely fully informed.

As they say in financial circles, the past is no guarantee of the future, so it is pointless to analyse how voters judge the past four years. What matters is now.

The Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had to analyse the pros and cons of the timing, just as any managing director would have to. His strength is clearly the booming economic performance, and his belief that people will vote with their pockets, and not their hearts and minds. Opportunistic as the timing is with regards to the inquiry underway, he also knows that the feelgood factor may be peaking and that the economy would almost certainly slow down from here on, just as the normal consequence of the ‘wait and see’ attitude prevalent before every election. The Opposition has been wounded by allegations of collusion in its party financing, and at the time of printing, all the allegations about the Pilatus Bank accounts have not yet translated into court admissible evidence.

Muscat cannot afford to give the Opposition time to dig up something concrete, or to allow the economy to falter. But with so many unknowns out of his control, this campaign will undoubtedly glue us to our screens more than ever before.

12 MEET MALTA’S LEARNING DISRUPTERS

This month’s cover interview with Nikola Sammut, James Abela and Matthew Sammut from Ice Malta.

15 GENERATIONAL BOND OF TWO Children are all too often used as pawns once a marriage breaks down.

But Victor Paul Borg warns that this has long-term negative effects.

19 MALTA: THE TECHNOLOGY HUB OF THE PRESENT AND FUTURE?

Giselle Borg Olivier caught up with the president of Silicon Valletta, Simon Azzopardi, to find out what it is trying to achieve — and how.

22 EMBRACING DISTRUPTION

A new sexy way to describe something that isn’t actually new or even innovative. Theo

Dix explains.

27 EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES: WHO IS CALLING THE SHOTS? Stefan Micallef argues that a labour market which is skewed

Editor Anthony P. Bernard anthony@moneymag.me Design Peresso Design Studio peresso.webflow.io Printing Print It Distribution Mailbox Direct Marketing Group

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towards the employee might not be the ideal.

30 TAKING THE BIG LEAP

If you’ve ever considered quitting your job, embarking on an exciting new chapter in your life and starting a start-up, wait. Jamie Genovese meets 3 aspiring entrepreneurs who have taken the plunge.

33 HIGH LEVELS OF EFFICACY

It may be controversial, but there are other questions about the use of medical cannabis that are just as important as whether it should be legal. Money speaks to Dr Andrew Agius.

37 ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Creating a pleasant work environment is a very worthwhile investment. Designer Vera Sant Fournier explains why.

46 THE (MARKETING) REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED Richard Muscat Azzopardi makes the case for companies to get their message across without it being filtered.

58 THE HEAVY ARM OF THE LAW?

The Bluesman ponders on the long history of clashes between various agencies and those on the fringe.

COVER CREDITS Directors at Ice Malta from left to right: Matthew Sammut, Nikolai Sammut and James Abela READ THE FULL INTERVIEW ON PAGE 12

Money is published by Be Communications Ltd, No. 81, Howard Street, Sliema, Malta SLM 1754 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited without written permission. Opinions expressed in Money are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. All reasonable care is taken to ensure truth and accuracy, but the editor and publishers cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions in articles, advertising, photographs or illustrations. Unsolicited manuscripts are welcome but cannot be returned without a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The editor is not responsible for material submitted for consideration.

4 - Money / Issue 42

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PSYCHOLOGY

GOOD BEHAVIOUR

A solution to Malta’s traffic problem? Behavioural economics could have the answer. Behavioural scientist Kora Muscat speaks to Veronica Stivala about how this science can significantly improve our lives

I

f you look back at your behaviour over the past week, or even the past few hours, you’ll probably be able to describe countless examples of when you didn’t behave rationally. Maybe it’s the time you overtook the car next to you and then realised it was an overly risky

8 - Money / Issue 42

Kora Muscat

move; or the moment you indulged in that scrumptious cheesecake even though you’re on a diet.

rejects this assumption, and instead seeks to model human behaviour in different environments (like markets and societies).

While classical economics builds on the assumption that we are rational, the truth is we are not always so. Behavioural economics

It is difficult to pinpoint when exactly behavioural economics was born, but in general, economic psychology emerged in

the 20th century. Lately it is becoming all the more popular and last year The Huffington Post described the science as “cool”, while the Obama administration even set up its own behavioural science team.

“Behavioural economics is so ‘cool’ because once we start assessing how people actually behave, we can design interventions or systems in ways that will actually matter and make a difference,” says Kora Muscat, an innovation consultant for Innovia Technology in Cambridge. She studies the behaviour behind the statistics, a new and revolutionary way of thinking that is increasingly being recognised as a tool for success. Her role sees her work with people from all kinds of disciplines, like physicists, micro biologists, designers and even a couple of vets. They work for some of the largest companies in the world, like Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, Jaguar Land Rover, and PepsiCo. Muscat has worked on interesting projects – like getting more men in China to wet shave, designing interventions to increase compliance to medication, improving the prescribing habits of doctors, designing skincare products that are appealing to consumers, and making the plane boarding experience feel less like herding cattle.

So, behavioural economics can be helpful in so many ways, helping people overcome bad habits

– which are basically automatic behaviours we perform without necessarily consciously intending to. Muscat speaks of ‘nudging’, which is all about making relatively small changes to people’s environments so that their habits lead to better outcomes with – no additional effort.

“For example, if a restaurant offers salad as the default option instead of, say, chips rather than the other way round, then having salad becomes the easier option, and ordering chips takes extra effort. Nudge theory would predict that more people would be eating salads alongside their main meals.”

The science is making a huge mark in business, with large companies increasingly recognising it as a tool for success. For instance, studies have shown that people react differently to how information is presented on a website, sometimes simply through the use of colours and highlighting.

Behavioural economics has borrowed a tool from the pharmaceutical industry and

adapted it for consumer markets, Muscat explains. This is the randomised, controlled trial. A website, for example, would make small changes to the way the information is presented and test whether this has a significant difference over the ‘control’ (which is the original version of the page).

So, for example, e-Bay might change the colour of its ‘buy it now’ button, and then test whether people buy products more quickly or more often.

The online environment is perfect for such testing, she adds, because it is easy and cheap to manipulate the way information is presented, and different versions of the page can be tested at the same time with different users. Interestingly, this is also starting to be used in bricks and mortar through simulated retail outlets, for example.

How can behavioural economics be applied to Malta? Muscat goes straight to the sweet spot: street congestion and traffic accidents.

Traditional methods have been unsuccessful

NUDGING IS ABOUT MAKING RELATIVELY SMALL CHANGES TO PEOPLE’S ENVIRONMENTS SO THAT THEIR HABITS LEAD TO BETTER OUTCOMES WITH - NO ADDITIONAL EFFORT Money / Issue 42 - 9

PSYCHOLOGY

at solving these problems. She adds that she would “also love to see behavioural economic initiatives targeted at patients to increase the efficiency of the local healthcare system: this approach has been very successful in the UK, for example.

Local charities and NGOs could also benefit from such an approach because successful interventions can generally be relatively cheap to implement, test, and adapt. This allows for a greater return on investment; which is particularly crucial when resources are limited.

For consumer-facing companies, behavioural economics and behavioural science more generally offer a rigorous and structured way of ensuring that companies focus on all the important factors that influence their consumers, while not getting distracted by shiny yet irrelevant factors. For firms targeting foreign clients, a strong behavioural science offering is increasingly becoming an important asset to remain competitive.

What does Malta need to do to move forward?

The first step, comments Muscat, is to get more people thinking like behavioural economists from an early– stage – and the local university is key to enabling that. Some electives and seminars rooted in behavioural science have been introduced, which is an excellent starting point, but there is still plenty of space for development.

Generally raising awareness about the potentially positive impacts of behavioural economics is always helpful.

However, Muscat believes strongly that telling people something is far less effective than showing them. “So,” she notes, “once we overcome the hurdle of applying behavioural economic insights locally for the first few times, we will see a far greater and quicker uptake of the discipline”.

As with almost everything which is influential, behavioural economics has its downside. “We must ensure that it is not used to the detriment of others. The common sentiment is rather simple; it is wrong to use behavioural science to deceive

or manipulate people. However, most practitioners seem to agree that behavioural economics can, and generally does, lead to positive outcomes,” she says.

Muscat speaks with verve and passion about her discipline admitting that: “Human behaviour is fascinating. I always say I’m a complete geek when it comes to behavioural science, as I think I enjoy my work a little too much!”

She’s equally excited about the local scene, noting how she “can’t wait to see more behavioural insights being applied in Malta”. In fact, she recently set up a virtual group to share the latest applications and findings from behavioural science, and to encourage discussion locally.

Anyone who is interested in learning more or sharing their opinion is invited to join ‘Behavioural Economics in Malta’ on Facebook.

Kora Muscat works as a behavioural economist and innovation consultant at Innovia Technology, in Cambridge, UK. She also lectures in behavioural finance at the University of Malta.

SOCIAL BENEFITS

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COVER INTERVIEW

Nikolai Sammut

James Abela

Matthew Sammut

MEET MALTA’S LEARNING DISRUPTORS

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ocusing on Europe 2020 skills is vital for innovation, growth and competitiveness for all leading industry players. It’s interesting to note that many of the jobs that will be generated over the next two decades do not exist today. For this reason, the need to upgrade skills applies not only to young people in schools, universities and training institutions, but also to the current generation of employees. A

12 - Money / Issue 42

continuous reinvestment in the form of training is required to compensate for skills obsolescence and together with our international educational partners including Adobe, Autodesk, Cisco, Microsoft, LPI and The Digital Marketing Institute, ICE Malta’s Academic Team is selected by the majority of local and Malta-based international brands to design custom training solutions aligned specifically to a company’s goals.

The team has also created an exclusive collection of tools and features such as a pre-training assessment tool, to ensure that companies investing in training benefit from a return on their investment while knowing that their employees can perform more productively, are enjoying their personalised learning journey, progress in their career and gain the skills to be able to confidently collaborate and take their business to the next level via technology.

[top] New ICE Malta logo [left] One of ICE Malta’s classrooms

What is the mission of ICE Malta and how is it delivering on this mission?

ICE Malta is committed to deliver a worldclass ISO 9001 study experience. Our team empowers students to invest in their learning journey and gain essential industry skills and certifications to be productive and competitive while positioning themselves as ideal candidates for career opportunities and allowing them to progress in their career at the same rapid pace that technology continues to evolve. Our team constantly celebrates plenty of incredible achievements: our alumni have been handpicked to join some of the world’s biggest brands such as Gumtree, Cisco, Amazon and SkyTV. Our students’ success is testimony to the power of the study experience we have created and we’re very proud to be leaving such a positive imprint on the world of education.

Does ICE Malta collaborate with the ICT industry to develop training according to industry needs?

The Council of the European Union states that education and training are central to Europe’s 2020 strategy. Furthermore, anticipating the skills that will be needed in the future will aid job growth. For this reason, ICE Malta has launched a Syllabus Advisory Council which brings together leading industry players representing some of the world’s most celebrated brands and global educational partners. The aim of the Syllabus Advisory Council is to position our islands as an innovation leader and provide local and international businesses based in the Maltese islands with easy, affordable and effective training opportunities which will

ensure that we equip a workforce with the skills needed for both today’s careers and future opportunities. Ultimately, as a leading ICT academy, we are driven to accelerate improvements in work-based learning by designing demand-driven training based on the industry’s vision of anticipated skills and promoting the importance of upskilling talent by ensuring that learning is much more hands-on, contextualised and applied. Our goal is to promote excellence in training and implement a targeted agenda ensuring that individuals gain the knowledge, skills and 21st century learning competencies to meet growing industry demands.

How is ICE Malta continuing to invest in the learning sector?

All over the world, education has been identified as an important determinant of economic growth. When considering a longterm perspective, anticipating the skills that will be needed in the future and incorporating relevant industry skills within worldwiderecognised study programmes, workshops and boot camps will fuel job growth, career opportunities, competitiveness, investment and above all innovation. During ICE Malta’s first five-year chapter, we set solid foundations for the school and continued to invest heavily in the ICE Malta Study Experience which includes a substantial recurrent investment in technology and the constant upgrade of our classrooms, as well as a significant investment in the school’s unique ‘Educator Development Programme’ which guarantees that our educators are individuals who work in leading positions with top brands and are therefore industry practitioners with years of hands-on experience.

The educators are also accredited by the school’s educational partners to deliver training and mentor students at international standards. We have put into motion several integral partnerships with global brands in learning which means that, locally, individuals from all walks of life have the opportunity to keep on track with the latest code, creativity, productivity and technical worldwiderecognised courses at a home-grown awardwinning academy.

What are the plans for ICE Malta this year?

During our recent 5th anniversary celebration, we announced that we would be kicking off our internationalisation project which will be the highlight of ICE Malta’s second fiveyear chapter. Our newly launched branding perfectly conveys our story and shows that students are at the heart of everything we do regardless of where they are geographically.

Apart from taking ICE Malta to the global arena, we believe that our islands have great potential to attract international students for classroom and blended-learning deliveries.

Our flagship institute based in the islands where we initiated our business journey will always play an important role in our business strategy and will become even more dominant in the coming years.

As most of our followers anticipated, we have secured a number of valuable partnerships and will be rolling out study programmes, workshops and boot camps starting with the EQF Level 5 Professional Diploma in Digital & Social Selling study programme which will be scheduled in June 2017.

One thing is certain: education is on every country’s agenda and we’re here to shake the world of learning, leave our mark and enjoy every part of what is turning out to be an incredible business story.

Money / Issue 42 - 13

From the Desktop

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RELATIONSHIPS

Victor Paul Borg has published more than one million words, as well as hundreds of pictures, all published in books and magazines and newspapers in every corner of the world.

GENERATIONAL BOND OF TWO

Children are all too often used as pawns once a marriage breaks down. But Victor Paul Borg warns that this has long-term negative effects.

O

nce I was talking about my marital breakdown with a middle-aged woman and her daughter, and the woman said to me: “Fathers become better fathers after the divorce. You can ask my daughter.”

Her daughter nodded absent-mindedly; perhaps she was thinking, as I was, that it is an apt observation that extends to both parents in the best of times. That’s because the sum of effort put into the child individually by each parent postseparation is greater than the collective amount of effort heaped on the child during marriage.

During marriage, a tripartite relationship develops (or more than three in the case of families with more than one child, but let’s assume in the rest of this article for simplicity’s sake that we are talking about a family with one child). But once the spouses separate, the relationship between the parents often ends in an abrupt and bitter severance. Each parent then has to redefine

and rebuild a new relationship with the child.

This adjustment into a new relationship with the child – a generational bond of two – requires much consideration in the first few months. As in every new relationship, or every redefined relationship, nurturing a new relationship requires studiousness and attention and effort. And many a parent in this phase overindulges the child to compensate for a feeling of guilt – the guilt that comes from seeing one’s child suffer due to the breakdown of the marriage.

Yet there is certainly an element of truism in the observation that fathers become more involved post-separation. This is especially the case with traditional marriages, given their traditional division of labour in the sense that, for as long as the marriage is intact, the majority of fathers focus mostly on bread and butter issues within the family, leaving much of the finer duties of child-rearing to the mother. Then, post-separation, fathers have to become all-round carers whenever the children are in their custody.

Mind you, the dynamics of traditional division of labour within the family are changing as women join the workforce en masse and men share the responsibilities and chores that were traditionally the preserve of the mothers. And what is changing too is the way child custody is assigned after separation. In most cases, especially when couples negotiate a care arrangement for children without litigation, parents now opt for some form of shared parenting. It’s a concept that’s now firmly supported by virtually all the credible studies about the best care arrangement for children after separation.

I have done extensive research about the concept of shared parenting (and I am lobbying for changes in law and institutional support for families who end up in high conflict custody battles in court, as my wife and I have unfortunately ended up). One of the seminal studies I have found is a largescale study in Sweden (Fifty moves a year: is there an association between joint physical custody and psychosomatic problems in

Money / Issue 42 - 15

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best for a young child because consistency offers stability, and a sense of stability is essential for emotional security. Then, as the child grows, the care pattern should become flexible, in keeping with the developmental exigencies of the child.

Unfortunately for children, a significant number of couples get sucked up in spirals of bitterness and vindictiveness, and the children end up getting caught up in endless conflict.

These couples fight it out in court, digging up their former partner’s character flaws and any deviances or illegalities, all in a bid to win custody of the child. The child is used as a pawn by one of the parents, and put under pressure to take a side in the family feud.

children?) that found that children who spend an equal time in each of the parents’ households after the marital split suffer less psychosomatic symptoms than those who mostly reside with one of the parents.

I have read many other papers besides, too many to mention in this short article, so I will mention just one more seminal work: a paper that reviewed 40 studies that examined shared-parenting versus mostly-single-parentparenting, with all of the studies consistently demonstrating that shared parenting is the optimal arrangement for children after separation (American Journal of Divorce & Remarriage; Volume 55, 2014 – Issue 8).

The good news is that the separation in itself is not necessarily deleterious to children if it’s handled sensitively and maturely. Given a shared parenting care pattern, continued inter-parental cooperation about the child, and keeping the child out of any conflicts that arise are the three essential best practices that protect the child from emotional damage.

The opposite is true: parental conflict, especially if it involves the child, and limited involvement

in the child’s life by one of the parents serves to skew the emotional development of the child. The child should have plenty of each parent – ideally an equal amount of each (not necessarily equal in amount of time, but at least in quality parenting input) – and freely available communication with each parent, allowing the child to call the other parent when in the care of the alternative parent.

IN SOME COUNTRIES ‘PARENTAL ALIENATION’ IS CONSIDERED A TYPE OF CHILD ABUSE A child under five years old has special needs given his or her vulnerabilities to emotional impairment. The child needs constant reassurance – professing love for the child repeatedly, reiterating that you will always be there for him or her – and benefits from physical affection. Maintaining consistent and unchanging care patterns is

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16 - Money / Issue 42

Worse still, in these high-conflict separations, the parent who is the more manipulative and the more bellicose mounts a tireless attempt to alienate the child from the other parent. It’s a battle for control of the child’s mind, a campaign of disparaging the other parent that might lead to outright alienation if the child succumbs and internalises the parent’s denigration of the targeted parent. This is called ‘parental alienation’ by psychologists, and in some countries it is considered a type of child abuse (but not in Malta, where there is yet an under-appreciation of the insidiousness of psychological abuse).

What this tells us is the importance of each parent building a close, positive, enabling, and nurturing relationship with the child post-separation. It’s a new beginning with the child that has to be robust enough to form a protective shield around the child, protecting the child from ravages of marital conflict and separation.

Victor Paul Borg is spearheading a campaign for a change in law and institutional support to put the shared-parenting concept at the heart of decision-making by family courts in Malta. www.facebook.com/sharedparentingmalta

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP

MALTA: THE TECHNOLOGY HUB OF THE PRESENT AND FUTURE?

Simon Azzopardi

Giselle Borg Olivier caught up with the president of Silicon Valletta, Simon Azzopardi, to find out what it is trying to achieve – and how.

I

t was less than half a year ago, on December 6, 2016, that Silicon Valletta was officially launched at the Fortress Builders in Valletta. Since then, this association that brings together CEOs of digital businesses based in Malta, has worked to put Malta on the map in terms of technology and digital infrastructure.

A quick look at Silicon Valletta’s LinkedIn page gives you a brief description as to what

the association is about and what it has set out to achieve: “The scope of Silicon Valletta Association is to act as a lobby for the digital/ tech business sector in Malta, to develop and represent Malta’s brand in the digital space, to act as a network of digital entrepreneurs and to support each other in doing so.”

However, I knew that there must be far more to this venture than what was incorporated in these 45 words, and Simon Azzopardi was

more than happy to give his personal insight into this venture.

How would you describe Silicon Valletta to the business community?

Silicon Valletta is an association set up by Malta-based tech entrepreneurs who want to accelerate Malta’s attractiveness. This means looking both internally to understand the elements that we need to work on, as well as building bridges externally to showcase

Money / Issue 42 - 19

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

SILICON VALLETTA WANTS TO ENSURE IS THAT MALTA IS NOT JUST A CONSUMER OF THE SHIFT OF THIS EVOLUTION, BUT ALSO A CONTRIBUTOR IN TERMS OF DEVELOPING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY Malta’s strengths. The local community not only understands Malta’s staggering potential in the field of technology, but also believes that we should celebrate our successes.

How will Silicon Valletta benefit Malta?

No one can deny that we are going through a technological revolution; a change enabled by technology that will affect all sectors, across all levels within a company – that is from board level decisions down to the unskilled.

Fundamentally, we need to acknowledge this and understand the new and exciting opportunities that this change will present.

What Silicon Valletta wants to ensure is that Malta is not just a consumer of the shift of this evolution, but also a contributor in terms of developing intellectual property. This requires the creation of an ideal environment for such intellectual property to be created, as well as a celebration of the jurisdiction showcasing both the potential and foundation of our strengths in this sector.

How will Silicon Valletta benefit individuals?

The members of Silicon Valletta first and

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foremost believe in Malta. We are passionate because we want Malta to raise the bar, to strive for excellence, to have a sense of pride, and to be on the map as a serious jurisdiction.

Secondly, the members also believe that by supporting each other and the ecosystem, we are collectively able to strengthen our own offering on a national level.

What’s coming up in 2017, for Silicon Valletta?

In 2017 our primary goal is to lay a strong foundation to build upon. This means that how we effect change is just as important as what changes we decide to effect.

This will allow us to maintain pace in the future considering our limited time and resources. Secondly, we plan to work with government to propose new legislation in the areas of talent as well as tax, and push the mindset of efficiency. Thirdly, we plan to work with strategic partners to push the Malta brand. We have already agreed to support the Zest digital conference, Startup Weekend Malta, as well as other events happening outside of Malta.

What are the long-term plans for Silicon Valletta?

We want to reach a stage where Malta is known for its tech companies: at that stage the value of our contribution will be clear. Having said that, Malta should never be content to sit on its laurels because it can always strive for more, or rather, there will always be another shift brought about by technology.

Malta needs to realise and celebrate its successes. Malta saw the gaming opportunity and went for it, resulting in being recognised today as the leading gaming jurisdiction across Europe and the world. Malta wanted to develop its financial industry, and today we are increasingly attracting business to our shores.

Like every tech hub worth its salt, Malta has a tech unicorn – GFI Software, a company so few talk about locally. Only a couple of years ago, GFI Software exited from a product called TeamViewer for comfortably over the $1 billion mark, yet barely any noise was made about it. Meanwhile Estonia heavily promoted the fact that Skype emerged from a start-up team in Estonia!

Malta has built successful companies like EC Language Centres, GFI Software, Toly and many other global players – it is time we set a new standard to aspire to.

The scope of Silicon Valletta will remain true: to accelerate Malta’s potential and build bridges through technology.

REPUBLIC STREET,VALLETTA

INNOVATION

EMBRACING DISRUPTION

Buzzwords are common in the world of business. While many are largely hype – a new sexy way to describe something that isn’t actually new or even innovative – occasionally you will come across one or two that inaugurate a genuinely different way of thinking. Disruption is certainly one of the latter. Theo Dix explains.

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T

he concept of “disruptive innovation” was first coined by Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen, distinguishing between sustaining and disruptive technologies.

The former produce incremental improvements in the performance of established products. The latter describe situations in which established market leaders are displaced by smaller rivals who build market-changing products or services which are typically “cheaper, simpler, smaller, and, frequently, more convenient to use” . Newcomers often target new markets which incumbents think are unattractive and therefore not worth fighting for, leaving the door wide open for these companies to scale up rapidly with technological improvements that enable them to become new market leaders.

Theo Dix is a senior consultant within EY’s transaction advisory services team

HOW WILL SELF-DRIVING CARS IMPACT TRAFFIC CONGESTION AND THE NEED FOR NEW FORMS OF MASS PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION? Airbnb is a great example of disruptive innovation. The company started out offering a simple, lower cost, lower quality product to customers who either couldn’t afford or couldn’t find an available hotel: a spare room for rent. Over time, the platform also started to cater for high-end clients and is now competing in full swing across the spectrum of the hotel industry.

Although Christensen’s definition fits Airbnb well, many commentators use the term disruption more widely to describe a market which has been impacted by a new product or service without necessarily targeting a new or underserved niche with a cheaper or simpler product. Technology is often the catalyst that drives this form of disruption, coupled with an innovative new business model.

The last decade has been characterised by the most relentless technologically-driven change the world has ever seen. However, Professor Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, thinks we are only just getting started: “Previous

• Regulators must be quick to adapt to a fast-changing environment and use legislation as a way to attract investment – just as we have done with other sectors in the past. To do so, they will need to monitor emerging trends and collaborate closely with business.

• The impact on labour is expected to be profound. In the short-term, we urgently need policy measures to drive foreign tech talent to Malta. In this respect, we propose the adoption of simplified, fast-track visa schemes for third country nationals. This would include special classes of visas for entrepreneurs; skill sets to redress local talent shortages; and employees transferring from other international branches.

• Our school system also requires a major overhaul. We need to urgently introduce new subjects such as coding and robotics

industrial revolutions liberated humankind from animal power, made mass production possible and brought digital capabilities to billions of people. This fourth industrial revolution is, however, fundamentally different…. We stand on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another.

In its scale, scope, and complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has experienced before.”

What marks this fourth revolution is a range of new technologies that are starting to hit their critical inflection points at the same time: artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, blockchain, genomics, the internet of things, autonomous vehicles, 3D printing and drones among many others – to truly reshape workplaces, markets, homes, industries and, yes, even countries.

Today’s disruptive environment is ripe for new market opportunities and policy makers can play a key role in helping Malta capitalise on this change.

in school curricula while simultaneously equipping children with the softer skills they will need – creativity, critical thinking, problem solving and social skills.

Educators must be consulted, trained and equipped to embrace the forthcoming change. Educational deployments of Artificial Intelligence could soon see bots assisting teachers to deliver personalised learning experiences to every student.

Virtual reality headsets will likely be used to explore distant cultures • Curating the right ecosystems for entrepreneurship is also important.

Governments can assist by updating legislation to make it attractive for companies to take on equity investments – and to exit. They can also assist to enhance access to risk capital through early-stage financing and support schemes. Given the global nature of business, targeted

As the world changes, we need to learn, and fast, how to embrace collaboration as a way of dealing with disruption.

Governments, businesses and educators need to work together to build long-term strategies embracing this historic change.

intellectual property provisions can be developed to encourage innovation and collaboration with larger global organisations and investors.

• Policy makers must also consider the impact of technology and changes in the way it governs and delivers services to the public. They need to study the impact of technology on infrastructure investments – how will self-driving cars impact traffic congestion and the need for new forms of mass public transportation?

They must learn to effectively utilise big data to accurately gauge customer satisfaction and sentiment and improve public services. They must also focus on user experience and make services available digitally without the need for physical intervention as well as adopt digital tools to enable citizens to interact with policy makers, voice their ideas and provide constructive feedback.

And organisations also need to learn how to leverage strategic alliances with competitors, cross-industry partnerships and collaborations with start-ups to address the challenges they face.

The future is called disruption.

Money / Issue 42 - 23

㄀㄀㌀Ⰰ 倀愀漀氀愀 刀漀愀搀Ⰰ 吀愀爀砀椀攀渀Ⰰ 吀堀一 ㄀㠀 㜀Ⰰ 䴀愀氀琀愀 ⬀㌀㔀㘀 ㈀㄀ 㘀㘀㄀ ㈀㜀㌀ 椀渀昀漀䀀攀爀爀攀洀洀攀⸀挀漀洀⸀洀琀

Man of the hour is a series of interviews in association with Edwards, Lowell Ltd featuring high profile industry leaders.

INTERVIEW

The

MAN of

the HOUR

MICHEL

PARMIGIANI value. Through this, he became acquainted with the president of the foundation, Pierre Landot, who saw great promise in Michel’s unique talents and decided to provide him with the resources to start up his own brand. In 1996, Parmigiani Fleurier was launched, creating handmade luxury watches – eventually creating each component in-house.

The brand has changed since those early days, but he said: “It is not a revolution – it’s an evolution” “There was never a change. I insisted that the brand fundamentals and essence should be carried on throughout the years. I still respect the source of my inspiration [restoration].”

People may mistake the brand as having Italian not Swiss roots, because of Michel’s surname – which does, in fact, have an Italian origin.

“Yes, I am actually half Italian; my father is from Milan and my mother is from the Dolomites – they met in Switzerland.

Arabella Hogg was impressed by a man whose passion for timekeeping has given him a revered reputation.

I

wait tentatively in a room, feeling my nerves escalate in anticipation. Michel Parmigiani is a visionary in the watch world, founder and president of the exquisite Parmigiani Fleurier watch brand. Dreading coming face to face with a stern figure, I was in fact greeted warmly by a sincere, well-dressed gentleman who made me feel instantly at ease. Research about Michel shows what makes him tick (pun intended): each moment in his life has guided him on a direct path to his crafting of the most refined timepieces on the market today.

He was born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland during the 1950s. He was torn between a career in architecture or watchmaking (the parallels between these two professions are apparent within the brand aesthetics). He decided on watchmaking, and specialised his studies in restoration.

He then set up his own company in 1976, opening a restoration workshop. Despite being advised by people surrounding him that both watchmaking and restoration were diminishing trades not to be pursued, Michel continued to follow his passion.

His expertise in restoration was celebrated

throughout the antiques world: Sotheby’s claimed that a Breguet Pendule Symathique tabletop clock was an unrepairable item and impossible to restore. It is a unique piece, a master table clock and pocket watch duo. The pocket watch could be removed from the main clock and worn, and when placed back into the clock they would automatically synchronise. Despite Sotheby’s dismissive verdict, he managed the impossible, although it took around one year to complete and over 2,000 hours of work.

“My father taught me to pay attention to detail and to observe everything – my Italian heritage made a big impact on the aesthetics of the brand.”

His distinguished and meticulous restoration work can be seen at many museums including the Patek Philippe Museum and The Museum of Decorative Arts in Milan. Parmigiani watches are for the discerning watch collector, those who value the exceptional and appreciate true craftsmanship.

His passion for the history of watchmaking is undeniable, and each watch made is a legacy to this – the past and present merging together.

“They couldn’t believe I had done it,” he smiled.

The clock was eventually purchased by the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva.

With each restoration, Michel honed his craft and became equally skilled in watchmaking as learning the historical processes gave him an upper hand when creating new pieces. With this rare technical skill, he began to make a name for himself within the prestigious world of watch museums and collectors.

In the 1980s, Michel was entrusted with maintenance of the treasured Maurice-Yves Sandoz collection, all pieces with inestimable

Parmigiani Fleurier a luxury watch brand with a heart rooted in the art of watch restoration – is celebrating its 20th anniversary of the brand.

Money / Issue 42 - 25

Europe is investing in your future The Investment Plan for Europe aims to boost jobs and growth by mobilising funds for investment, by connecting projects and investors and by creating an investor-friendly environment.

Find out more at:

europa.eu/investeu

Investment Plan for Europe

Getting Europe to invest for jobs and growth Let’s #InvestEU

JOB MARKET

EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES: WHO IS CALLING THE SHOTS? Stefan Micallef argues that a labour market which is skewed towards the employee might not be the ideal. umerous professionals argue that the recruitment process has shifted and that if a company does not adapt, it will fall behind when it comes to recruiting the right talent. With such fierce competition, the billion dollar question is, of course, is the employer choosing the candidate or vice versa?

N

company and the employees. The pros on one end are that in an environment where an employer is spoiled for choice, the recruitment will not be such a headache as it is nowadays, while on the other hand employees will feel distressed by a lack of opportunities in the market, resulting in lack of performance and satisfaction.

In my opinion this is a continuum – with the extremes dangerous for both the

In a scenario where candidates are in the driving seat, than a whole lot of money will

Stefan Micallef

Money / Issue 42 - 27

JOB MARKET

have to be invested by companies to attract talent, and organisational commitment is undermined by the fact that a better opportunity will always be on the cards.

Theoretically, both parties have a say in a bilateral agreement, yet the negotiation stage might not be that simple given that at some point both ends must meet. With such competition, it is no secret that employees are having a greater say within the present pool of opportunities on the market.

Many observers had speculated that Malta might suffer a similar financial crisis as that of Cyprus, resulting in a sudden breakdown of job opportunities, yet from a current financial standpoint this seems unlikely. At the moment, it seems that, if anything, competition will increase, thus requiring more talent.

The likes of employee value proposition (EVP) and branding will become more and more essential to attract the right people.

28 - Money / Issue 42

That is why marketing and human resources departments need to move closer together to balance the continuum of choice and influence candidates in such a way to make them want to work for their companies. Yet while cool adverts and other marketing tools might stick for a while in people’s memory, what actually happens on the job is what makes the biggest difference!

Were the expectations in the first week/ month/quarter met?

Expectations matter on both ends as at the end of the day the employee’s performance is what counts most for the company. This brings us to the question of whether the employees are being challenged enough to grow within the company or if they should look elsewhere for better opportunities.

Perceptions and thoughts change in a split second and that is why an annual review or six-monthly appraisal is not enough to manage performance and retain the talent needed.

“ORGANISATIONAL COMMITMENT IS UNDERMINED BY THE FACT THAT A BETTER OPPORTUNITY WILL ALWAYS BE ON THE CARDS”

Stefan Micallef forms part of the human resources and recruitment team of Erremme Business Advisors. He is also currently reading a Masters of Business Administration with Edinburgh Business School.

EMPOWERING A NEW GENERATION OF ADVENTURE SEEKERS.

TECHNOLOGY

TAKING THE BIG LEAP

If you’ve ever considered quitting your job, embarking on an exciting new chapter in your life and starting a start-up, wait, advises Jamie Genovese.

I

t’s April, season 4 of Silicon Valley is about to start. If you’ve never seen it, do try and see the apparently scarily authentic, absolutely manic-depressive highs and lows of start-up culture as well as the ins-and-outs of tech culture.

But we aren’t in Santa Clara County, we’re in Malta. What’s leaving your job and starting a start-up like here? Enter Kwaver’s James Zammit, Easysell’s Chris McKay, and Hangar’s Clint Tabone.

Chris McKay started playing football in the premier league and joined Malta’s national team aged about 15. He left the country to

30 - Money / Issue 42

play football in Northern Ireland. “I lived in a shitty, 30-40m2 apartment in Belfast, the worst place, I think, in Northern Ireland. Being a Catholic … was an issue, I had to move teams.” After about six months he suffered an injury and came back home, somewhat adrift. It’s now that he had to cast his gaze elsewhere, backed up by friends: tech and entrepreneurship. After inducting himself in some Flash and design courses, he set out to make PlayersCV about 10 years ago, when getting funding was far harder than it is today. The platform was a networking hub between players, coaches, scouts, agents, and other of that ilk. Ultimately that project fizzled out due to varying team commitments.

Left to right: James Zammit, Chris McKay and Clint Tabone Photo by Jamie Genovese

Now he’s started Easysell which looks to take bites – and this is no secret – from Maltapark, as it is easier to use and available on mobile platforms, its current focus.

Clint runs a small creative agency with three partners. The team of roughly six people started in 2012 offering services for marketing, video work, design, app and web dev — you name it — largely in-house, but sometimes they’ll outsource a couple of things. Before this, Clint was a designer at EC, the English-language school, while maintaining some clients of his own. But push came to shove and Clint felt he needed a change, although he wasn’t sure what.

“At the time, I was thinking of joining an agency, because I had never worked in one, and I was looking around and thinking which companies I should work for or maybe go to iGaming. iGaming didn’t look attractive to me back then; and when I was looking at all the agencies I couldn’t put my finger on the one I would feel comfortable with, so I thought maybe I should start my own.”

“RAISING MONEY, GOING TO CONVENTIONS, LEGAL STUFF, THE ACCOUNTANT — THEY’RE DISTRACTIONS. PRODUCT IS KING” His partner and co-founder, Cedric, was already used to working with him, and they both pretty much had the same idea. Badabing, bada-boom, you get Hangar. Technically, it’s an idea they had been spit-balling for years, playing in bands together and working on videos and designs for other bands in the meanwhile. But it was only in 2012 that the company was formally established.

This brings us to James from Kwaver, the music-collaboration app for iOS. Brandon, the co-founder, came up with the idea while managing an artist (and their expensive and time consuming jamming sessions) in London circa 2014. Kwaver seeks to cut out the need to find the right place and the right time through easy and free-wheeling music collaboration. The first attempt didn’t work out. But Brandon came back to Malta and was still determined to pursue the idea. The two met at a start-up-weekend (one of those buzzy conferences people into this sort of thing go to from time to time; Chris doesn’t seem to care for it though and he was looking for developers. James has always had a thing for both tech and music, having backgrounds in both, and things moved on from there. The app itself bills 50 per cent of the credit to the originator, while the other 50 per cent is split among the others that jump into the session.

So, those are the bases covered. I asked our trio what are the most common mistakes people make when jumping onto the start-up bandwagon.

“I think it’s focus,” James suggested. “I think people tend to focus on all the wrong things, and the most important thing is the product.

Raising money, going to conventions, legal stuff, the accountant — they’re distractions. Product is king; if you have great product you reach market fit and you start seeing passive users come on board and that’s really important.”

Clint offered something else: “I think one of the first mistakes we did was hiring the wrong people, but other than that I think a lot of businesses scale up too quickly, something we didn’t do. But we see it happen. Grow the business by purpose, not by ego.” It can be tempting to scale up and be one of the bigger fish in the pond: “Of course, to keep that commitment, it’s hard because you have people on your payroll, which means you have to say yes to a lot of things that you would say no to if you had a choice. If you’re driven by purpose you can be very picky with your clients.”

This idea applies to the overheads young companies take on. Hangar’s team, for example, don’t run out of an office, but work remotely (author’s note: in our last issue, I wrote about remote working), as overheads eat up revenue that could go to payroll and talent, and in turn put more pressure on a start-up to accept work that’s ill-suited.

“I agree with both regarding product and hiring the wrong people,” Chris nodded.

“Setting up a business in Malta can be a bit hard because the country could be too small and limited. Besides, if you have a history or something it can affect you without knowing it.” Now, what pushed them over the edge?

“It was hard. Very, very, hard,” began Clint. “I was unhappy at work, and still I didn’t take the decision right away. I had everyone’s support, I had clients, I had everyone saying ‘you’d do well, you’d do well, you’ve had clients, your work is of a good standard, etcetera.’ Even if a 100 people tell you you’d do well – your inner voice says ‘no’ – you stay cautious.

“And I think what happens is that sometimes you end up with no other choice. When I got fed up, the only way was out.” And after a small beat, he adds: “What’s the worst that could happen? You tried.”

James, on the other hand, didn’t find it so easy. “I left university a year and a half ago or something like that; I only had the last year to go,” he laughed.

“It was more about the emotional pressure that came with it. In my family, everyone’s either a doctor or a lawyer or something or they’re really conservative in that aspect.

They love school; if you don’t go to school you’re a failure, that kind of thing.” His friends scoffed at the idea of leaving university for Kwaver, 6,647 miles away from the can-do attitude of San Francisco. “I had been in the school system for what, 16 years? And I was going to quit in the last year. The thing is that I wasn’t seeing anything of value coming out of university. Even the stuff that I was learning for Kwaver, like coding for iOS, I wasn’t learning from school. I was self-taught

and reaching out to different iOS engineers, watching a bunch of lectures from some great online universities. University wasn’t providing any value whatsoever so I was there purely for the emotional attachment, which isn’t enough of a reason.”

Chris, on the other hand, offered a different perspective, since he hasn’t left his current job at a gaming company.

“Today it’s easy to get guys and say ‘Listen, you should leave your job, go and try your thing’, but the thing is 99.9 per cent of these people fail every day, because they’re lacking experience, they’re lacking money, they’re lacking contacts. When they get out there, there are sharks out there. I’m not saying you should give up, but the thing is, I think you should be prepared before doing it. It’s easy for someone to tell you to leave your job, and then you go there and you’re buying his book and you’re making him a millionaire and that is actually his entrepreneurship tactic.” But why stick around?

“I’m still working for a company, it’s a company that I like, it’s a company that I’ve been in since the beginning, today it costs half a billion. I haven’t left yet because I’m learning a lot here […] My mentor that I look up to, luckily, is the CEO of the company and whenever I’m talking to him, I’m always learning.” He couldn’t imagine a local company would encourage him to pursue his own projects, much less seek the help and opinions of his current boss.

“In the long run, I know how much this guy supports me, so what I’m seeing at this point in time is that I can be an entrepreneur at my own company. The thing is that anything I know today I learned through this company: data collection, retention, marketing — because when you’re starting a company with five people and then it grows to 500 people…then you’re seeing why other companies fail, so it’s like my own start-up but I’m not the boss.”

That sums things up pretty neatly, but as a parting shot I asked if they could give a quick one line each. James said it was important to find like-minded people, and Chris tagged on a favourite quote of his: “If you hang around the barbershop too long one day you’re gonna get a haircut. As I said, remember why you’re starting the business,” added Clint.

Chris, who had the last word, firmly reminded me: “One goal at a time: set a goal and then another goal and then another goal.”

Which reminds me of what the SAS apparently say, which may or may not be true: “Q: How do you eat a whale?

A: One bite at a time.”

Money / Issue 42 - 31

HEALTH

HIGH LEVELS OF EFFICACY

It may be controversial, but there are other questions about the use of medical cannabis that are just as important as whether it should be legal, as Dr Andrew Agius explains.

How effective is medical cannabis?

Medical cannabis is unique in the way it acts on the human body. It is the only medicine that works on certain conditions where there is a dysfunctional endocannabinoid system. It is also very effective in many other conditions where

conventional medicines do not always control symptoms. One classical example is pain. Opiate doses are limited because of the side effects. Using medical cannabis means reducing a patient’s dose of opiates and providing more effective pain relief with fewer less side effects.

Dr Feelgood - Andrew Agius

For which ailments is medical marijuana mostly effective?

There is a growing body of evidence that cannabis-based medicines are effective for a wide range of conditions. Sativex, which is an oral-mucosal spray made from cannabis extracts, has been medically approved in

Money / Issue 42 - 33

HEALTH

most of Europe for the treatment of spasms in multiple sclerosis. There is research showing that cannabis is also effective for neuropathic pain, epilepsy, Parkinsons disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, inflammatory bowel disease, HIV/AIDS related symptoms, fibromyalgia, migraines and cancer-related symptoms.

What is the legal status of medical marijuana locally?

In April 2015, a new law stated that a specialist working in the fields of oncology, psychiatry, anaesthesia and neurology can prescribe medicinal preparations of cannabis when deemed necessary. This law was implemented in November 2016 when the Medicines Authority accepted Sativex as an approved medicinal preparation.

Following further discussions which took place earlier this year, the Medicines Authority have now also accepted Bedrocan

34 - Money / Issue 42

THE NEXT STEP IS FOR THE MALTESE GOVERNMENT TO MAKE AN AGREEMENT WITH THE NETHERLANDS TO START IMPORTING THIS MEDICINE as a medicinal preparation which can be prescribed. Bedrocan is a range of strains of pharmaceutical-grade dried cannabis buds which can be vaporised in a medical device to provide a therapeutic effect. The next step is for the Maltese government to make an agreement with the Netherlands to start importing this medicine to our pharmacies.

How would medical marijuana be regulated, if this were to become legal locally?

Once Bedrocan is available in our pharmacies, a

patient would need to obtain a prescription from one of the above-mentioned specialists. This is usually valid for a certain period depending on the patient’s condition. The patient would be able to obtain this medicine from his pharmacy like any other medicine. Patients would need to be assessed regularly by the specialist before a repeat prescription is issued.

The US seems to be more accepting of the use of marijuana for medical purposes than Europe – what are the reasons for this?

Cannabis-based medicines have proved to be very effective in many conditions and they are the only effective medicines in some conditions for which there was previously no treatment.

Research is slowly showing the incredible therapeutic potential of cannabis and once certain clinical trials are complete, cannabis will change the way we manage many diseases. The US is a more advanced country than Europe in this respect and they have acknowledged and accepted its medicinal use. Europe is slowly following with many countries having already approved medical cannabis. I think eventually the whole world will acknowledge its medicinal use; it’s just a matter of time!

supporting our customers At Bank of Valletta we are proud to support our business customers to grow locally and internationally, to expand their operations and to finance major projects.

We understand that a supporting and long term relationship helps businesses to grow as they continue to invest in the Maltese economy.

your success is our goal

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Issued by Bank of Valletta p.l.c., 58, Triq San Ĺťakkarija, Il-Belt Valletta VLT 1130

DESIGN

ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS ?????

Creating a pleasant work environment is a very worthwhile investment. Designer Vera Sant Fournier explains why.

Y

our office interior plays a big part in the success of your organisation: it portrays your corporate identity and may define the first impression your potential new clients will get, maintaining your professional approach throughout the duration of the client/business relation.

A well-designed office may cost a little more, but it is cheaper than a poorly designed one.

A non-functioning office wastes time, causes frustration and makes your employees less productive for the simple reason that it may hinder basic tasks.

Before any commercial project starts, a fundamental starting point is the employee interview. What can be done to improve

productivity? What can be done to boost daily morale?

When one takes into consideration the number of hours spent regularly in an office it is clear to see how important professional interior design is for your office. Keeping these tips in consideration when planning your new office interiors will improve your work mode, flow and even mood.

1. Let there be light‌ and air!

Natural light is a much overlooked fundamental but it should be one of your major considerations from a layout and morale point of view. Studies show that productivity improves with natural light. Our eyes are designed to work with the changing levels of

sunlight, in contrast with the harsh continuous and clinical artificial light one so commonly finds. Truth is this lighting set-up causes eye fatigue and can induce headaches.

We often find employees talk about dry air in the office too: it is well known that air conditioning systems cause dry eyes and mouth. Investing in an air purification system and boosting natural light will improve the general mood in your office. You will also keep good air circulation and odours at bay.

A scent diffuser is also something to consider, as no one likes an unpleasant smell at the workspace.

Maximise natural sunlight by creating open environments, tear down interior walls, use

Money / Issue 42 - 37

DESIGN

JAZZ HEIGHT ADJUSTABLE DESK

For teams of professionals spending 8 hours a day at their workplace, we offer desks at which you can work either in a seated or standing position. Available at DEX, Mdina Road, Qormi. T: 2277 3000, www.dex.com.mt

FLIP TOP DESK:

This collection is perfect within a lively workspace; it is easy to assemble when meetings pop up and practical for space saving when not in use. Available at DEX, Mdina Road, Qormi. T: 2277 3000, www.dex.com.mt

ID TRIM CHAIR BY VITRA

The backrest of the ID Trim office chair not only conveys a sense of classic elegance and quality craftsmanship, but ensures a high level of comfort. Available at DEX, Mdina Road, Qormi. T: 2277 3000, www.dex.com.mt

38 - Money / Issue 42

glass walls for private offices and benching desks instead of claustrophobic workstations.

And keep space in mind, no one likes to bump into colleagues just to perform simple tasks.

It’s not only important to give staff big enough desks, but you must also consider ‘circulation space’ and how the flow of movement will be. This is a major factor to consider when planning your furniture layout.

very good investment in the long run. Invest in good movable monitor arms to put the screen at eye level to reduce neck pain, and do consider desks which have height adjustable legs, as some people are taller than others.

2. Provide break free space.

Break free spaces aren’t just somewhere your employees can eat lunch; they provide a crucial place away from the desk, which can aid creativity. A walk away from the desk and computer screen will contribute to productive thinking. Break-out or chill out spaces for those informal chats or just a change of scenery will also dismantle barriers of communication and encourage spontaneity in the office. Have designated casual meeting or lounge areas in your office for employees – not only to relax but also to exchange thoughts. Some of the best ideas come from inspirational environments and casual spaces.

Tear down the barriers at the office!

When choosing your office furniture not only are you investing in your company image but you are also investing in your staff, and yes, they will love you for it.

3. Invest in furniture.

It may be a relatively small object, but workers spend most of their work day sitting in an office chair. Only when they begin to suffer the ill effects of an uncomfortable chair – such as low back pain, neck, wrist, hand, arm pain and general discomfort – will you as the owner or office manager start to hear them complain, and staff complaints means less productive staff. In a nut shell, do not underestimate your furniture functionality and comfort. Ergonomic desk chairs, although not cheap, will prove to be a

Good quality office furniture will also offer cable management, to get all those nasty cables in order.

4. Be proud of your corporate identity Branding should not stop with business cards and your website. It should be all around the employees and should also speak to the clients. It should be the environment.

There must be a brand flow from website to stationery to interiors.

You should create a sense of unity within your space and your corporate image. Create interest by providing a feature wall which houses your logo and signage. Carry any identifying factors through the space, be it colour, a shape or idea.

Clients notice such touches, but so do everyday users, and it makes the space a little bit less corporate and more personal.

The physical appearance of your office is the foundation for your corporate culture.

In designing your office space, inject your firm’s slogans, logos, philosophy, attitude, products and colour palette into the environment in order to showcase your firm’s corporate culture.

WHEN CHOOSING YOUR OFFICE FURNITURE … YOU ARE ALSO INVESTING IN YOUR STAFF, AND YES, THEY WILL LOVE YOU FOR IT

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PROMO

MYNEY – MAKE IT PART OF YOUR EVERYDAY DIGITAL LIFE

M

yney, brought to you by Fexserv Financial Services, is a smartphone app which is the digital equivalent of your purse or wallet. Instead of withdrawing money from an ATM and placing the cash in your wallet you just simply transfer or deposit money in your Myney account.

There are various ways to deposit or transfer money into your Myney Payment Account.

The more commonly used are: sending a bank payment from your bank to your Myney IBAN with Fexserv; topping up the Myney Payment Account immediately using your existing VISA or MasterCard or by way of a cash deposit at Fexserv branch counters. Other ways to top up your account include receiving a P2P transfer from another Myney user or by processing a Western Union Receive Money Transfer through the Myney app.

Bank transfers can also be received from bank accounts other than yours. These could be social benefits, wages, salaries, student stipends or any other bank transfer from a third party.

Once you have funds in the account you can start exploring the convenience that Myney offers you over your wallet. You could send money to friends or family in seconds using the Myney P2P function, pay for goods or services at more than 200 shops that accept Myney today, send money to any bank account in the world (restrictions may apply) or send a Western Union Money Transfer directly from your smartphone without the need to go to an agent location. You can also make a cash withdrawal at Fexserv branches.

All Go Prepaid customers have the convenience of topping up their or any other persons Go Prepaid account through the mobile top up function in the Myney app.

Myney also caters for gifting with its Myney Gift function. Myney Gift is the digital equivalent of the popular One4all gift voucher and any Myney user can simply create a gift voucher for any amount and send this to anyone by inserting the recipients’ mobile number

or e-mail address and typing a free text message. You can also attach a small picture or video to make the experience a memorable one.

Myney also rewards its customers for using the Myney app with its very own loyalty program.

Points are accumulated for every Euro spent at shops and service providers. Points are then simply converted to Myney Gift Vouchers as and when users want to do this.

Myney will shortly launch its very own Myney Prepaid MasterCard. Myney Prepaid is a reloadable plastic card in the user’s name valid for three years which will include all the latest functions related to cards.

Myney is truly a smartphone app for everyone and since its free everyone living in Malta should download this app and be part of this exciting time in our digital life.

Download Myney from the App Store or Google Play and get your account set up in minutes.

Money / Issue 42 - 41

BOV Investment Funds Some people think investments are complex. We can help you better understand and choose the right investment strategy that fits your personal risk tolerance.

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BOV Branches/Investment Centres & Licensed Financial Intermediaries

Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. The value of the investment can go down as well as up. Investments should be based on the full details of the Prospectus, Offering Supplement and the Key Investor Information Document which may be obtained from BOV Asset Management Limited, Bank of Valletta p.l.c. Branches/Investment Centres and other Licensed Financial Intermediaries. BOV Asset Management Limited is licensed to provide Investment Services in Malta by the MFSA. The BOV Investment Funds is a common contractual fund licensed by the MFSA as a collective investment scheme pursuant to the Investment Services Act and the UCITS Directive.

Issued by BOV Asset Management Limited, registered address 58, Triq San Ĺťakkarija, Il-Belt Valletta VLT 1130. Tel: 2122 7311, Fax: 2275 5661, Email: infoassetmanagement@bov.com, Website: www. bovassetmanagement.com. Source: BOV Asset Management Limited.

MARKET REPORT

Licensed stockbroker Alexander Mangion is Managing Director at MPM Capital Investments since 2009.

The company is authorised by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) to provide financial services in Malta and holds a Category 2 licence. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) degree in Banking & Finance (University of Malta) and a Master of Finance & Investments (University of Nottingham).

EUROPE FINALLY GOES RENEWABLE

A

fter years of big declarations and fancy targets but little action, the EU member states are finally putting money behind their words and investing heavily in renewable energy. That such investment is taking place at a time of low oil prices is truly a positive signal that underlines a genuine understanding of the concerns related to climate change and a healthier environment.

Europe’s big target is 20 per cent renewable energy use in final energy consumption by 2020. Until a few years ago, particularly at the height of the financial crisis, this appeared to be another failed entry on the climate check list.

However, according to new figures published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) this month, the share of renewables in the energy mix has increased from below 15 per cent in 2013 to just under 17 per cent in 2015.

More importantly though, a significant shift in trend has been witnessed, as renewable energy accounted for 77 per cent of all new electricitygenerating capacity added in 2015.

Unfortunately though, this is only one side of the story, as is always the case with averages. In reality, there is no consistency between member states. No prizes for guessing the front runners though, with Nordic countries like Finland and Sweden contributing more than 30 per cent, with smaller laggards include Malta and Luxembourg at less than 5 per cent.

Meanwhile, the EU is forging ahead with its plans. As 2020 is rapidly approaching, EU countries have already agreed on a new renewable energy target of at least 27 per cent of final energy consumption in the EU as a whole by 2030 as part of the EU’s energy and climate goals for 2030, a target which would make the EU a global leader in renewable energy.

CHINA, SHOULD WE WORRY? Mixed signals continue to arrive from the Far East. A common debate between industry exports or investors starts with a simple question: is China really in trouble?

Taking the international stock market as an indication, the answer would be in the affirmative. A number of stock exchanges in countries that deal significantly with China saw heavy drops as a result of an 11 per cent plunge by the Shanghai stock exchange, accompanied by a small devaluation in the renminbi, the Chinese currency.

Global investors, already uneasy following the collapse of a Chinese equity-market bubble and a surprise currency devaluation last summer took these latest moves as confirmation that the world’s second-biggest economy was far weaker than its relatively rosy headline growth numbers suggested.

Is this an over-reaction? Could be, after all, China’s economy grew by almost 7 per cent in 2015 but financial media headlines around the world rushed to warn us that this was lowest growth rate in a quarter century. Small point: this is still the second highest growth rate amongst major economies, just behind India.

Construction, the main motor behind China’s growth from 2000 to 2013, is almost at recession levels. However, services – which now account for over half of China’s economy – and consumer spending remain strong, a direct consequence of employment and wage growth.

Domestic bank deposits grew by a healthy 19 per cent last year and now stand at $21 trillion – double the country’s GDP. According to research carried out by the Financial Times, lending to households and companies is backed one-for-one by bank deposits. Just to put this in perspective, the pre-crisis United States in 2008 had nearly four dollars of loans for every dollar of bank deposits. As long as China’s financial system stays so securely funded, the chance of a crisis is low.

This shows that we should probably not worry about any immediate Chinese economic implosion or financial crisis. Rather, concern should be focused on the country’s economic direction. That the country is seeking to transit itself from heavy industry to a services-based economy is laudable – it’s the smoothness of the transition which begs most questions, as experience shows that transitions are never smooth.

TRUMP-EFFECT ON THE ECONOMY? Some pundits have already called it the Trump effect: few would have bet on it, but for the first time since the economic crisis, which saw American banks collapse, more Americans feel positive about the economy than negative about it.

According to Pew Research’s latest survey, 58 per cent of Americans say the economic situation is very or somewhat good. Last spring, only 44 per cent of the American public described the economy as good. Indeed, this is the most positive people have felt about the economy since 2007 — a year before the economic crisis — and only the second time that half or more of those surveyed have given the economy a positive outlook.

What is even more surprising is that the markets seem to agree. The stock market Dow Jones is up by 13 per cent in less than six months.

For those following only the headline articles, this may sound strange. For many, Trump means risking a trade war with China, threats to big US companies moving business abroad, or even escalating a potential nuclear race. But beyond those big-font, high-impact stories, Trump policy has been more reassuring to business. Following a campaign promising the slashing of medicine prices, the President is now against ‘price-fixing’; he’s filled top Cabinet positions with Wall Street or top business executives, and he has initiated legislation to reduce regulation, particularly in the financial services sector. Agencies have been told that for any new regulation they introduce they have to get rid of two existing ones. This is all positive news for big business, for it shows the President is not only pro-business but deep down, just another conventional President.

But as the New Yorker recently put it: business is betting that Trump is risky but not uncertain.

What they are probably not taking seriously enough is the possibility that Trump may be willing to do things like start a trade war with China or a real war with Iran, whose outcomes would be truly uncertain.

Money / Issue 42 - 43

COUNTRY PROFILE

CELTIC TIGER PURRS AGAIN I

reland emerged from the conflict that marked its birth as an independent state to become one of Europe’s economic success stories in the final decade of the 20th century. Long under English or British rule, Ireland lost half its population in the decades following the

44 - Money / Issue 42

Great Potato Famine of the 1840s, becoming a nation of emigrants. After World War I, independence from the United Kingdom was only achieved at the price of civil war and partition. Northern Ireland remains part of Britain. After the country joined the European

Community in 1973, it was transformed from a largely agricultural society into a modern, hightechnology economy.

Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy. It was among the initial group of 12

CONTINUED GROWTH OF TAX RECEIPTS HAS ALLOWED THE GOVERNMENT TO LOWER SOME TAXES AND INCREASE PUBLIC SPENDING EU nations that began circulating the euro on January 1, 2002.

GDP growth averaged six per cent in 19952007, but economic activity dropped sharply during the world financial crisis and the subsequent collapse of its domestic property market and construction industry.

Faced with sharply reduced revenues and a burgeoning budget deficit from efforts to stabilise its fragile banking sector, the Irish government introduced the first in a series of draconian budgets in 2009. These measures were not sufficient to stabilise Ireland’s public finances. In 2010, the budget deficit reached 32.4 per cent of GDP – the world’s largest deficit as a percentage of GDP. In late 2010, the former Cowen government agreed to a $92 billion loan package from the EU and IMF to help Dublin recapitalise Ireland’s banking sector and avoid defaulting on its sovereign debt. In March 2011, the Kenny government intensified austerity measures to meet the deficit targets under Ireland’s EU-IMF bailout program.

Labour force by occupation: Agriculture:

5%

Services:

84%

Industry:

11%

In late 2013, Ireland formally exited its EU-IMF bailout program, benefiting from its strict adherence to deficit-reduction targets and success in refinancing a large amount of banking-related debt.

GDP:

Population:

4.9 M

$324.3 billion GDP per capita:

$69,400

In 2014, the economy rapidly picked up and GDP grew by 5.2 per cent. The recovering economy assisted lowering the deficit to 2.5 per cent of GDP. In late 2014, the government introduced a fiscally neutral budget, marking the end of the austerity program. Continued growth of tax receipts has allowed the government to lower some taxes and increase public spending while keeping to its deficit-reduction targets. In 2015, GDP growth reached 7.8 per cent, the highest growth in the EU for the second consecutive year.

In the wake of the collapse of the construction sector and the downturn in consumer spending and business investment, the export sector – dominated by foreign multinationals – has become an even more important component of Ireland’s economy.

Ireland’s low corporation tax of 12.5 per cent and a talented pool of high-tech labourers have been key factors in encouraging business investment. Loose tax residency requirements made Ireland a common destination for international firms seeking to avoid taxation. Amid growing international pressure, the government announced it would phase in more stringent tax laws, effectively closing the loophole.

Life expectancy:

78.5 yrs

83.2 yrs

Main exports: Machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs

Money / Issue 42 - 45

MARKETING

Vodafone went down the publishing route by creating Illallutube, an online-only “TV” talent show that generated heaps of engagement and brand equity

THE (MARKETING) REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED

Richard Muscat Azzopardi

With people becoming increasingly sceptical about the overkill of information being thrown at them, Richard Muscat Azzopardi makes the case for companies to get their message across without it being filtered.

I

If you don’t play along, you’re going to be left behind. There is no place for dead weight in the revolution. No place for “traditional marketing”.

No place for “this is how we always did it”.

This has not always been the case. There is a thought revolution going on, and you have a choice whether you want to be part of it or not.

In the words of Gil Scott Heron, the revolution will not be televised. It will happen in our minds: “The first revolution is when you change your mind

t is hard to emphasise how important a brand’s communication efforts have become. Every word spoken by the brand is now under the scrutiny of a savvy audience – and this applies to every touchpoint.

46 - Money / Issue 42

about how you look at things, and see there might be another way to look at it that you have not been shown. What you see later is the results of that, but that revolution, that change that takes place will not be televised.”

Humanity has always had a strange relationship with authority. We feel like

Farsons are reaping the benefits of being a publisher of regular high quality content on their Facebook page

there needs to be some of it to be able to look up to something that’s somehow larger than ourselves, but when this becomes too powerful we tend to revolt against it.

The role of royalty was taken over by politicians when people stopped trusting royalty. It was meant to be the better option. This, in time, failed too, and the fourth estate (mass media) took the mantle from politicians. Now we’ve lost faith in the media and have resorted to ourselves and our peers for information.

completely honest and human ones, the ones that live and breathe their values.

In order to see a brand’s value, we need to see how it thinks. To see how it thinks, we need to see its unfiltered content.

Therefore, the only way forward for brands is to go down a route that’s very different to what they’ve been doing for decades: it is time for them to join the publishing revolution.

Social media (and the internet in general, to a certain point) has made humans, and – by natural extension – brands, the last frontier of trust. If we can’t trust media any more, we must rely on the people and brands who are producing and curating content.

There was a time when you’d spend big bucks creating an advert then use it repeatedly to push the same message to everyone stuck in front of a medium you had very little control over. You’d then spend about 10 times that on airtime. This ratio seemed to make sense at that point, and, to be fair, it did.

I can never support Donald Trump, but I think his win was symptomatic of the new breed of people who seem to distrust everything the established powerhouses of media were telling them and voted based on the rhetoric that came out of individuals (and smaller media organisations) whose content went viral.

TV stations had to create quality content to keep their viewership high. This meant paying exorbitant amounts of money on programming, which had to be shared among the advertisers buying those 30 second slots.

That money bought you credibility (borrowed from the station), and increased the value of your brand by association (with the station).

So how do we choose who to trust? We choose by looking at the ones around us who are consistent, the ones who have values we can align with. The brands we trust are

If you want to be successful nowadays, you need to take the responsibility and become a publisher yourself, with clear aims that originate from your business goals.

THERE WAS A TIME WHEN YOU’D SPEND BIG BUCKS CREATING AN ADVERT [FOR] A MEDIUM YOU HAD VERY LITTLE CONTROL OVER

We’ve seen this repeatedly with a few of our more forward-looking clients. The minute they accept that they should be investing in high quality content to go on their social media channels, they’ve seen their return on investment from marketing shoot up.

Some of our clients are now working on a ratio that’s practically the opposite: they spend 90 per cent of their budget on regular high quality productions and 10 per cent on promoting it online. This has put them in a position where their content is arriving at their audiences through the strongest medium possible: personal recommendations.

They’re also investing in something that will do them long-term good. They’re investing in media on platforms that they own.

Their content is being evangelised by their audience, the cost of reaching a much wider audience is falling dramatically and, more importantly, their audience is trusting them directly now. They’re showing that they care about them and they’re just one of them.

The revolution is happening. Will you join the revolution or stand aside and let your competitors shape it?

Postscript: So, what about magazines such as the one you’re holding in your hand? Where do these fit in? Magazines are like specialised programming. There’s still room for them because they can put you in front of an audience that’s interested in a subject you have something to say about. You’re reading this article after all.

Richard is the CEO of Switch - Digital & Brand, a marketing agency that forms part of ICOM, the world’s largest network of independent agencies.

Money / Issue 42 - 47

URB ANI ZED

Photography STEVEN LEVI VELLA www.steven-vella.com

Styling LUKE ENGERER Model PEDRO

at Models M

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Interview FASHION

TOP OF THE NOTCH

Money’s pick from the world’s best designers.

ROLEX YACHT-MASTER II 40MM EVEROSE Known as the “Tutti Frutti” featuring 32 colourful jewels gracing its bezel, it’s a sports watch for those looking for a Rolex that will really stand out.

ALESSI PULCINA ESPRESSO COFFEE MAKER Upgrade your stovetop coffee maker with this incredibly stylish offering from Italian kitchenware brand Alessi. The company claims that the shape of the pot improves the brew of the coffee and the special v-shaped spout prevents drips. But let’s be honest, you’ll buy one because it’s cool.

56 - Money / Issue 42

CONVERSE CHUCK TAYLOR IN FLYKNIT In the latest update to the iconic sneaker, the Chuck Taylor will be given a Flyknit silhouette. Additional features include a TPU fused toecap for additional reinforcement and a Nike Lunarlon sockliner that offers unbelievable comfort.

DOLCE & GABBANA X SMEG

LOUIS VUITTON BMX Pro BMX athlete Nigel Sylvester has just collaborated with upholsterer Daniel McRorie to release this incredibly cool LV-monogrammed bike dubbed the “218 CAPUCINE”. On display at the Procell store in New York, this is one piece of art worth travelling across the Atlantic for.

Another winner from the Milan Furniture Fair was the latest collaboration between Italian giants Smeg and D&G - two companies known for their slick design.

Labelled “Sicily is my Love”, the new collection includes a mixer, citrus juicer and coffee machine, all of which have been adorned with decorative Sicilian motifs.

The kitchen just got stylish.

AEMYRIE GRILL Hampshire-based Aemyrie has just crafted your ultimate summer essential. This wood-fired, outdoor grill is handmade in England, includes an intelligent temperature control system that automatically adjusts the grill to ensure food is cooked precisely, and can serve up to 30 people. Summer is coming.

HOLDALL BY OLIVER SPENCER Cut from butter soft suede, this doctor’s bag will keep you looking on-trend no matter the season.

Money / Issue 42 - 57

The Bluesman is a Maltese sound engineer working in New York.

Interview NEW YORK

The

HEAVY ARM of the LAW?

The law enforcement agencies in the US have been under scrutiny for possible excessive use of force. But The Bluesman ponders on the long history of clashes between various agencies and those on the fringe. his coming August marks the 25th anniversary of an 11-day siege of a little cabin on a mountain in Idaho.

The cabin was occupied by an erstwhile factory worker and a US Army veteran, his wife and children and a friend.

T

Around this time, theories of the coming apocalypse and government conspiracies were increasingly popular and folk were arming themselves and forming militias. This particular small group was certain they could survive on their 20 acres on Ruby Ridge in this remote mountainous area.

The preamble to this had been a somewhat convoluted story of a land dispute, where the piqued losing party saw fit to make allegations to Law Enforcement about his former neighbour’s [alleged] assassination plots.

Eventually Randy and Vicki Weaver were called in and interviewed at length by two agents each, from the FBI, Secret Service and County Sheriff.

Unfortunately the Weavers had now floated across the agencies’ radars possibly prompting interest by the ATF (The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) who sent in one of their informants, likely under suspicion himself and looking for a deal, to try and obtain evidence of criminal behaviour by befriending Weaver.

After attending Aryan Nations meetings and gun shows together, Weaver was badgered to reluctantly show his companion where to purchase a pair of illegal sawn-off shotguns. This and other flimsy motives over months of deceit and betrayal were an attempt to force Weaver to turn informant against the Aryan Nation.

Eventually a gaggle of law enforcement officers, dressed in camouflage, took up positions around the property and deliberately attracted the attention of the dogs present in the cabin. Fourteenyear-old Sammy Weaver, Kevin Harris, the family friend and one of the dogs emerged, thinking it might be an animal for the pot.

The inevitable confrontations resulted in the dog being shot, and then young Sammy killed by an M-16 bullet in the back as he ran for

58 - Money / Issue 42

the cabin yelling “I’m coming dad”. A deputy marshall was also killed by Harris.

as most of the serious charges were appealed or downgraded.

FBI snipers were brought in and during another exchange the next day Randy was shot in the back of his shoulder, Harris grievously wounded and Vicki killed as she stood with the baby holding the main cabin’s door open for her husband and their two daughters to run through.

At the end of 11 days on August 31, 1992, there was a negotiated surrender. Charges were filed against both sides.

Randy Weaver’s attorney was the mythical cowboy-hatted Gerry Spence who, despite his distaste of the Weavers’ racist philosophy, passionately defended his client. Harris was acquitted, his court-appointed lawyer successfully pleading self-defence while Weaver was only found guilty of failing to appear in one of the proceedings dating from before the standoff. He was sentenced to 18 months and served four, having already been in custody for 14 months.

This was as heavy-handed policing as was the 1985 dropping of a bomb from a helicopter on a house, occupied by an offshoot of the Black Panthers in Philadelphia, to bring a lengthy standoff to an end. Six adults and five children died; one adult and one child survived.

It wasn’t long after Ruby Ridge that another similar situation developed. On February 28, 1993, the ATF showed up to serve a warrant at a compound occupied by a multi-national group led by David Koresh, another messiah wannabe, leading a splinter group from the Seventh Day Adventist Church called the Branch Davidians.

It quickly went pear-shaped. This group, in their ranch nine miles out of Waco, Texas, were suspected of weapons violations. A firefight erupted during which four government agents and six church members were killed. Following this botched attempt, the FBI and the television companies took over, and audiences watched the development of a siege lasting 51 days that ended when the Feds launched a tear gas attack during which a fire broke out killing all 76 people inside, including 23 children.

Minor charges against some of the officers and the sniper for their aggressive overreach were filed, dropped, refiled and dropped. A civil action against the US government eventually brought cash settlements for Weaver and Harris.

These cases no doubt engaged public awareness in how policing has de/evolved in the US. To this day the FBI doesn’t have to keep a public tally of suspects’ deaths and with the increased militarisation of police departments around the country more clashes occur and have been recorded, thanks to the proliferation of phone cameras showing how many of these encounters are usually to the physical detriment of the suspect.

Do we need these full-fledged battles between government and citizens? Do we need law enforcement setting people up to commit crimes so they can violently pursue them?

I will end with an excerpt from a letter Gerry Spence included in his 1996 book From Freedom to Slavery, the Rebirth of Freedom in America, explaining why he took Weaver on as a client: “Although we give lip service to the notion of freedom, we know the government is no longer the servant of the people but, at last has become the people’s master. We have stood by like timid sheep while the wolf killed first the weak, then the strays, then those on the outer edges of the flock, until at last the entire flock belonged to the wolf. We did not care about the weak or about the strays. They were not a part of the flock.

The court cases, prosecutions, appeals and more appeals after these incidents did not result in much: the 12 Davidians who had left the compound and surrendered did get varying amounts of prison time. By 2007, though, they had all been released,

“… But as the wolf worked its way towards the centre of the flock we discovered that we were now on the outer edges. Now we must look the wolf squarely in the eye. That we did not do so when the first of us was ripped and torn and eaten was the first wrong.”

吀栀攀 䄀搀瘀愀渀挀攀搀 䐀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 椀渀 䤀渀琀攀爀渀愀琀椀漀渀愀氀 吀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 ⠀䄀䐀䤀吀⤀ 椀猀 琀栀攀 漀渀氀礀 䤀渀琀攀爀渀愀琀椀漀渀愀氀 爀攀挀漀最渀椀稀攀搀 䐀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 椀渀 吀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 椀渀 䴀愀氀琀愀 琀栀爀漀甀最栀 琀栀攀 䌀栀愀爀琀攀爀攀搀 䤀渀猀琀椀琀甀琀攀 漀昀 吀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 ⠀唀䬀⤀Ⰰ 眀栀椀挀栀 椀猀 琀栀攀 氀攀愀搀椀渀最 琀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 瀀爀漀昀攀猀猀椀漀渀愀氀 戀漀搀礀 椀渀 琀栀攀 唀渀椀琀攀搀 䬀椀渀最搀漀洀 愀渀搀 椀猀 搀攀氀椀瘀攀爀攀搀 椀渀 䴀愀氀琀愀 琀栀爀漀甀最栀 琀栀攀 䴀愀氀琀愀 䤀渀猀琀椀琀甀琀攀 漀昀 䴀愀渀愀最攀洀攀渀琀 ⠀䴀䤀䴀⤀⸀ 吀栀椀猀 椀渀琀攀爀渀愀琀椀漀渀愀氀氀礀 爀攀挀漀最渀椀猀攀搀 焀甀愀氀椀ǻ挀愀琀椀漀渀 椀猀 挀漀渀猀椀搀攀爀攀搀 琀漀 戀攀 愀琀 愀 氀攀瘀攀氀 漀昀 愀 瀀漀猀琀 最爀愀搀甀愀琀攀 瀀爀漀昀攀猀猀椀漀渀愀氀 焀甀愀氀椀ǻ挀愀琀椀漀渀⸀

吀栀攀 䄀䐀䤀吀 瀀爀漀最爀愀洀洀攀 挀漀渀猀椀猀琀猀 漀昀 ㈀ 瀀愀瀀攀爀猀 ⠀眀栀椀挀栀 挀愀渀 戀攀 琀愀欀攀渀 椀渀搀椀瘀椀搀甀愀氀氀礀⤀ 戀攀椀渀最㨀 倀愀瀀攀爀 ㄀㨀 䈀愀猀椀挀 瀀爀椀渀挀椀瀀氀攀猀 漀昀 椀渀琀攀爀渀愀琀椀漀渀愀氀 琀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 倀愀瀀攀爀 ㈀㨀 䄀搀瘀愀渀挀攀搀 椀渀琀攀爀渀愀琀椀漀渀愀氀 琀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 ጠ 䴀愀氀琀愀 瘀愀爀椀愀渀琀

䘀漀氀氀漀眀椀渀最 琀栀攀 挀漀甀爀猀攀 礀漀甀 眀椀氀氀㨀

䈀攀 愀戀氀攀 琀漀 搀爀愀昀琀 戀愀猀椀挀 挀漀渀琀爀愀挀琀猀 䬀渀漀眀 琀栀攀 搀椀û攀爀攀渀琀 洀攀琀栀漀搀猀 漀昀 攀洀瀀氀漀礀洀攀渀琀 䈀攀 愀戀氀攀 琀漀 挀愀氀挀甀氀愀琀攀 匀愀氀愀爀椀攀猀Ⰰ 圀愀最攀猀Ⰰ 氀攀愀瘀攀 攀渀琀椀琀氀攀洀攀渀琀Ⰰ 猀漀挀椀愀氀 猀攀挀甀爀椀琀礀 挀漀渀琀爀椀戀甀琀椀漀渀猀 愀渀搀 ǻ渀愀氀 猀攀琀琀氀攀洀攀渀琀 猀礀猀琀攀洀 䔀渀猀甀爀攀 礀漀甀 栀愀瘀攀 琀栀攀 愀瀀瀀爀漀瀀爀椀愀琀攀 瀀爀漀挀攀搀甀爀攀猀 琀漀 挀愀瀀琀甀爀攀 琀栀攀 爀攀氀攀瘀愀渀琀 搀愀琀愀 䔀渀猀甀爀攀 琀栀攀 挀漀洀瀀愀渀礀 栀愀猀 琀栀攀 愀瀀瀀爀漀瀀爀椀愀琀攀 挀漀渀琀爀漀氀 瀀爀漀挀攀搀甀爀攀猀 琀漀 愀瘀漀椀搀 愀戀甀猀攀 䠀愀瘀攀 愀渀 漀瘀攀爀瘀椀攀眀 漀昀 猀漀洀攀 瀀愀礀爀漀氀氀 猀漀昀琀眀愀爀攀 椀渀 䴀愀氀琀愀⸀

吀栀攀 䐀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 椀渀 嘀䄀吀 䌀漀洀瀀氀椀愀渀挀攀 椀猀 椀搀攀愀氀 昀漀爀 瀀攀漀瀀氀攀 眀栀漀 栀愀瘀攀 渀漀 瀀爀攀瘀椀漀甀猀 欀渀漀眀氀攀搀最攀Ⰰ 漀爀 愀 戀愀猀椀挀 甀渀搀攀爀猀琀愀渀搀椀渀最 漀昀 嘀䄀吀Ⰰ 眀栀漀 眀漀甀氀搀 氀椀欀攀 琀漀 椀洀瀀爀漀瘀攀 琀栀攀椀爀 欀渀漀眀氀攀搀最攀 眀椀琀栀椀渀 琀栀攀 猀甀戀樀攀挀琀Ⰰ 瀀愀爀琀椀挀甀氀愀爀氀礀 琀栀漀猀攀 眀栀漀 眀椀氀氀 戀攀 椀渀瘀漀氀瘀攀搀 椀渀 琀栀攀 瀀爀攀瀀愀爀愀琀椀漀渀 漀昀 嘀䄀吀 爀攀琀甀爀渀猀Ⰰ 瀀甀爀挀栀愀猀攀 氀攀搀最攀爀Ⰰ 猀愀氀攀猀 氀攀搀最攀爀 漀爀 愀搀瘀椀猀椀渀最 漀渀 最攀渀攀爀愀氀 嘀䄀吀 洀愀琀琀攀爀猀⸀ 吀栀攀 䐀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 最甀椀搀攀猀 礀漀甀 猀琀攀瀀 戀礀 猀琀攀瀀 琀栀爀漀甀最栀 琀栀攀 䴀愀氀琀攀猀攀 嘀䄀吀 䰀攀最椀猀氀愀琀椀漀渀 眀栀椀氀猀琀 攀砀瀀漀猀椀渀最 礀漀甀 琀漀 洀漀爀攀 爀攀ǻ渀攀搀 氀攀最椀猀氀愀琀椀漀渀 猀甀挀栀 愀猀 琀栀愀琀 漀昀 琀栀攀 唀䬀⸀

吀栀攀 挀漀甀爀猀攀 椀猀 愀氀猀漀 漀瀀攀渀 琀漀 椀渀搀椀瘀椀搀甀愀氀猀 眀栀漀 眀漀甀氀搀 氀椀欀攀 琀漀 愀琀琀攀渀搀 眀椀琀栀漀甀琀 猀椀琀琀椀渀最 昀漀爀 琀栀攀 攀砀愀洀椀渀愀琀椀漀渀猀Ⰰ 椀渀 眀栀椀挀栀 挀愀猀攀 琀栀攀礀 眀椀氀氀 爀攀挀攀椀瘀攀 愀 挀攀爀琀椀ǻ挀愀琀攀 漀昀 愀琀琀攀渀搀愀渀挀攀⸀ 䠀漀眀攀瘀攀爀Ⰰ 戀礀 瀀愀猀猀椀渀最 琀栀攀 攀砀愀洀猀 琀栀攀 椀渀搀椀瘀椀搀甀愀氀 眀椀氀氀 戀攀 攀渀琀椀琀氀攀搀 琀漀 愀 䐀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 椀渀 嘀䄀吀 挀漀洀瀀氀椀愀渀挀攀⸀ 䄀渀 愀搀搀攀搀 戀攀渀攀ǻ琀 漀昀 琀栀攀 挀漀甀爀猀攀 椀猀 琀栀愀琀 琀栀攀 栀漀甀爀猀 愀琀琀攀渀搀攀搀 眀椀氀氀 挀漀甀渀琀 琀漀眀愀爀搀猀 䌀倀䔀 栀漀甀爀猀 昀漀爀 愀挀挀漀甀渀琀愀渀琀猀⸀ 䤀琀 椀猀 渀攀挀攀猀猀愀爀礀 琀漀 爀攀最椀猀琀攀爀 眀椀琀栀 吀栀攀 䤀渀猀琀椀琀甀琀攀 漀昀 䤀渀搀椀爀攀挀琀 吀愀砀愀琀椀漀渀 椀渀 漀爀搀攀爀 琀漀 猀椀琀 洀漀搀甀氀愀爀 琀攀猀琀猀 愀渀搀 愀挀栀椀攀瘀攀 琀栀攀 搀椀瀀氀漀洀愀 焀甀愀氀椀ǻ挀愀琀椀漀渀⸀

Inspiration

18th century oval watch with telescopic hands, restored by the Parmigiani workshops in 1997

Ovale Pantographe

Manufactured entirely in Switzerland parmigiani.com

Were there to be only one

Valletta T. +356 21 24 7447 ¡ St. Julians T. +356 21 38 4503 info@elcol.com ¡ www.elcol.com