An advocate for working mothers | Vanessa Borg

Are you excited to be a finalist in the European Business Awards? What, in your opinion, led the company to be chosen?
"At Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd we're absolutely thrilled to be selected to represent Malta and be a national finalist in the RSM International Entrepreneur of the Year Award category.
It's an honour to be recognised as one of the leading organisations in our country and in our field.
"The European Business Awards are widely recognised as the showcase for Europe's most dynamic companies. We're looking forward to the next round of the competition."

What are the awards' three core principles?
"Innovation, ethics and success, the three core principles at the heart of the awards programme of the European Business Awards, are the basis on which some of Europe's brightest businesses were identified by an esteemed panel of judges.
This year the awards' team has engaged with over 15,000 organisations across Europe."
"The European Business Awards are dedicated to raising the visibility and progress of companies who excel in delivering innovation twinned with successful commercial results whilst acting responsibly and positively affecting the social environment they operate in.
In effect, the 2011 European Business Awards showcased organisations with a combined turnover of €1 trillion Euros, 8.23% of EU GDP employing over 2.7 million people.
"Adrian Tripp, CEO of the European Business Awards, recently said that 'over the past six years they have received an incredibly high standard of entries from organisations that are passionate about their business.
However, very few get got the chance to fly the flag for their country and compete across Europe to be recognised as one of Europe's leading companies.
"He also said that it really is an exceptional accolade to be picked as a national finalist, and together with the sponsors and supporters were looking forward to seeing Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd in the next round."

How did you start off your career?
"I started as a Human Resources Manager with the Malta Hotel and Catering Services (MHCS) Ltd, between 1996 and 1998. I directed my energies towards providing local and international hotels with recruitment and consultancy support services, followed by the Malta Institute of Management (MIM) between 1998 and 2000, the main focus of which was the running of the Educational and Training Business on a commercial basis.
"As a general manager of Human Resources Development at Corinthia Hotels International between 2000 and 2007, I played a vital role in the HR Department, mainly focusing on performance management and various aspects of the development of training programmes as well as the actual delivery of training ranging from senior management to front-line employees.
"During Borg's tenure, Corinthia International was nominated by Edexcel International as a Centre of Excellence for the development of a two-year self-paced, tailor-made management development programme.
Her success in this area was not only documented by countless positive feedback reports from the international hotels but also local awards which were given to Corinthia International for the excellence in their training efforts. In fact, one of Borg's most prized and recognised achievements has been the visualisation and the actualisation of a Training Academy, within eight regions, which led to the attainment of the 'Best Training Initiative' HR Awards 2003, organised by the Foundation for Human Resources Development (FHRD). CHI was the first Hotel Chain to have acquired corporate accreditation under the BTEC Framework."  

How do you measure success in the business sector you operate?
"Garnering in excess of 10 solid years at the core of the Human Resources and Strategic Management fields both locally and internationally, prior to setting up my own company over four years ago, I combined practical experience through time-tested initiatives and projects.
"Promoting the importance of the development and deployment of human intellectual capital by integrating people, processes, policies and culture, is vital to ultimately influence financial and operational success."

Can you tell me more about the company's services and strategy?
"Transforming performance by designing and supporting implementation of strategies to acquire, evaluate and develop talent are the aims of the Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd.  
"Whether delivered as a total resourcing solution or on a project basis, its services are geared to save time, reduce cost and improve quality. The company works closely with organisations to understand, analyse and interpret the people implications of their strategic direction and develop action-based plans to support the achievement of business goals.
"A flexible engagement model in line with customer specific needs is formulated and the company's expertise is extended through different methodologies. These include consultancy support with the aim of building a lean and agile organisation that is performance-driven, people-oriented, quality-focused and customer-centric."

Are you finding stiff competition out there?
"Starting up a business and competing with well-established strong competitors has not been an easy ride. It required a strong marketing strategy that promoted the company's services well, with the aim of capturing the target market.
"From the onset the company decided that its best marketing tool is its reputation through word of mouth referrals, and it now enjoys a strong customer base, retaining an ongoing relationship with 85% of its top clients for the past four years, and it carries more than 50 companies within its client base.
"In 2009, the company opted to introduce a website to facilitate the process of promoting its expanding array of services and save on printing costs of brochures and advertorial materials. It was also felt opportune to gather direct client feedback to conduct an internal fitness test on how the company was being perceived. And a sample of its clients, ranging from large entities to participants within training programmes, were asked a range of questions. A full list of the feedback may be sourced directly from the website www.acumencentre.com."

What is the company's successful ingredient?
"An ingredient that has certainly contributed towards the company's success formula has been my constant educational and industrious individual development, in order to enhance my skills.
"I eagerly strive to build on my acumen, coupled by frequent travel to help attract key clients."
"Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd prides itself on the key value of its Corporate Social Responsibility. Although the company may be limited in offering substantial financial contributions, it offers one of its key assets; the director's expertise on a voluntary basis. Within the last 18 months, the director has been involved in the VISET Programme to entice students to join the hospitality industry; conducting full evaluations of HR practices within organisations, ascertaining that they are compliant with legal frameworks and industry practices after being appointed as a qualified assessor of the national People Management & Satisfaction Award bestowed by the Foundation of Human Resources Management (FHRD) in Malta; among other initiatives.
"Firmly promoting the importance of being close to the heart beat of a company, of industry and of society at large, is also crucial to success.
"In congruence to this philosophy, the company provides its services to a wide array of customers, ranging from established organisations to individuals at the verge of starting up their business. Thus, the company believes in a degree of flexibility when devising its pricing strategy, and offers a percentage of its services at cost. In fact, in 2011, the company allocated almost 12% of its total available support hours at cost, with the aim of being instrumental in guiding organisations/individuals in the right direction.
"Supporting the educational journey of people embarking on academic programmes is important and our firm this service to a number of institutions.
"The development of students is paramount to the country's overall success. Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd is also proud to help newcomers gain experience within the field by providing a number of students with a platform to undergo their apprenticeship phase within the company.
"During their apprenticeship, all students are involved in a plethora of projects with the aim of surfacing their competencies, equipping them to reach new heights and potentially embark on future rewarding positions."

Where is the company heading?
"I look at Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd as a growing entity, aiming towards reaching new heights. Reflecting on Susan Scotts' 'Fierce Leadership: A bold alternative to the worst 'best practices' of business today, 2011) comment: 'You will not single-handedly cause or prevent success. Surround yourself with people who model accountability, ferocious integrity, personal authenticity, the capacity to connect with others at a deep level, sheer courage, and a commitment to champion the common good over narrow self-interest.
"I am eager to rope in more associates to further support her company in providing a one-stop shop to its clients. Her recruitment practices promote the importance of employees to act as stewards to the company. She believes that in order to nurture in every employee a 'Stewardship' frame of mind, organisations need to trigger employees to wanting to carry high the organisation's flag and in doing so, giving them the same equal exhilaration as having succeeded within their own personal lives.
"By building on this stewardship drive, employees think as entrepreneurs and their point of orientation is always that they are in a position to enhance the organisation's market value through their actions. By doing so, employees make it their own show. Once they believe in their product, they can master their product and became 'product enhancers'.
"They need to feel and own the brand but in order to do so they need to feel more empowered. 'Being the Brand' and 'Empowerment' are like Siamese twins. Being the Brand is something vibrant, living and changing; it is something all employees need to care about. It requires passion. When the brand identity is owned by employees, empowerment becomes part and parcel of the formula, as employees become even stronger brand leaders with an appetite to do things that matter to all stakeholders alike.
"To warrant this level of affiliation by each employee, the organisation needs to communicate change in its full force and build a stronger connection between the employee and the organisation, having employees feeling part of what is going on, knowing their roles and pursuing them with a purpose. Organisations need to buy-in from the 'entrenched' employees.
"They need to understand, live, breath a change philosophy that is tailor-made to each organisation. Organisations must constantly possess an ever-expanding basket of goods that keep the knowledge pool of people in close shores to 'grow with change'.
"Living up to its company's slogan 'A hub that supports the capture, maintenance and retention of organisational talent' is challenging yet rewarding. Consultancy and Training Acumen Centre Ltd aims at building further relationships with prospective clients based on trust and accountability.  
"It aspires to offer nothing less than excellence. It believes that it constantly needs to remain abreast in providing clients with value-adding information, knowledge and support to take informed decisions tailored to their needs, ascertaining that organisations are a step closer to performance optimisation. "

How can one manage time between his/her career and one's own time?
"Conceptualising the idea of starting up a business was my dream held high for a number of years.
"A consulting firm is not a capital intensive business to start, however it is very challenging to source clients, manage ones' time effectively so as to yield higher profit margins and collect the fees earned.
"On the other hand, the flexibility of managing ones' own time provides the freedom of pursuing other personal objectives in life. In fact, during the first year of operations of Consultancy and Training Acumen Centre Ltd, I gave birth to my loving daughter Mia, who is now about to turn four.
"Borg is a strong advocate of working mothers, stating that the right dose of work, combined with strong values ingrained in proper upbringing that promotes child-time optimisation with both parents, is a common denominator that should be evident in families opting for personal and professional growth.

About the awards
The awards highlight and promote examples of individuals and organisations that achieve outstanding results across a variety of disciplines - from environmental concern to customer focus - results that set them apart as leaders in Europe. The Awards programme is open to large multi-nationals, medium-sized businesses, and fast growing small businesses, representing all sectors and all countries across Europe.
The European Business Awards involve some of Europe's key political figures, Karel De Gucht, European Commissioner for Trade, Yves Leterme, former Prime Minister of Belgium, Emil Constantinescu, former President of Romania; Arnold Rüütel, former President of Estonia; and Petar Stoyanov, former President of Bulgaria; business leaders including, Peter Brabeck-Lethmathe, former CEO of Nestle; Gilbert Ghostine, Managing Director, Diageo Continental Europe; Bożena Lublioska-Kasprzak, President, Polish Agency for Enterprise Development; Philippe Houzé, Chairman, Groupe Galeries Lafayette; Timo Sieg, CEO, Ketchum Pleon Europe and Luc Bardin, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, BP plc, along with top academics and media representatives from Europe's most influential media owners. 
The final category award winners will be unveiled in April 2013. (www.businessawardseurope.com).