Author: itsupport

The secret of great customer service in the forex market

Posted on by itsupport

In today’s financial world, customers want a personalised, fast, seamless, immersive, cross-channel digital experience that satisfies, and even anticipates, their needs. This is especially true of millennials, a generation quickly becoming the dominant demographic. If we combine millennials’ expectations with their fundamentally different banking and investing habits, then it’s clear why modern brokers are changing their approach to address these challenges.

The financial services industry is in full transformation mode in response to changing customer expectations and government regulations, but the road is steep and the competition fierce. Stricter consumer privacy regulations add layers of complexity to digital initiatives. Today’s customers expect near-instant gratification and resolution. Just2Trade provides intuitive platforms and apps, self-service capabilities and click-to-call/chat communication, among other innovations.

Our goal is to deliver personalised customer support services of the highest standard to all of our clients. At Just2Trade, customer service has gone well beyond the call centre operations of the past to become a veritable ecosystem of digital and human assistants. Customer representatives still remain incredibly important in the customer’s journey. However, their role is shifting to providing more specialised financial customer service rather than simply administrative assistance functions.

The strength of our customer service impacts our bottom line and affects how our company is viewed by the world

Financial matters are highly personal – approaching every customer with the same generic set of questions and offering them the same set of financial solutions would make us seem more like a machine than a client-centric institution.

So to meet the increased expectations of our clients we have built a team of proactive client support representatives who understand their customers and possess the skills to effectively address their problems.

We understand the importance of trust in financial services. Solving problems requires a tactical approach involving both technology and interpersonal skills. An empathetic customer relationship is especially important. People must be able to trust those in charge of their finances. Building trust means showing the customer that they are being heard.

We believe in being transparent with our clients. A lot of mistrust comes from the idea that information is being withheld. Due to the nature of financial services, there are certain things you simply won’t be able to say. Though you may not purposefully be opaque, if you’re not mindful it could easily appear that way to a client. We strive to be empathetic in all our customer interactions.

Most consumers (individuals and small businesses) see financial institutions as large, non-human entities that do not care about their individual problems. This is particularly relevant for millennials, who want convenience along with a personal touch. Studies have found that millennials consider financial institutions to be among the most unlikeable of brands. Attracting this demographic therefore poses a huge challenge, but one that we are rising to at Just2Trade by combining technology with human expertise to engage millennial customers and optimise their experience.

Training for success
The first steps are education and industry training. Money is a sensitive topic for everyone, so having frontline employees with exceptional interpersonal skills and a high standard of education is an asset for any financial institution. This is why we have invested in training our employees to have them ready to navigate all possible scenarios. All our customer-facing employees receive extensive training so that they are aware of the full range of services we offer. They are also well versed with industry trends and best practices, enabling them to suggest what will work best for each of our clients.

We have eliminated slow service delivery and long wait times, an area where many financial institutions fall down. Many financial institutions rely on outsourcing customer support to third-party service providers to cater to customers’ requests and problems. In our view, however, adding a layer of outsourcing only adds more hurdles and delays to a client’s service process. More often than not, when a customer calls for assistance, they have to navigate through lengthy interactive voice response systems (IVRs) and then wait in a queue to get connected to a customer service representative. These customer service reps might then need to route your query back to the IVR or to a specialised department, which only adds to customers’ wait time and frustration.

To avoid losing customers via this route, instead of outsourcing, we have leveraged technology and automation to scale customer service and control costs. We service our clients directly. Even with in-house customer service teams, however, there’s the risk of delays occurring when employees are prevented from actioning solutions due to company procedures and regulations. To get around this problem, we empower our advisors to solve problems on the spot, making decisions that resolve issues without having to get a manager’s permission first. Our internal policies and procedures give them this freedom but still keep them accountable for the quality of the service they offer to our clients.

It may seem like the cost of training risks eating away at the company’s bottom line, but this will be made good by customers who stick with us because of our exemplary customer service. Investing in our workforce in this way is fundamental to the successful running of the business.

The other side of the customer service coin is, of course, effective use of technology. Artificial intelligence solutions allow us to ensure the constant availability of our services and quickly detect and resolve usability issues or malicious activity against the company’s applications and systems. Monitoring solutions, for example, provide early fraud detection, helping to reduce false positives and improve the accuracy of identifying actual fraud cases. Employing such strategies enables us to work more efficiently to protect our customers’ sensitive data, providing a service that is reassuring yet doesn’t place undue stress on the customer, as we deal with fraud behind the scenes.

Technology is also a boon when it comes to client on-boarding. Opening a brokerage account has historically been a time-consuming and complex undertaking, and one that required meeting in person. By integrating artificial intelligence solutions in our client on-boarding procedures – authenticating the validity of IDs, auto-populating form fields and performing live face recognition, for example – the process of account opening can take as little as 10 minutes as opposed to days or even weeks.

The value of feedback
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” This classic Warren Buffett quotation has only become more relevant since the dawn of the digital age. It’s certainly a motto we live by at Just2Trade, where the strength of our customer service impacts our bottom line and affects how our company is viewed by the world.

We strive to continuously improve both the human and technological elements of the Just2Trade customer service experience, and feedback is key in this endeavour, critical in our understanding of customer satisfaction. We analyse customer service data like ticket reopen rates and time-to-resolution as a matter of course, as well as monitoring certain Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). These KPIs – which include growth in client assets; customer retention rates; average resolution times; and volume of client complaints – provide a look behind the scenes at how we interact with our customers. Using this information enables us to make better decisions for our customers who, seeing their specific needs met, are inclined not only to continue to work with us, but also to become corporate brand advocates.

But KPIs alone are not enough. This data, as well as that gleaned from our customer relationship management and helpdesk tool, can only tell part of the story. No one can anticipate customer needs better than customers themselves, so we also solicit customer feedback directly via online surveys. By doing so we gain valuable insights into whether customers’ needs are being met, what financial products or services they’re interested in, their financial goals for the future, how their customer experience can be improved, and more.

It’s these insights that enable us to stay nimble, responding to customer need with new services and products, trouble-shooting existing ones, and making our customers feel valued. It is unsurprising therefore, that we’ve seen impressive growth in the level of client assets invested in recent years (see Fig 1), a trend that we believe will continue as new and existing clients recognise the importance of excellence in customer support services.

Just2Trade looks to the future with confidence and optimism. Our substantial investment in customer support services has paid off and will continue to do so. Financial services are changing, and we are ready for this new world.

The airline with a clear strategy for sustainability

Posted on by itsupport

Our journey began on May 20, 1933 with five aircraft and fewer than 30 employees. From these humble beginnings, Turkish Airlines has grown to become the carrier that flies to more countries around the world than any other. Our flexible and dynamic structure, experienced and devoted employees, unique airport hub located in Istanbul, modern fleet and network capability make us one of the strongest players in aviation industry.

Accurate capacity management
Sustainability is central to our strategy for growth and profitability as we aim to keep adding value for our stakeholders while enhancing our products and services. In the 10 years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic we saw growth two to three times higher than the global average in terms of passenger numbers, averaging at 11.5 percent per year. In the face of the challenges posed by the pandemic we set ourselves apart from the rest of the aviation industry in terms of traffic and financial results during this period, achieving revenue of $10.7bn in 2021 through a 48 percent increase in cargo income and a 69 percent increase in passenger income.

As we continue to grow with our progress keenly watched by the rest of the global aviation industry, we are determined to make sustainability a key element of our operations, led by both our core sustainability principles and the work of our Sustainability Committee. Established in 2021 this committee, made up of Turkish Airlines senior executives, determines, reviews and continuously improves our sustainability management strategy, sustainability policy, short, medium and long-term sustainability targets, and decides on improvement projects that will increase the sustainability performance of Turkish Airlines. Important issues are reported to senior management and top management by the Sustainability Committee, with a view to making important sustainability issues and fundamentals a natural part of our business and operations.

By making passenger aircraft suitable for cargo operations – a process we pioneered in the aviation industry and first implemented in 2020 – we’ve catered to the increasing demand for air cargo. By implementing efficient capacity management, we performed successfully throughout 2021. During the pandemic we played an active role transporting vaccines, medicine, medical supplies, humanitarian aid and food all over the globe. By the end of 2021 Turkish Cargo was responsible for one in 20 air cargo flights, putting us first among European network carriers and in the top five internationally.

On top of this, we became the first air cargo airline to concurrently achieve all three certifications (CEIV Pharma, CEIV Fresh, and CEIV Live Animals), under the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent Validators) programme. Looking forwards, we aim to be one of the top three brands in the world in air cargo transportation by boosting the strong growth trend of Turkish Cargo through the investments we are making at Istanbul Airport.

When it comes to the other side of the business, recent restructuring means that we now also have access to the low-cost passenger market via our Anadolu Jet brand. Anadolu Jet boosts our competitiveness and strengthens the effectiveness of the overall Turkish Airlines brand by popularising air travel in this segment of the market. We already operate in 46 destinations worldwide with Anadolu Jet broadening our offer to customers in the regions in which it operates: Northern Cyprus, Europe and the Middle East.

Managing the crisis
The pandemic was a time of upheaval for the entire airline industry, but Turkish Airlines managed to limit its operational losses during this period thanks to a series of measures that cut costs while increasing efficiencies. By adding new destinations to our flight network and cancelling and postponing orders for new aircraft due to be delivered between 2021 and 2023, we saved $7bn. This strong financial management enabled us to achieve $959m net after-tax profit in 2021. Having Istanbul as a hub for our network was a major advantage during this period. Serving as a bridge between east and west, Istanbul is a gateway for up to 40 percent of narrow-body international air traffic. The flexibility it offered our flight network meant that we were able to use our capacity highly effectively.

With our wide network of 336 destinations in 128 countries on five continents we contribute to local socio-economic development in the regions where we operate. Twenty-five countries we fly to appear on the 2021 United Nations list of least developed nations – our engagement provides valuable employment and enables these countries to develop crucial economic and social relationships with the rest of the world.

Sustainable operations
We have one of the youngest fleets in the world, averaging out at just 8.7 years across our 376 aircraft. In 2021, we added 21 new generation aircraft to the fleet, aircraft which offer an average of 15 percent fuel savings compared to their more traditional equivalents.

We aim to further lessen our environmental impact by continuing to grow our new generation fleet in 2022. In addition to these environmentally friendly aircraft, our fuel saving policy is at the heart of our strategy to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Since 2008 we have commenced more than 100 operational optimisation projects to reduce our carbon footprint, and we are continuing to implement these projects today. These fuel efficiency projects saved 37,082 tonnes of fuel in 2021, equivalent to a reduction of 116,809 tonnes of greenhouse gases.
In 2021 the airline industry came together under the banner of industry group IATA, to adopt a global target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which is responsible for up to 80 percent fewer GHG emissions compared to traditional kerosene fuel, will be one of the key tools for meeting that ambitious goal.

Aware of the important role that SAF will play, we launched our first SAF flight on our Istanbul to Paris route on February 2, 2022. Since then we have rolled it out to destinations including Oslo, Gothenburg, Copenhagen, Paris, London and Stockholm. More destinations and more frequent use of SAF is planned in the future. Though using SAF is a milestone for us, our aim is to produce this fuel rather than just use it.

To this end, we’ve been working with scientists at Bog˘aziçi University in Istanbul on the Microalgae based Sustainable Bio-Jet Fuel Project (MICRO-JET), which is supported by TUBITAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey). In addition to our current usage of SAF, we aim to use synthetic bio-kerosene, which is produced from microalgae, instead of traditional jet fuel, on our flights as soon as possible after the completion of engine tests by Turkish Technic in 2022. When we achieve this goal, Turkish Airlines will be one of just a handful of companies that can produce and use the cleanest type of biofuel accepted by IATA.

Offsetting emissions
Another area of research regarding emission reductions is the Voluntary Carbon Offsetting Project. Slated for 2022, this project will offer our passengers the option of offsetting emissions from their flights. As part of the project, we will also be offsetting the emissions of Turkish Airlines employees, including those who fly as part of their roles.

In addition to our current usage of SAF, We aim to use synthetic bio-kerosene, which is produced from microalgae, instead of traditional jet fuel, on
our flights as soon as possible

In line with our principle of ‘continuous improvement,’ we have recently reinforced our commitment to ISO 14001, the global standard for Environmental Management Systems. We have been implementing the standard since 2013, and we strengthen this with our participation in the IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) programme, which helps airlines independently assess and improve their environmental impact. We were the first airline to directly receive a Stage 2 certificate, which represents the highest level of IEnvA compliance and requires an airline to demonstrate ongoing environmental performance improvement.

As a result of the passenger feedback gathered and evaluated by the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) – a body regarded as one of the most reliable aviation organisations in the world – we were recognised as a ‘Five Star Global Airline.’ In addition, following a series of independent audits carried out by APEX into health and safety, service quality and sustainability, we also received the ‘World Class Award,’ which was presented for the first time in 2022. Turkish Airlines was one of only seven carriers deemed worthy of this prestigious accolade.

Going forwards, we aim to maintain and further develop our sustainability efforts in accordance with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Taking into account the expectations of our stakeholders and related parties, we will be integrating sustainability into every field in which we operate, working day in, day out in line with the vision, mission and general strategy of our airline.

Creating the world’s first AI assisted voice bank in Spain

Posted on by itsupport

Established in 2012, Spanish player EVO Banco is a pioneering financial force disrupting the industry with a wholly digital banking model. But don’t mistake ‘digital’ as ‘faceless’ – EVO Banco takes a highly personal approach when dealing with customers, using technological innovation to optimise every aspect of its products and services. Here, Eduardo Ozaita, CEO of EVO Banco, explains to World Finance how the bank merges traditional values with digital innovation to meet customers’ needs and modernise the banking sector further.

EVO Banco prides itself on being born on a purely digital platform. How does this affect your operations and the way you connect with customers, particularly compared to more traditional banks?
EVO Banco is one of the largest, most innovative and complete digital banks in the Spanish market. EVO Banco was born in 2012 as a quality digital alternative to traditional banking, and it was the first newly created financial institution to emerge after the financial crisis. We anticipated before anyone else the great technological transformation that would spread across the whole sector.

We are adept at explaining to customers what these innovations are about and how they function

A decade later, and there are no banks that aren’t operating digitally. What we do have in the industry are different degrees of technological maturity and different ways of offering financial services.

There are traditional banks that are making great efforts to modernise their structures, and alongside these, new players have emerged that are developing tailored solutions in a very specific field. And then there are entities like EVO Banco that combine the best of these two worlds: the breadth and service capacity of the banking sector, and the user experience of the fintech environment.

This native digital vision has allowed us to go beyond what is expected of a bank. We are not satisfied with just digitising what was previously analogue – we are striving to establish an evolved experience that allows users to take advantage of the new opportunities that technology offers.

The use of cutting-edge technology is an integral part of your processes, but you must bring customers with you. How do you make sure users are up to date with what you offer?
The best way to connect with customers is by offering them what they need when they need it. Thanks to the advanced use of data, we understand what is happening with our customers in a hyper-personalised way, in real time and in an omnichannel manner. This is important when reacting to a problem at the exact moment it occurs, and when guiding clients towards a service that we at EVO Banco know will add value.

For example, if a customer needs to withdraw money from an ATM and the attempt fails, we can send them a notification with the geolocation of the nearest ATM and a commission would not be charged. If an unusual spend shows up on their account, meanwhile, we are able to notify them so they can review this potential problem immediately. And moreover, if there is a shortage of funds in their account at the end of the month, we can offer financing for three, six, nine, 12 or 18 months. These are practical day-to-day examples, but, above all, we can provide our clients with answers to all the various financial needs that might arise during their lives – and we do it in a way that is clear, efficient and useful.

EVO Banco’s innovative spirit has given rise to a series of new concepts. Are there any services that have been more difficult to launch successfully than others, and how have you overcome these teething problems?
EVO Banco has been a pioneer in the development of multiple services that have later been standardised throughout the sector. For example, we were pioneers in Spain in the creation of the world’s first voice bank – it operates through artificial intelligence, and it’s in Spanish. We were also the first to offer clients the opportunity to choose and make investments via robo-advisor technology. Additionally, we were first out facilitating the contracting of products with a one-click philosophy, as well as in creating the first 100 percent digital mortgage on the market.

Being pioneers gives us a competitive advantage, but also a double challenge. We are developing innovations for which there are no precedents in the market, and which might not yet be sufficiently mature or massively in-demand. On the other hand, we are adept at explaining to customers what these innovations are about and how they function. We are there to support our customers in the adoption of new technologies and banking services that will be useful for the management of their finances, but, like anything new, this requires a period of adaptation.

Do you think that EVO Banco promotes behavioural changes among consumers in terms of managing their finances, or is it the other way around?
Digital evolution works in both directions. At EVO Banco we have developed a ‘smart banking’ proposal that uses technology to simplify and facilitate people’s relationship with their money. Take, for example, financial health. Thanks to artificial intelligence and the advanced use of big data, our clients have access to their finances in a simple, organised and clear way.

And, thanks to this information and the comparison with similar profiles, we can guide our customers and help them identify their strengths and weaknesses – as well as the most convenient strategies to their financial goals.

If we reverse the scenario – as per your question – from the customer’s perspective, we have also seen a greater interest from users to understand and improve their financial management, which for us is a source of knowledge that we can in turn use to improve our services. For example, our intelligent assistant, EVO Assistant, is specially adapted to identify and respond to the most frequent or sensitive queries that our customers send us, which facilitates a maximum level of success and satisfaction.

You have a 100 percent digital mortgage application system that can be completed in just 20 minutes. How does EVO Banco minimise risk in this context – for both bank and client?
Our 100 percent digital mortgage is a success story of process reengineering – and one that has improved the customer’s experience in what is one of the most complex and tedious banking products. The goal is to create an ‘Amazon’ experience so that a person knows, in real time, what stage their request is at, and can access all the related procedures in a single place.

It also incorporates intelligent solutions in the risk engine to reduce waiting times. But one aspect we haven’t changed is our risk analysis strategy, which follows highly rigorous and prudent controls. In fact, EVO Banco is one of the entities with the lowest delinquency ratio in Spain. It scored 0.89 percent at the end of last year, and as for the mortgage portfolio ending March 31, 2022, it stands at 0.41 percent.

The digital environment facilitates the possibility of a much closer relationship between companies and their customers. How do you think voice biometrics fits into this concept?
Voice biometrics is a natural step for EVO Banco within the ‘voice bank’ strategy. This was promoted by us with the launch of the world’s first intelligent assistant in Spanish. We have been able to simplify a person’s relationship with their bank with the help of the assistant, and with biometrics we shield our cybersecurity when it comes to verifying the identity of users – and preventing unauthorised access to services and operations. Our adoption of voice technology has enabled a really positive improvement – you could even say transformation – in our client relationships.

The main advantage of voice biometrics is that it will end passwords as we know them. Customers no longer have to choose between security and experience – thanks to this technology they can validate their operations by pronouncing a simple phrase ‘In EVO, my voice is my password.’ This phrase allows us to identify a unique biometric fingerprint via thousands of personal and unique physiological characteristics, as inimitable as each of our customers.

World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

The uncertainty and disruption caused by the pandemic has played havoc with the governance processes that companies typically put in place to support them. Strong corporate governance relies on a number of factors, including but not limited to: capable leadership, flexible risk management, strong financing facilities, and a strong relationship with shareholders and employees. In its Corporate Governance awards, World Finance celebrates those who have become masters of best practice, leading them to stellar business performance in a difficult economic climate.

World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022

Algeria
Wintershall dea

Angola
Banco Keve

Colombia
BBVA Colombia

Denmark
Maersk

Dominican Republic
Banreservas

Finland
Nokia

France
Carrefour

Germany
Allianz

Ghana
GCB Bank

Greece
Ellaktor

Hungary
Gattyán Group

India
IDFC FIRST Bank

Italy
Generali Group

Jordan
Jordan Islamic Bank

Kuwait
Zain Group

Mexico
Banorte

Myanmar
Yoma Group

Netherlands
Heineken

Nigeria
Zenith Bank

Norway
Viessmann Refrigeration Systems

Poland
Jerónimo Martins Polska

Saudi Arabia
STC Saudi Telecom Company

South Africa
Standard Bank

Spain
Iberdrola

Sweden
Spotify

Tunisia
Banque Internationale Arabe de Tunisie

Turkey
Enka Insaat ve Sanayi

UAE
Agthia

US
Chesapeake Utilities Corporation

Vietnam
TTC Sugar (SBT)

World Finance Pension Fund Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

Although the rebound of the markets from the pandemic has helped portfolios, pension fund managers are under increasing pressure to invest responsibly, while also driving innovation. According to Michael Borawski of Deloitte this means there is a ‘need for an agile and consolidated operating model’ and that ‘leading pension funds rely on a core technology platform that facilitates nimble and diverse investment strategies, fully supported by sophisticated risk management, scenario analyses and stress testing capabilities.’ In the World Finance Pension Fund Awards, we recognise those who have not only weathered the economic downturn well, but who continue to demonstrate an innovative and dynamic approach as the economy recovers.

A list of the companies awarded in the World Finance Pension Fund awards 2022 can be seen below.

 

World Finance Pension Fund Awards 2022

Armenia
Ampega Asset Management

Australia
AustralianSuper

Austria
VBV Group

Belgium
Pensioenfonds KBC

Bolivia
BISA Seguros y Reaseguros

Brazil
Bradesco Seguros

Canada
OMERS

Caribbean
NCB Insurance

Chile
AFP Plan Vital

Colombia
Grupo Sura

Croatia
PBZ Croatia Osiguranje

Czech Republic
CSOB

Denmark
PensionDanmark

Estonia
Swedbank

Finland
Elo

France
ERAFP

Germany
HVB Trust Pensionsfonds

Ghana
Pensions Alliance Trust

Greece
Piraeus Asset Management

Iceland
Almenni Pension Fund

Indonesia
BNI

Ireland
CWPS

Italy
Fondo Pensione Nazionale BCC/CRA

Jamaica
JMMB Fund Managers

Macedonia
Sava Penzisko

Malaysia
Gibraltar BSN

Mexico
Afore XXI-Banorte

Mozambique
Moçambique Previdente

Netherlands
Pensioenfonds Zorg en Welzijn

Nigeria
Fidelity Pension Managers

Norway
KLP

Peru
Prima AFP

Poland
Pocztylion-Arka

Portugal
Santander

Serbia
Dunav Voluntary Pension Fund

South Korea
National Pension Service

Spain
GM Pensiones

Sweden
Fjärde AP-fonden (AP4)

Switzerland
Pensionskasse Bosch Schweiz

Thailand
Kasikorn Asset Management

Turkey
TEB Asset Management

US
NYC Board of Education Pension Fund

World Finance Forex Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

In the 2022 Credit Suisse FX Survey report entitled Assessment of exchange rate developments they cite supply bottlenecks impacting industrial businesses, lasting change caused by the pandemic and rising inflationary pressures as just a few of the factors currently throttling global recovery and creating a volatile landscape in the FX market. In its Forex Awards, World Finance recognises the leading brokers and platforms this year, those helping their clients to take advantage of the very best tools, education and expert advice available.

A list of the companies awarded in the World Finance Forex awards 2022 can be seen below.

 

World Finance Forex Awards 2022

Best Customer Service
Just2Trade Online

Best Trading Platform
Think Markets

Best Partnership Program
HY Affiliates

Best Social Trading Platform
FirewoodFX

Best FX Research & Education Provider
Orbex

Best Gold CFD Provider
Think Markets

Best Crypto Broker
Stormgain

Best STP Broker Legacy
FX

Best CFD Broker
FXTRADING.com

Most Transparent Broker
M4Markets

Best FX Mobile Trading App
Think Markets

Best FX Broker (India)
OctaFX

Best FX Broker (Europe)
XM

Best FX Broker (Australasia)
XM

Best FX Broker (Middle East)
XM

Best FX Broker (Latin America)
XM

World Finance Sustainability Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

In the foreword to Microsoft’s 2021 Environmental Sustainability Report, Brad Smith, President and Vice Chair and Dr, Lucas Joppa, Chief Environmental Officer write: “Climate change presents environmental, social, and economic crises on a whole new level. For nearly two millennia humans have been carbonising our planet and we need to act together to decarbonise”. The selected winners of the World Finance Sustainability Awards are those who have shown true commitment to cutting emissions across their company’s entire value chain.

Automotive Product Supplier
Volkswagen Group

Brokerage and Trading
Interactive Brokers

Building Products Supplier
CEMEX

Coffee Processing
NuZee

Data Centre
Stack Infrastructure (DigiPlex)

Digital Currency
Amber Group

Education
Grand Canyon Education

Electric Services
Avangrid

Energy and Chemical
Saudi Aramco

Engineering
WSP Global

Financial Services
Boursa Kuwait

FinTech
Finastra

Flag Carrier Airline
Turkish Airlines

Food Products Supplier
McCain Foods

Footwear
CCC

Freight Forwarding
C.H. Robinson

Glass
BA Glass

Healthcare
Manises Hospital

Investment
KBC Asset Management

Low-Cost Airline
Wizz Air

Major Airline
JetBlue

Packaging
RDM Group

Pulp and Paper
Asia Pulp and Paper

Semiconductor
ONSEMI

Spirits
Flor de Caña

Supply Chain Technology
Convoy

Telecommunication
Swisscom

Transportation
Canadian Pacific Railway

Waste Management
Casella Waste Systems

Wine Products
Corticeira Amorim

World Finance Islamic Finance Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

S&P Global believes the global Islamic finance industry will expand between 10 and 12 percent in 2021–2022. In its Islamic Finance Outlook report the overall trends are higher digitalisation, fintech collaboration, advancement in the standardisation and integration of the industry, green sukuk and a general positioning toward more sustainable growth. With a promising outlook for the Islamic finance industry, World Finance celebrates those who are going above and beyond for their customers as well as fully unlocking the opportunities toward transformative sustainable growth.

A list of the companies awarded in the World Finance Islamic Finance awards 2022 can be seen below.

 

World Finance Islamic Finance Awards 2022

Best Islamic Bank
Bahrain
Al Salam Bank

Jordan
Jordan Islamic Bank

Kuwait
Kuwait International Bank

Qatar
Qatar Islamic Bank

Saudi Arabia
Al Rajhi Bank

UAE
Emirates Islamic

UK
Gatehouse Bank

 

Best Takaful Insurance
Bahrain
Takaful International Company

Jordan
The Islamic Insurance Company

Kuwait
KFH Takaful Insurance Company

Malaysia
Jubilee General

Qatar
AlKhaleej Takaful Insurance

Saudi Arabia
Tawuniya

UAE
Abu Dhabi National Takaful

 

Individual Awards
Lifetime Achievement in Islamic Banking and Dedication to Community
Sheikh Mohammed Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, Chairman, Kuwait International Bank

Lifetime Achievement in Financial Technology Innovation
Robert Hazboun, Group CEO & MD, ICS Financial Systems

Business Leadership and Outstanding Contribution to Islamic Finance
H. E. Musa Shihadeh, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Jordan Islamic Bank

Kuwaiti Visionary CEO – Development & Growth Driver
Raed Jawad Bukhamseen,VC & CEO, Kuwait International Bank

 

Special Recognitions
Best Islamic Banking & Finance Software Provider
ICS Financial Systems

Best Customer-focused Islamic Banking Products and Services (Kuwait)
Kuwait International Bank

Best Islamic Bank for Customer Experience
Emirates Islamic

Best Credit Card (UAE)
Etihad Guest Credit Card by Emirates Islamic

Most Connected and Strategically Located Financial Centre (MENA)
Qatar Financial Centre

Most Reliable Participating Insurance Company (Turkey)
Bereket Sigorta

Best Insurance Company for Customer Service Quality (Turkey)
Bereket Sigorta

CSR Excellence and Dedication to the Community (Turkey)
Bereket Sigorta

World Finance Banking Awards 2022

Posted on by itsupport

Two years on from the pandemic, the banking sector is facing a sea change in terms of how the workplace is defined, how best to implement technology solutions holistically as well as taking important action on sustainable finance initiatives to address global crises in public health and climate change. The winners of this year’s World Finance Banking Awards are those who are working to a higher purpose and empowering their customers.

A list of the companies awarded in the World Finance Banking awards 2022 can be seen below.

 

World Finance Banking Awards 2022

Best Banking Groups

AustriaBAWAG Group
BruneiBaiduri Bank
ChileBanco Internacional
DenmarkNordea
Dominican RepublicBanco Popular Dominicano
EgyptAAIB
FinlandOP Financial Group
FranceCrédit Mutuel
GermanyCommerzbank
GhanaZenith Bank Ghana
Hong KongHSBC
IsraelIsrael Discount Bank
JordanJordan Islamic Bank
KosovoBKT
MacauICBC (Macau)
NigeriaGuaranty Trust Bank
PakistanMeezan Bank
Saudi ArabiaAl-Rahji Bank

 

Best Investment Banks

BrazilBTG Pactual
ChileBTG Pactual
ColombiaBTG Pactual
Dominican RepublicBanreservas
GeorgiaTBC Bank
GermanyDeutsche Bank
Hong KongJefferies
JordanArab Bank
KazakhstanTengri Partners
KuwaitNational Investments Company
MyanmarUAB Bank
NetherlandsABN AMRO
NigeriaCoronation Merchant Bank
OmanBank Muscat
PakistanHBL
SwitzerlandCredit Suisse
TaiwanFubon Financial
ThailandSiam Commercial Bank
TurkeyICBC
UzbekistanSilk Capital

 

Best Retail Banks

ArgentinaBanco Macro
AustraliaANZ
AustriaBAWAG Group
AzerbaijanAccessBank
BelarusBelarusbank
BelgiumKBC
BrazilNuBank
BulgariaPostbank
CanadaBMO
ChileSantander
ColombiaBanco de Bogota
Costa RicaBAC Credomatic
DenmarkNykredit
Dominican RepublicBanreservas
FinlandOP Financial Group
FranceBNP Paribas
GermanyDKB
GreeceEurobank
HungaryOTP Bank
IcelandLandsbankinn
IsraelBank Leumi
ItalyIntesa Sanpaolo
MacauBank of China
MexicoBanorte
NetherlandsING
NigeriaAccess Bank
NorwayNordea
PakistanMeezan Bank
PanamaBAC Credomatic
PeruBanco de Credito del Peru
PolandMbank
PortugalSantander
South AfricaNedBank
SpainBanco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria
Sri LankaSampath Bank
SwedenSEB
TurkeyGaranti BBVA
UAEMashreq Bank
UKLloyds Banking Group
USBank of America
UruguayBanco Santander Uruguay
UzbekistanAsakabank

 

Best Commercial Banks

AustriaRaiffeisen Bank International
BelarusBelagroprombank
BelgiumKBC
CanadaBMO
ChinaICBC
ColombiaDavivienda
Czech RepublicCeska Sporitelna
DenmarkNordea
Dominican RepublicBanreservas
FranceBNP Paribas
GermanyDKB
HungaryOTP Bank
KazakhstanJusan Bank
MacauBank of China
NetherlandsING
NigeriaZenith Bank
NorwayHandelsbanken
PolandmBANK
PortugalBanco Finantia
QatarCommercial Bank of Qatar
Saudi ArabiaAl-Rahji Bank
Sri LankaSampath Bank
SwedenSEB
TurkeyICBC
USBank of the West
VietnamSai Gon J.S. Commercial Bank

 

Most Innovative Banks

EuropeEVO Banco
Latin AmericaBanco Popular Dominicano
Middle EastMashreq
AfricaGT Bank
AsiaShinhan Bank

 

Bankers of the Year

EuropeAli Niknam (Bunq)
Latin AmericaRoberto Sallouti (BTG Pactual)
Middle EastSarah Al-Suhaimi (Tadawul)
AfricaSegun Agbaje (GT Bank)
AsiaIlias Tsakalidis (Tengri Partners)

 

Best Private Banks

AustriaSchoellerbank
BelgiumKBC Private Banking
BrazilBTG Pactual
CanadaBMO
ChileBTG Pactual
Czech RepublicCSOB Private Banking
DenmarkNykredit Private Banking
FranceBNP Paribas Banque Privée
GermanyDeutsche Bank Wealth Management
GreeceEurobank
Hong KongHSBC
HungaryErste Bank
IsraelBank Leumi
ItalyBNL BNP Paribas
LiechtensteinKaiser Partner
MonacoEdmond de Rothschild
NetherlandsING
NigeriaFirst Bank of Nigeria
NorwayNordea
PolandMbank
PortugalBanco Finantia
South AfricaNedbank
SpainBanco Santander
SwedenCarnegie Private Banking
SwitzerlandPiguet Galland & Cie SA
TurkeyTEB Private Banking
UAEAbu Dhabi Commercial Bank
UKHSBC
USJP Morgan Private Bank

 

Additional Recognition

Most Innovative Savings Bank (Greece)Eurobank
Best Cash Management Services (Macau)Bank of China
Most Sustainable Bank (Nigeria)Bank of Industry
Most Sustainable Bank (Turkey)TSKB
Most Sustainable Bank (Dominican Republic)Banco Popular Dominicano

Canadian Pacific on track with hydrogen locomotives

Posted on by itsupport

As a provider of sustainable rail and intermodal transportation services connecting North America and the world, Canadian Pacific (CP) is proud to be an industry leader on climate action. A changing climate is the challenge of our generation, and there is a need for new technologies and approaches to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon future. CP is rising to this challenge by continuing to adapt our business and build resilience into our operations to prepare for a low-carbon future.

In North America, shipping goods by rail is the most energy-efficient way to transport freight long distances over land. In 2020, the transportation sector accounted for approximately 27 percent of Canada and US greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; however, transportation of freight by rail represented only 2.3 percent sector-wide. Rail is four times more fuel-efficient than highway transportation and generates up to 75 percent less GHG emissions. A single-unit train can keep more than 300 trucks off public roads, benefitting communities and the environment.

Although the freight rail sector already provides one of the most fuel-efficient means of transport, systemic and technological advances are required to decarbonise the industry further. By investing in innovation, encouraging new partnerships, optimising our operations and maintaining a continual focus on the fundamentals of precision scheduled railroading, CP is already taking meaningful steps to drive positive impact. As we envision the future of global supply chains, freight transportation by rail will continue to play a leading role in a low-carbon future.

Climate strategy
The transition to a low-carbon economy presents challenges and opportunities for the transportation sector. To align CP and our stakeholders as we navigate this dynamic change, we published CP’s first Climate Strategy in 2021, charting our approach to managing potential climate-related impacts across the business while capitalising on low-carbon opportunities.

Two science-based GHG reduction targets inform CP’s Climate Strategy to guide our climate action through 2030. Representing our most significant source of emissions, CP has committed to reducing GHG emissions intensity from locomotive operations by 38.3 percent from a 2019 base year. This target pathway aligns with the best available climate science and has been approved by the Science Based Target Setting Initiative (SBTi). To address emissions associated with our rail network infrastructure, including buildings, facilities and work equipment – a small but critical part of our carbon footprint – CP has committed to reduce emissions from non-locomotive operations by 27.5 percent by 2030 from a 2019 base year.

Implementation of the Climate Strategy is led by CP’s Carbon Reduction Task Force and supported by CP’s industry-leading engineers and operations experts. This team is driving internal focus on decarbonisation and evaluating potential levers to reduce GHG emissions, including new technologies, alternative fuels and operating practices. As part of this work, CP is formalising the integration of climate-related risks into our enterprise risk management mechanisms and developing strategies to mitigate risk and increase operational resilience under various climate change scenarios. CP is also focused on industry leadership and partnerships with key stakeholders to implement our Climate Strategy. We recognise that our ability to influence GHG emissions reductions extends beyond our operations. We are committed to advocating and collaborating across our value chain in ways that drive climate action.

Hydrogen locomotive programme
CP has a long history of leading on locomotive fuel efficiency, regularly outperforming our industry peers. Through advancements in deploying locomotive technology, investments in innovation and improvements to operating practices, we have improved fuel efficiency by 44 percent since 1990. This same approach to innovation and focus on efficiency is critical as CP confronts the significant decarbonisation needed to accomplish the objectives of our Climate Strategy.

Freight locomotives are expensive, long-lived assets and are subject to frequent upgrades and refurbishment throughout their useful life. Implementing a practical means to convert diesel locomotives to low carbon emitting operations will be critical to support the demand for freight rail services in the years to come. To address this challenge, CP announced plans in late 2020 to develop North America’s first line-haul, hydrogen-powered locomotive using a combination of hydrogen fuel cells and battery technology to power the locomotive’s electric traction motors. After receiving $15m in funding from Emissions Reduction Alberta in 2021, CP expanded the hydrogen locomotive programme to include the conversion of three line-haul locomotives and the installation of two hydrogen production and fuelling facilities.

Both hydrogen production and fuelling facilities will deploy electrolyser plants to produce hydrogen fuel from water. One of these plants will be located at CP’s Calgary headquarters and will operate on renewable electricity from the 5MW solar farm project which became operational in 2021. This hydrogen production plant will operate on renewable power to produce a zero GHG emissions hydrogen fuel to power CP’s hydrogen locomotive.

As the pilot locomotives become operational, qualification and road and yard testing trials will be conducted to evaluate the technology’s readiness and explore future opportunities for deployment into freight-rail service. With the first locomotive expected to be ready for revenue service in late 2022, this initiative has the potential to lead transformation within the industry and generate critical industry knowledge and experience that will inform future commercialisation.

This globally significant project positions CP at the leading edge of freight sector decarbonisation. CP’s programme is expected to spur innovation, demonstrate climate leadership and encourage supply chain collaboration to expedite the advancement of zero-emissions fuel cell technology for the freight transportation sector.
 

Spotlight on hydrogen power

Hydrogen fuel cell/battery hybrid propulsion technology is being tested worldwide as a viable alternative fuel for the transportation sector with particular promise for long-haul heavy freight transportation systems including rail. Locomotives already operate with hybrid systems using electric traction motors powered by diesel engines. By removing the diesel engine and alternator and replacing it with zero-emissions technology, the existing locomotive platform can leverage the electric input from hydrogen fuel to power the traction motors. Deployed in this way, hydrogen fuel cell technology may be capable of eliminating GHG emissions from locomotive operations. In addition, hydrogen power offers additional environmental benefits including reduced operational noise and vibration and eliminating air emissions generated by diesel-electric engines.

 
Sustainably driven
As we continue integrating sustainability principles into our business, we constantly challenge ourselves to improve our practices. This dedication benefits our employees, suppliers, and the communities in which we operate. Our investments in a more sustainable freight transportation sector also help our customers realise their sustainability objectives.

As CP plans for its proposed combination with Kansas City Southern, which is subject to regulatory approval by the US Surface Transportation Board, to create the first single-line railroad linking the US, Mexico and Canada, we are encouraged by the opportunity to expand the reach of our sustainability efforts and deliver value for our customers and shareholders. This combination is expected to avoid more than 1.5 million tons of GHG emissions within five years due to efficiency improvements and divert 64,000 long-haul truck shipments to rail annually, further eliminating emissions and reducing impacts on highways.

A single-unit train can keep more than 300 trucks off public roads, benefitting communities and the environment

We recognise that we play an important role in aligning with international frameworks and supporting broader sustainability objectives. CP has recently joined the United Nations Global Compact initiative, committing to operate in a sustainable and responsible way that supports human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.

Considering the goals and targets articulated in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we have examined our sustainability and business strategies to identify where we can make a meaningful impact. We identified five SDGs and 11 supporting targets aligned with our business through this process, where we believe that CP can contribute through internal and external activities.

CP recognises that operating sustainably is imperative to our future growth and lasting success. As we look ahead, we remain committed to confronting sustainability challenges, including those created by climate change, and investing in the innovation and practices needed to achieve long-term sustainable growth.

HYCM: Rethinking affiliate marketing in FX

Posted on by itsupport

In some ways, affiliate marketing is an unsung hero. Its siblings, SEO, content marketing and PPC have had the spotlight on them for a long time, while this tried and tested marketing mainstay sometimes doesn’t get the attention it deserves. That is why it is hard to find an affiliate program in the FX space that would tick all the boxes of the lucrative scheme. This is not the case with the HYCM’s partnership programme, HY Affiliates, which has been perfected over the years to deliver results to both the broker and its affiliates.

 

The stats
This is despite the budgets for affiliate marketing growing every year with no sign of the trend slowing down. According to Statista, affiliate marketing is estimated to be worth $12bn globally. Another interesting fact is that back in 2020, affiliate marketing came 7th in LinkedIn Learning’s list of top 10 “hard” skills, citing the “decline of traditional advertising and the rise of social media” as reasons for the current desirability of affiliate marketing skills among employers. According to affiliate network AWIN, at the start of 2020, 25 percent of consumers new to brands made a purchase through an affiliate link. By the height of the pandemic this figure was up to 37 percent and has remained above 30 percent since the reopening.

 

Affiliate marketing as diversification
In the forex industry, while we recognise the value of both affiliates and IBs (introducer brokers), historically it has been IBs that have gained the most traction because these partners tended to bring their own traders with them and were thus regarded as a more reliable source of volumes. Even as SEO and PPC have risen to prominence, it’s something of an open secret that a substantial portion of many FX brokers’ volumes continue to be generated through IB relationships for the above reasons.

At HYCM, we’ve found that developing a modern affiliate marketing strategy is a fantastic way to diversify our volume streams and potentially open up our services to segments that may not be reached via other means. This is because the social media technologies that have evolved since the early days of the Internet have created the ideal conditions for affiliate marketing strategies. Whether it be influencers, niches, or localised messaging that’s your priority, the platforms we now have available to us are ideal for developing all three of these different styles of affiliate marketing.

 

Get your commissions right
Market research is important when it comes to setting your commission structure. Spend some time researching what other brokers in your segment are offering in order to see how you can differentiate your own offering. For instance, in our affiliate program HY Affiliates, we opted to offer up to $1,000 per acquisition. Recognising how competitive CPAs are becoming, we decided to offer commissions in the higher tier of what’s commonly available because we’re confident in the ability of our value-added tools, services and support structure to retain incoming clients once acquired.

In order to further make our affiliate offering stand out, we also decided to make our partnership as flexible as possible. This involves giving our affiliates the choice of revenue share and per-lot rebates as well as the standard CPA model.

 

Manage your affiliates properly
With the above settled, it’s important to understand the importance of affiliate management systems. We can’t stress enough how many affiliate programs fail due to inadequate management. Now we’re not here to debate the virtues of in-house developed or third-party management systems. What we will say, though, is that if you talk to affiliates, irrespective of industry, they all seem to value timely payouts and complete transparency when it comes to reporting.

In other words, your affiliates should be able to know exactly what the state of their account is with you at any given time, which includes up to-the-minute conversion data. Also, there should be zero friction for them when it comes to withdrawing their commissions. The easier you make this process for them, the more likely they are to stay with you, and the likelier you are to attract more affiliates to your cause.

 

Final thoughts
Never forget that affiliates are spoilt for choice nowadays irrespective of industry. You’re not doing anyone any favours by merely offering commissions. You must work hard to make your offering competitive, but also to show that you value these people as partners that are part of your organisation’s success.

That is why choosing to partner with one of the most reliable and established global forex brokers such as HYCM by joining our affiliate program HY Affiliates, our affiliates benefit not only from the possibility to introduce their clients to the exciting and fast-growing world of online trading but also from the opportunity to earn high levels of commission and to generate high conversion rates with their traffic.

 

Learn more about HY Affiliates partnership programme

The disruptive recruitment philosophy proving a success

Posted on by itsupport

As the pandemic slowly retreats, it has left countless companies around the world short of the talent necessary to take fast-emerging opportunities that have arisen in its wake.

Simultaneously though, many senior executives are unwilling to leave permanent positions for new opportunities until the economic horizon brightens.

Just as crucially, the economic damage wrought by Covid-19 and, now, the war in Ukraine, means many companies urgently need prompt investment. And none more so than start-ups and SMEs, historically the most vulnerable to crises.

Clearly, the demand for executive talent has never been greater and, in its twentieth anniversary, global recruitment agency CEO Worldwide is rising to the challenge with its iCEO platform. First established in 2007 but now more important than ever, iCEO is dedicated to simultaneously plugging the talent and investment gaps in these fast-moving sectors.

It’s an agile platform that provides carefully vetted executives, often with many years of experience in the sector, who also contribute their own capital of up to $1m. The most common amount is $150,000-350,000 and is deployed by nearly 81 percent of arrivals while more than 12 percent bring $350,000-750,000, three percent between $750,000-$1m, and four percent more than $1m.

The number of openings over the next decade will grow by more than a quarter of a million every year

The result is talent plus capital — skin in the game. “It’s a vote of faith in the future of the company,” explains CEO Worldwide’s founder Patrick Mataix. “And it’s a statement of the executive’s commitment. It is an incredible leverage for companies to get a talented and committed executive on board with a limited impact on their profit and loss.”

Once again, CEO Worldwide looks to be ahead of the curve with iCEO. As the firm celebrates an innovative 20 years, it looks back on one ground-breaking initiative after another. Launched in France in January 2002, at first the firm focused on interim management services dedicated to start-ups and venture capitalists in the EU.

The vision was deliberately disruptive. Founder Mataix recalls: “As an entrepreneur regularly using the services of headhunters and consultants, I had been frustrated by the inadequacy of their answers and timing to solve the international problems I was facing daily.”

So right from the start, the firm concentrated on the values he believed were missing in other executive search functions. Action had to be fast, pricing transparent and behaviour flexible. And now, 20 years later, CEO Worldwide offers a full suite of recruitment services that has played a fundamental and important role in distributing executive talent around the world.

In that time the firm expanded in a series of milestones as it responded to urgencies in the market. In 2005, the firm began finding executives for permanent placement. In 2007, original iCEO started to make a growing difference for capital-short companies. Three years later came the name change from CEO Europe to CEO Worldwide, reflecting the firm’s increasingly global reach.

By then it had on its books over 10,000 vetted executives covering 40 countries. In 2013, headquarters was moved from France to the UK where its Top Executive search engine was launched.

It is an incredible leverage for companies to get a talented and committed executive on board with a limited impact on their profit and loss

And today CEO Worldwide can muster a full array of multi-lingual and multi-disciplined talent with a vetted pool of over 20,000 international executives covering nearly all countries and 84 languages. The firm’s clients comprise companies of all sizes from start-ups and SMEs to multinationals.

It’s a measure of the firm’s global footprint that it recently placed a CEO in India for its 1,351-first executive mandate. The firm also boasts 48 ambassadors covering 32 countries. And the vetted pool of iCEO investor-executives alone now tops 3,000, representing a cumulative potential investment exceeding $1bn.

Over the years the firm remained faithful to the original vision. It had to be nimble-footed and react quickly to the demands of the market – in short, client-led. On average it takes just ten days to submit a short list of candidates to the client thanks to a policy of pre-vetting. An in-house video platform allows the client to conduct interviews remotely, which proved to a valuable service during lockdowns and global travel restrictions.

And the pricing model remains a big attraction. CEO Worldwide’s fee structure is highly transparent – for instance, right from the start fees were not linked to total remuneration unlike most competing firms.

ceo worldwide logo

The firm was also ahead of the game with its female executive platform. Now four years old, it anticipated growing pressure from legislators and lobby groups for a more diverse representation in the C-suite. Indeed the platform was launched before European regulations that imposed gender and diversity quotas on boards and steering committees.

A runaway success, the platform boasts a vetted pool of over 3,100 international female executives covering 86 countries and 64 languages. Client firms were quick to jump onboard. An international corporate with over $8bn in turnover retained CEO Worldwide to provide it with top female talent. Other women have been hired in top-level management jobs and as non-executive directors in the US, UK, Switzerland, Germany, France and India among other countries.

As CEO Worldwide has found, the nations that are hungriest for executive talent are those with fast-growing digitised economies. They are headed by France with 763, followed by USA (399), UK (273, India (228) and Germany (185).

And the hungriest industries are those sitting at the leading edge of the digital revolution. CEO Worldwide has placed 959 executives in e-commerce and internet-based companies, 895 in consumer goods, 766 in software and 698 in IT and computer hardware. All of these industries have been turbo-boosted by the pandemic.

Looking ahead, demand for top executives in most corporates including start-ups and SMEs looks to be almost insatiable. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of openings over the next decade will grow by more than a quarter of a million every year as older executives retire. And that’s just in the US.

With its finger on the pulse of global recruitment, CEO World has plenty of insights into the current state of the market. “Many organisations are challenged when looking for executives,” says Mataix. “And that’s despite offering enticing perks and high salaries.” They urgently need people with experience – and especially in technology, the right balance of men and women, and those from minorities. Unfortunately, not enough candidates meet all three criteria.

“Many people who qualify for the first two criteria lack the necessary experience, which drives the current talent shortage,” summarises Mataix. “The current issue faced by the market is there are too few executives with experience looking for placements.”

And that, he says, is particularly true of women. Although CEO Worldwide’s platform is contributing to the availability of female talent, many women are declining offers in the current uncertain environment.

Age however is no barrier. CEO Worldwide is tapping a steady demand for executives over 55 years of age who often take interim or consulting positions where their knowledge and experience provides a perspective and depth that is often lacking, particularly in start-ups. Some of these placements turn out to be so successful that the executive is asked to stay on in permanently.

So clearly, it’s yet another disruptive move by CEO Worldwide.

 

For more information about CEO Worldwide’s services:
https://www.ceo-worldwide.com/

When two cultures collide – how to ensure M&A success

Posted on by itsupport

The first big milestone of any merger or acquisition is ‘day one.’ It’s important from this day to have a clear blueprint of how the business will operate which everyone buys into, including how the newly formed organisation will work together. Every detail is important and needs to be well communicated. Getting ‘day one’ right is an important step in creating momentum and credibility, and signalling the future culture.

It’s worth therefore also spending time during the merger and acquisition process assessing the two cultures of the organisations to establish how to knit them together. One way to do this is through a steady cadence of visible acts of change or ‘symbols of change’ such as sharing joint success stories, co-creating a new vision and purpose together or creating a joint set of communications.

But don’t feel you have to resolve every culture difference or issue immediately. It’s impossible from a leadership perspective, and situations inevitably evolve and change over time.

Finally, invest time in building great relationships with the organisation that’s being acquired. This can pay dividends later and will ensure the transition is as seamless as possible. Too often, leadership teams turn inwards and fail to build relationships with their new colleagues. Settling leadership roles early on is key so leaders can help stabilise the rest of the organisation.

Mergers and acquisitions are always a challenge from the perspective of people. But organisations that pay close attention to the culture aspects greatly increase their chances of the deal achieving its full potential.

The current global landscape surrounding mergers

Posted on by itsupport

Early in the Coronavirus pandemic, the European Commission (EC)’s Directorate-General for Competition sent the daunting message to businesses that parties should delay their merger notifications where possible. Despite initial obstacles, legislators responded quickly, adapting to the challenges of the pandemic by making merger notification submissions electronic and simplifying procedures to fast-track the review process. In March 2021, the EC launched an impact assessment on policy options for further simplification of merger procedures.

In a September 2020 speech, the European Commissioner for Competition, Margrethe Vestager, covered the pressing issue of EU notification thresholds, a hot topic in competition circles, as national competition authorities had begun advocating for and adopting value-based notification thresholds. The goal of these new mechanisms is mainly to catch so-called ‘killer acquisitions’ — incumbent firms acquiring innovative targets to preempt future competition before the targets are big enough to reach turnover-based thresholds.

Vestager confirmed that value-based thresholds would not be among future measures to prevent this type of deal. Instead, the EC’s Article 22 EUMR new referral policy, effective from March 2021, might be used to address this perceived enforcement gap, as it allows member states to refer to the EC transactions that raise potential competition concerns when the EU notification thresholds are not met. In September 2021, the EC published the policy brief ‘Competition Policy in Support of Europe’s Green Ambition,’ which flagged a particular concern about ‘killer acquisitions’ of companies active in green innovation and suggested the use of the new Article 22 referral policy to tackle the issue.

The EC also appears to be increasingly stringent when it comes to the enforcement of procedural rules. Decisions such as Facebook/WhatsApp, Canon/Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, GE/LM Wind and Altice/PT Portugal have been characterised by the imposition of hefty fines for procedural violations such as gun jumping or the provision of incorrect or misleading information.

European national level
At the national level, the activity of the French Competition Authority (FCA) and of the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) provides a good example of the developments in competition policy and enforcement. The FCA has recently shifted the focus of its merger control activity toward digital issues. One particularly innovative example is the novel approach of modernising its market definitions to consider the development of online sales in the retail sector. This trend was unequivocally confirmed in the new FCA merger guidelines introduced in July 2020, which now contain a specific section dedicated to online sales.

As for the German FCO, recent practice has shown a trend to extend Phase II proceedings, leading to a significantly longer total review period than the four months German law currently stipulates.

Meanwhile in the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), has taken a rather interventionist approach to merger control. This is evident from its approval of Roche’s takeover of Spark, in which the CMA found that the share of supply test was met, despite the fact that Spark did not have any sales in the UK.

The US focus
On the other side of the Atlantic, antitrust agencies have largely adapted to the challenges created by COVID-19. The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and DOJ have continued to be active in merger investigations and successfully introduced a Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act e-filing system. In the first quarter of 2021, senators from the Republican and Democratic Parties introduced legislation to alter existing antitrust laws. While from different ends of the political spectrum, the new bills share many similarities. Both create rebuttable presumptions of illegality or harm based solely on the size of the acquirer and increase the focus on enforcement of vertical mergers. While it remains to be seen whether these bills will become law, there has been increased debate on Capitol Hill about overturning existing antitrust laws, exacerbated by the current discourse on under-enforcement in dynamic industries like big tech and pharma.

Nevertheless, both the FTC and the DOJ began 2021 with heightened merger enforcement activity. In January, Visa and Plaid abandoned their planned merger following a DOJ lawsuit alleging Visa had nefarious incentives for the acquisition. The new administration’s first vertical merger enforcement move occurred in February when the DOJ issued Second Requests to Slack and Salesforce. The US agencies have demonstrated a continued focus on transactions involving nascent competitors, as evidenced by the FTC’s challenges to Edgewell Personal Care’s acquisition of razor manufacturer Harry’s, as well as the life sciences merger between Illumina and Pacific Biosciences.

These cases reflect that the agencies are still focused on killer acquisition theories, with the DOJ alleging that Sabre’s acquisition of Farelogix was an attempt to neutralise or eliminate an innovative competitor. Despite the pandemic, the US agencies also released new vertical merger guidelines, which reflect the agencies’ approach to investigating the competitive impact of vertical mergers. Although COVID-19 has been at the forefront of people’s minds, the development of merger control policy and rules worldwide shows that companies looking to take advantage of the disrupted economic environment need to make sure they are abreast of the changes to navigate their way through the uncertainty that still lies ahead.

The transition to sustainable construction

Posted on by itsupport

After many years of stagnation, the construction industry is finally expected to grow significantly in the next decade according to the Future of Construction, a report published by Marsh & Guy Carpenter. The report envisages a solid rebound from the COVID-19 outbreak this year, with worldwide construction production increasing by 6.6 percent. Construction spending contributed to 13 percent of global GDP in 2020 and this is expected to rise steadily over the next few years. By 2030, global construction output is expected to increase by 35 percent from today’s levels.

Thanks to governmental measures aimed both at reaching environmental targets and kick starting the economy, construction, which has always lagged behind other sectors from a growth perspective due to critically low margins and consequentially low R&D spending, is seeing a renaissance. Italy, for example, has a commitment to reduce CO2 emissions by 55 percent by 2030, and to zero by 2050 within the European ‘green new deal.’ The construction sector will be pivotal in achieving this goal, as the built environment must be upgraded to be more sustainable.

Meanwhile, the European Union’s ‘next generation EU’ fund will help support recovery of construction in Western Europe with growth forecasts suggesting the sector will expand by 7.9 percent in 2021. Italy will benefit from over €196bn, and 48 percent of this will be spent on construction projects. For example, €68.9bn is destined for ecological transition and 40 percent of this sum (€29.3bn), is intended for energy efficiency and the upgrade of existing buildings.

On the other side of the pond, the US have established the ‘build back better’ programme, which is a projected $7trn COVID-19 relief and stimulus package designed to accelerate economic recovery and for investment in large infrastructure projects proposed by President Joe Biden. It is projected to create 10 million clean-energy jobs.

Sustainability and the circular economy
Climate change and the race to net zero are arguably the greatest challenges that the construction industry is facing. The building and construction industry as a whole is responsible for 40 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions and produces 30 percent of Europe’s waste.

The industry is finally waking up to the importance of proactively addressing climate change concerns and embracing responsibility for its direct and indirect carbon emissions. The major contributors to these emissions are the materials used, as well as the heating, cooling and lighting of buildings and infrastructure. Sustainability is not just a matter of corporate responsibility, but it is good for business – and many companies are investing heavily in sustainable practices not just to be good global citizens, but also because it makes great financial sense.

As construction entrepreneurs, we have a responsibility to lead our industry’s evolution towards the practice of maximum respect for the environment, both in terms of construction methods and the life cycle of the built environment. To achieve this goal, the sector must focus on innovation, sustainability, and the circular economy.

The impact of sustainable objectives
To meet sustainability objectives, it is important to positively impact the life cycle of each project as well as improving building methods. There are many construction techniques available that are less damaging to the environment, and technology and materials choices that make long-term management of an asset more sustainable. The circular economy, for example, is creating added value in the construction industry. According to data from the Italian ‘national association of building constructors,’ the transition to the circular economy system is increasingly becoming a fundamental value for construction companies, with 81 percent of respondents to a recent poll stating that it is key to their future goals.

In Italy, the 110 percent super-bonus is giving a positive boost to the industry as it encourages the private sector to invest in energy efficiency by funding upgrades to existing buildings at no actual cost to their owners. In addition, the use of eco-friendly materials as a standard practice is hugely beneficial in the long term as they do not have an adverse impact on the environment when used and can easily be recycled.

Finally, the use of technology is essential for reducing emissions and preserving the ecosystem. The sector has responded to the COVID-19 outbreak by focusing more heavily on innovation as it is fundamental to respond to the evolving needs of the construction market to ensure the industry’s transformation. The sector will have to adapt to a changing environment and create resilience to the serious effects of climate change. For its part, the construction industry has all the credentials to meet this challenge, enhance its evolution to a green economy and contribute substantially to the revitalisation of the global economy.