David Cutajar

From your experience, do local employers acknowledge the importance of training and invest accordingly?

Training and development should always be seen as an investment rather than a cost. No business should be run purely with an accountant’s mindset, with due respect to accountants and the important work they do.

Just like any other area of enterprise, leaders should see training as an investment and consider the risks and returns in the same way as when making decisions regarding IT investments, new hires, marketing and PR plans, office improvements and new ventures.

Local employers do increasingly believe in the value of training. Perhaps in the past there was more naivety and they were not so discerning. They would, for instance, invest huge amounts of money on just one person to obtain an MBA of dubious value rather than, for instance, have a whole team attend a practical management and leadership development or sales or customer care programme addressing important core skills.

Organisations need to think carefully about what their training needs really are, rather than going for the latest fad. I do believe, however, that there is a culture shift towards creating and developing learning organisations and a willingness to learn locally that augurs well for the future.

How important is effective training needs analysis for the purpose of continuous learning?

This is vital for any organisation no matter what size. An effective training needs analysis helps identify both organisational objectives and individual training needs and helps organisations to focus on what is really needed. Training needs to fulfil both organisational and personal objectives.

How do you adapt a training programme to a company’s business needs?

First of all, it’s important to listen. A typical scenario might be to run a bespoke management development programme or customer services training programme. These are far more effective if the trainer, together with the management, holds some preparatory discussions with key stakeholders to give them a sense of ownership of the programme and a feeling that it will address their real needs. It is important to have at least a mini-questionnaire for each course participant to help establish if this is the right training programme for them, if they are placed with the appropriate group of people and if the content addresses their needs.

Even the very best trainers can come unstuck if they have prepared for the wrong audience. Fail to prepare and prepare to fail. Conversely, training in a vacuum might get rave reviews for us but due to lack of planning and environmental change within an organisation, it can actually lead to very little added value once back at work.

It is also important for professional trainers to see the bigger picture and discuss post-training objectives with participants and client organisations.

Emotional intelligence, effective communication and leadership are becoming increasingly important. What training do you offer in these areas?

These work skills have been an integral part of training programmes for many years now, certainly on our programmes. For instance, the importance of emotional intelligence, effective communication skills and leadership is used in our Negotiation Skills, Management Development, Train the Trainer and other programmes. Together with a UK-based partner company, we also offer specific training in emotional intelligence and the use of psychometric assessments in this regard.

We have always emphasised development of the work and life skills, that is, the development of the practical skills needed for success and effectiveness in life and business and not only a purely academic approach to training. Learning by doing and practice-feedback-practice are important methodologies for us.

Workforces are becoming increasingly international. For an employer, how does this facilitate recruitment?

We are not only training providers, but also employers and run a long established recruitment agency, so we understand this phenomenon.

Malta’s success today is built on having a multinational and diverse workforce without which some key industries simply would not operate from here. Some of the larger iGaming operators, for instance, have from 20 to 30 nationalities in their workforce. Online marketing companies operating from Malta have similar figures, while successful financial services, tourism, aviation and software development industries depend on a multinational team.

Recruitment for these organisations takes on many different dimensions, including search and selection skills in social media, effective international and multilingual websites and job boards, and use of international networks for cross-border recruitment. In the latter case, recruiters are not only selling the job and terms and conditions, but also Malta, comparative cost of living and quality of life. This requires being knowledgeable about tax issues, property, accommodation and subsistence options across the EU and beyond.

Malta itself has to compete to attract the best people. As a nation we need to accept the reality that we already have a multinational workforce here and we need to learn and respect different cultures. We must have a zero tolerance approach to xenophobia and racism, while at the same time emphasising that Malta has robust employment and tax laws that need to be respected.

Malta is a wonderful place where to work, do business, live life to the full and raise a family if this is what is desired. In many cases, moving to Malta is not purely for financial reasons but a lifestyle choice.

Given this internationalisation, how important is training in cultural awareness?

I think that locally, cultural awareness is a bit lacking. There are important cultural differences even between workers of EU nationalities let alone from outside the EU. We see Malta-based companies with an international workforce encountering some of these issues. Personally, I see this as a positive challenge for the Maltese as they are now more exposed to working and interacting with people of other nationalities than they ever have been.

For any business leader operating an organisation with a multinational workforce, the challenges presented can be both frustrating and positive and at times fun and motivating. Cultural differences and different ways of working can also stimulate creativity and lead to a better end product. Local business consultants, business psychologists and academics are in fact addressing cross-cultural issues and the impact of workforce diversity in Malta today. I am involved with the Malta Association of Work and Occupational Psychology and in fact cross-cultural issues in the workplace is something we actively discuss. We shall be holding discussion seminars on this and related topics in the coming months.

Fun is also an essential element in training. What fun elements do you include in your programmes?

We want training to stimulate all the senses. The key ingredient in training is a top-rate trainer or facilitator who can deliver and is a good communicator. However the training environment, course manuals, audiovisual technology, catering and care taken by the support personnel are also very important ingredients.

The fun element also has to incorporate a training objective. For instance, back in the 1990s, we were at the forefront of incorporating outdoor activities into our management development programmes and still do today. These are enjoyable but also effective if a link is made to the key objective of the programme. Otherwise it would just be a day out without achieving any learning. Occasionally, these events can also be healthy as a reward for a hard-working team.

Fun can be incorporated into almost anything, from role-play activities to the mini-fashion shows we organise as part of our Level 4-rated foundation course in fashion design. Fun elements in training can leave a positive and memorable mental image and enhance learning.