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3.9.2020 4 NEWS HANDSON Systems has announced the ap- pointment Suzanne Salerno as Chief Financial Officer. ough still in her mid-30s, Salerno brings considerable industry experience to her posi- tion. Very much a hands-on person, she has an enquiring mind and has always taken interest in business operations. Geoffrey Farrugia, Chief Executive Officer of HandsOn Systems, welcomed Salerno's dis- ciplined approach and can-do attitude. "Su- zanne's background and experience in business operations and finance will ensure that Hand- sOn Systems can approach its financial com- mitments with confidence and can plan for the longer term with greater serenity," he said. Since she joined, shortly before Melita con- cluded its investment in HandsOn Systems, Salerno feels the company has already come a long way. "We have introduced policies and procedures to give us guidance for better deci- sion making," she said. Melita's investment will enable HandsOn Systems to extend its product portfolio and to pursue international expansion. Salerno is a firm believer that women in lead- ership help businesses to thrive. "As women, we bring our own set of complementary skills and our unique experiences. Women are likely to be more empathetic, which translates into better team-building and stronger work rela- tionships. We take initiatives, strive for results, and practise self-development." Finally, she believes that in the course of time, HandsOn Systems will become a public limited company (plc). She is of the opinion that this will increase brand awareness and have better access to capital. "Better brand recognition can lead to more sales. is will also make the company more visible to valuable potential business part- ners. Credibility and confidence, reinforced by greater transparency, will provide HandsOn Systems an advantaged position to pursue new projects, new products or new markets," she said. New CFO at HandsOn Sytems brings discipline, business acumen to role Ample common ground on vision for Malta economy – Chamber HSBC Malta is providing all business clients access to insights from HSBC Europe on how to respond and re- build after the impact of COVID-19 through a series of webinars, entitled "HSBC Europe: Navigating the new Norm". This series of webinars, available through the bank's website https:// www.business.hsbc.com.mt/, reviews the implications of COVID-19 for corporates, through the eyes of inter- national banking experts who share their experiences and observations on the pandemic phases and the role of sustainability in restarting growth across the region. Joyce Grech, Head of Commercial Banking at HSBC Malta, said that in light of the rapidly evolving situation, the bank was striving to continue maintaining the best quality banking service. "As part of our efforts, through these webinars, we are also making HSBC's international expertise available to the local business community and pro- viding insights into the current and potential future implications of COV- ID-19." she said. "In particular, these webinars are providing thought leadership on areas such as, supply chain disruption and risk management." For more information or to watch webinar replays from the series "HSBC Europe: Navigating the new Norm", please visit https://www.busi- ness .hsbc.com/hsbc-in-europe/cov- id-response HSBC's 'Navigating the new Norm' webinars available to Maltese businesses THE Chamber of Commerce yesterday welcomed Prime Minister Robert Abela, in a meeting in which presi- dent David Xuereb said both sides shared "ample common ground" on their vision for Malta's economy. "e alignment was expected as both entities are after the optimal economic and healthy well-being of our people," Xuereb said. Abela was attending a 'Meet the Prime Minister' series for Chamber members to have an exclusive opportunity to ask questions directly to the head of government. "In the current landscape of our country's democratic and socio-economic development, we feel we have an even more important role to play of keep- ing our policy makers in check on behalf of our members and the business community at large" Xuereb said. Xuereb said that the repu- tation of 'brand Malta' had suffered considerable damage to the extent that some com- panies were struggling to per- form international business due to the manner in which business counterparts per- ceived the country. "To this end, we shall contin- ue to offer all our support to ensure the country is able to perform the necessary thor- ough and systematic clean-up of the whole system. Without this, we cannot hope for us to achieve our economic vision. Our immediate concern here is, of course, the impending Moneyval Report which we cannot afford to get wrong. Once again, as a Chamber we have offered our support to ensure we achieve this mile- stone." Xuereb said the Chamber's Economic Vision for Malta to be a smart, sustainable island by 2025 sought to increase economic growth while en- hancing the quality of life of the people. e Chamber is concentrat- ing its efforts in collaborating with government and other social partners in finding the most workable solutions for students to be able to return to their classrooms later this month. Prime Minister fields questions from Chamber members in exclusive meeting

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