iGaming Capital

iGAMING’S POST-COVID-19 RECOVERY: WE’RE BOUNCING BACK

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WHERE MALTA’S iGAMERS ARE SET TO LIVE AND WORK

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CAREER PROGRESSION AND FAMILY LIFE TIPS FOR INCOMING EXPATS

€8 (WHERE SOLD)

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OFFICIAL PARTNERS

SUMMER 2020

SUMMER 2020 CONTENTS

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A SUCCESS STORY

Key iGaming players relay how the sector was able to switch to remote working during the pandemic.

20 BOUNCING BACK

Four industry experts discuss their business expectations during and beyond the transition from COVID-19.

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NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

iGaming companies keep flocking to Malta, and here’s why.

48 GAMING MALTA: THE CATALYST FOR GAMING SECTOR SOLUTIONS

What are Gaming Malta’s plans for the iGaming sector’s post-COVID-19 recovery and success?

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34 WE ARE OPTIMISTIC ABOUT iGAMING

Parliamentary Secretary Clayton Bartolo discusses the importance of economic diversification for company survival during turbulent times.

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OF NEW LEADERSHIP AND STAYING ON TOP

The new COO of LeoVegas, Mårten Forste, talks through his strategic priorities for the company as it steps into uncharted territory.

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CLOSING THE GAP

Is the wealth of unfilled vacancies in the iGaming sector set to continue through the rest of 2020?

67 TREND WATCH: iGAMING REAL ESTATE Malta’s leading property experts reveal where iGamers will live and work in the near future.

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5G IS THE NAME OF THE GAME

Industry veteran, Jesper Kärrbrink, explains how keeping up with fast-moving technologies strengthens the iGaming sector.

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GOING BEYOND BRICKS AND CONCRETE

Christopher Micallef, partner at Forward Architects, reflects on designing online casino Dunder’s offices.

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FAMILY-FRIENDLY, SAFE AND SPECIALISED

ASK THE COACH

C-level executive coach Marion Gamel encourages business leaders to feel empowered to improve efficiency and drive transformation and international growth..

Top tips for incoming expats on career progression and living a happy family life in Malta.

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SUMMER 2020 FOREWORD

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SUMMER 2020 FOREWORD

Embracing change Who could have imagined the change that 2020 would bring – not just to the iGaming sector but the whole world? Like every other industry, iGaming had to adapt – almost overnight – to COVID-19 restrictions and move, holistically, to a work-from-home model. Our famously-social sector put everything on ice and readjusted to a reality behind a screen. And, in many ways, it thrived.

As you turn the pages on this new edition of iGaming Capital, you will be met by success story after success story from companies and individuals that embraced the challenges of this global pandemic and found new (and sometimes better!) ways to work. Sure it hasn’t been easy but, as you’ll read in our article about this new post-pandemic recovery phase on page 20, there is determination meeting every challenge.

This determination is evident across the pages of this magazine. In his interview on page 34, Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy Clayton Bartolo shares his insight on recent developments and both the challenges and opportunities he expects in the months to come. In fact, throughout this edition, stakeholders across the sector agree with this sentiment and give their valuable insight about what might come to pass as recovery continues. It’s acumen that we have enjoyed collating, and we hope that it will be thought-provoking and inspirational as we all embrace our new world.

We hope you enjoy this issue of iGaming Capital.

Jo Caruana PUBLISHER Content House Ltd

EDITOR Jo Caruana DIRECTOR OF SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Matthew Spiteri

Content House Group 3, Level 2, Mallia Buildings Triq in-Negozju, Zone 3, Central Business District, Birkirkara CBD 3010 Tel: 2132 0713 info@contenthouse.com.mt www.contenthouse.com.mt

CORPORATE SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVES Lara Gail Dougall Matthew Mizzi OPERATIONS & CLIENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGER Elena Dimech CREATIVE DIRECTOR & DESIGN Nicholas Cutajar COVER ILLUSTRATION Cover illustration by Nadine Noko, created exclusively for iGaming Capital

Content House Ltd would like to thank all the protagonists, contributors, advertisers and the project team that have made this publication a success.

Articles appearing in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of Content House Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publishers is strictly prohibited. iGaming Capital is distributed to all leading iGaming companies operating in Malta as well as to relevant business and commercial stakeholders in Malta, including law firms, financial services companies and business consultancy firms, as well as to local auditors, accountants and accountancy firms. It is also distributed to Government ministries and departments, as well as to the waiting areas of private and public hospitals. Beyond the free distribution network, iGaming Capital is sold at leading newsagents around Malta.

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SUMMER 2020 COVER STORY

Bouncing back As COVID-19 hit communities, businesses and individuals, the iGaming sector adapted its operations and product offerings to cater to the new reality. Now, as countries emerge from their lockdowns, stakeholders within the industry are looking ahead. Rebecca Anastasi speaks to four firms to discuss their expectations of business in the next few months, as the world moves into a transitionary phase.

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hen COVID-19 hit, it hit hard and fast. Few were prepared for the cultural, systemic and economic changes the pandemic has brought with it, as countries, businesses and individuals have been left grappling with the repercussions. And, the iGaming sector has not been immune to the disruption, despite its dependence on technology.

Gaming Revenue (GR) is forecasted to drop by 12 per cent until the end of this year. This is as a result of losses in sports-gaming activities – with most events having been cancelled or postponed – and, while an increase in online casino gaming was registered, this was not enough to offset the deficit.

Indeed, a recent survey commissioned and published by the Malta Gaming Authority confirmed that the sector has been impacted by the virus over the last few months: the worst-affected line has been the business-to-consumer (B2C) strand, with the entity stating that, even overall, the aggregate

In the meantime, the business-to-business (B2B) strand has not come away unscathed, however: the operators responding to the survey predicted a 20 per cent drop in revenues for 2020, while 33 to 38 per cent of stakeholders plan to postpone any investment this year.

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SUMMER 2020 COVER STORY

“OWNING AND CONTROLLING OUR OWN TECHNOLOGY IS A MAJOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE THAT ELIMINATES COMPLEXITY, OFFERS FASTER SPEED, AND PROVIDES THE NECESSARY CONTROL AND FLEXIBILITY IN THE FACE OF THE RAPIDLY-CHANGING DEMANDS FOR COMPLIANCE.” Hans Uhrus, Communications Director, LeoVegas Yet, the future is not all doom and gloom, according to Hans Uhrus, Communications Director at LeoVegas, one of the leading iGaming firms operating in Malta. For while “it is too early to see any major long-term changes” – and underscoring that as a listed company, they do not give out any official projections – the firm sees “an expansion” over the next few months, which will drive recruitment.

“We aim to continue to grow and to be the king of casino by offering the greatest gaming experience,” Mr Uhrus effuses. Central to this ambition, he continues, is the Group’s new technological platform, onto which 12 of its brands in the United Kingdom have already migrated.

“The migration has contributed to an improved customer experience through a dramaticallyexpanded game offering, payment opportunities, faster functionality and loading times, as well as significantly-reduced complexity in daily activities,” he explains. “Owning and controlling our own technology is a major competitive advantage that eliminates complexity, offers faster speed, and provides the necessary control and flexibility in the face of the rapidly-changing demands for compliance.”

Moreover, the new platform allows for a ‘multi-brand strategy’, necessitating further employment, with the company also launching a new site, LiveCasino.com, across English-speaking countries in the second quarter. >

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SUMMER 2020 COVER STORY

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Indeed, Mr Uhrus underlines that the ongoing crisis has had a minor impact on online-based enterprises, which were somewhat buffered against the worst of the pandemic. After all, he explains, online gaming “is part of the entertainment industry, and when people can no longer go to cinemas, restaurants and similar, more of their leisure budget can be spent on other entertainment, such as gaming.”

Speaking along the same lines, Carl-Henrik Larneryd, Director at Scandistaff, which specialises in iGaming recruitment, asserts that the key to prosperity in uncertain times is diversification and the ability “to adapt to a completely new landscape in a very niche market.”

And, for this, he says, firms need to be nimble.

“The worst thing a business can do is to get settled and not to try to re-develop its offering and services. It’s rather easy to feel good and happy with what you do, but one day a pandemic or a harsh regulation can hit, and everything is put to the test,” he says. Indeed, looking ahead, Scandistaff itself plans on developing multiple offerings, though they will still retain a focus on remote gaming.

But, will the iGaming sector ever go back to what it was just last year? Mr Larneryd says “yes and no”, further explaining that while some operational processes and new products will remain, there will be industry shifts that will have ramifications.

“Will offices open up with people going in to work or visiting conferences, as they did before? Yes. Will there be as many people employed in Malta?

Probably not,” he specifies.

“THE WORST THING A BUSINESS CAN DO IS TO GET SETTLED AND NOT TO TRY TO RE-DEVELOP ITS OFFERING AND SERVICES.” Carl-Henrik Larneryd, Director, Scandistaff

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But, this he says, has actually little to do with the pandemic, but is a consequence of market forces. “With most countries introducing their own gaming licence, the reasons for being present in Malta have decreased. I would say this goes for basic operations such as customer support, for instance, since the cost of living on the island has increased to the point that staff are better off staying home than coming here – at least financially.”

Indeed, the rise in rental and living costs will, he believes, see more remote working initiatives taking hold, particularly when it comes to the more senior positions. However, in the long run, entry-level jobs will be outsourced to other countries, which will host call centres and other basic operations which require a large amount of human capital.

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SUMMER 2020 COVER STORY

“THE VIRUS HAS KILLED THE NOTION OF SINGULAR GAME VERTICAL OFFERINGS.” Reuben Portanier, Partner, Afilexion Alliance

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For the pandemic is not the biggest threat to the iGaming sector, in Mr Larneryd’s opinion. “In reality, I don’t think that COVID-19, or other similar potential emergencies, are such a big threat to the industry long-term. I believe that unrealistic expectations from legislators and authorities are a far bigger challenge than unexpected pandemics,” he asserts.

Yet, for Reuben Portanier, Partner at Afilexion Alliance, a consultancy firm which offers advisory and support services to the iGaming sector, the industry, post-COVID-19, will continue to show the impact of the pandemic, through the implementation of flexible working arrangements, thus boosting human resources and creating financial buoyancy.

“We will see a higher take-up of smart working arrangements, with operators utilising an altered office footprint, with different office configurations, whilst employees will work remotely for most of the week and will only be required to be present at the office on selected days,” he says. “This will bring its own scheduling, sanitisation and physical distancing challenges, but it will probably fit in well with business continuity plans and cost containment.”

Moreover, as the economy starts to open up again, Mr Portanier expects to see mergers and acquisitions that had been put on hold due to the pandemic, go through, as more certainty creeps into the market.

“New ones will also emerge,” he continues, “especially for those operators that need to reduce the unit costs further and those operators that realised that they need to spread their risk by having diverse game verticals to offer their players.”

Looking ahead in terms of product offerings, Mr Portanier also says the pandemic showed the necessity for diversification. “The virus has killed the notion of singular game vertical offerings, whereby the crisis proved that those operators that had a wider range of game verticals breezed through it, whilst those operators that specialised in sports betting alone, suffered tremendously for not having any product to sell,” he attests.

Therefore, in the long run, operators will seek to offer multiple experiences across their platforms. “Online gaming operators will almost all offer casino, poker, sports betting, virtuals and Esports under one umbrella,” he outlines, adding that he was curious to see “whether the traditional brick and mortar casinos and bookmakers, will also evolve to offer online services.” >

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SUMMER 2020 COVER STORY

“AT THIS POINT IN TIME, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF EXOGENOUS VARIABLES WHICH ARE STILL UNKNOWN AND WE DO NOT KNOW HOW THE MARKET WILL RESPOND IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS.” Alexei De Bono, Director, Idea Intelligence >

In contrast, for Alexei De Bono, Director of IDEA Intelligence, which offers bespoke solutions using BI and AI technology, it is still difficult to predict what’s going to happen over the next year, with the iGaming sector still vulnerable to the vagaries of the wider economy. “It is part and parcel of the international business ecosystem, so, at this point in time, there are a number of exogenous variables which are still unknown and we do not know how the market will respond in the next 12 months,” he says.

Nevertheless, he says, echoing the other stakeholders, there is a definite need for companies in the sector to open up their business models, eschewing a singular focus in favour of multiple streams of revenue. Indeed, “in order to move forward, the iGaming industry needs to revise its business models in terms of a higher level of diversification and wider reach,” he explains.

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However, despite this, the decrease in liquidity, as the pandemic’s ramifications take their toll on everyone’s pockets, will mean less revenue overall. This is because, he says, “responsible players seek the gaming experience as a means of leisure, not as a necessity.” As a result, in the context of an economic slowdown, it is a “natural reaction” to seek to “preserve one’s liquidity”, and, therefore, leisure spend will be one of the first to be impacted.

But, Mr De Bono looks to the future with hope – though he exercises some caution and urges firms to keep their focus on what lies ahead. “I think that the worst thing one can do is to try to go back to the past,” he asserts. Instead, “such a dynamic and fastmoving sector needs to look into the future by adopting new ways of working and doing business,” he concludes.

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A success story: HOW THE iGAMING S E C TO R R E AC T E D TO ‘ T H E BIGGEST REMOTE WORK E X P E R I M E N T I N H I S TO R Y ’

Like so many businesses, the iGaming industry – while already tech-savvy in essence and often remote – had to switch to work-from-home mode when COVID-19 hit. Sarah Micallef talks to key industry players about the practicalities of this, as well as how the sector was able to pivot to enable the transition to happen.

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he transition from working from the office to working remotely from one day to the next went “very smoothly”, says Lena Nordin, Chief HR Officer at Betsson Group – a belief that proves indicative, given Betsson’s position as one of the largest companies within the European iGaming industry.

“In a global survey we conducted five weeks into the switch, we found that 95 per cent of Betssonites were coping well with working from home, Lena Nordin, Betsson Group

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and 90 per cent also said that they still felt the One Betsson spirit very much alive,” the Chief HR Officer maintains.

With offices in 10 different locations, the company benefitted from the fact that the technology to enable their sizeable team to work remotely was already in place. “We have the right tools to do this, which allows for higher security and encryption of data,” Ms Nordin explains, adding that the team also uses chat and video-conference tools such

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as Microsoft Teams, Slack, and StarLeaf to stay connected.

Looking ahead, she acknowledges that the question on everyone’s lips is whether remote working will be extended. “I, for one, miss the buzz of the office and the real-life interactions with my colleagues.

One must also appreciate that the industry already offers quite a bit of flexibility, so I think all of us will be looking at what this new reality will mean to us going forward,” she says.

Yet this period has also had its benefits. “I think the work-from-home period has helped us bond on a different level with our colleagues and with our teams in other offices. We also experienced what it means to only have access to your manager or to your colleagues via online tools – so I think it helped us better understand the importance of looking at leadership and communications from such a standpoint too,” Ms Nordin attests.

“It’s been incredible to witness really,” says Pierre Lindh, Managing Director at iGaming NEXT, which hosts a full calendar of executive level events each year that culminates in a conference with 1,500 senior delegates.

“While the iGaming industry was well prepared for this transition, with most organisations already having the technical infrastructure and lax work-from-home policies in place, no one was prepared for their entire organisation having to move remotely from one day to the next. But they managed, and the result has proven that remote organisations can stay as productive as office-based organisations,” he says.

Ariel Reem, Genesis Global Limited

Pierre Lindh, iGaming NEXT

Despite this, Mr Lindh still notes the importance of the office when it comes to aspects like social interaction, adding, “perhaps in the future, the function of an office will change to reflect this.”

Speaking of the technology that enabled iGaming companies to keep working from home, he names “robust VPN, CRM, productivity tools and various back-end systems” that gave workers access to the systems needed to keep connected. “And let’s not forget lifesaver Zoom and other video conferencing systems. Seriously, the amount of home décor inspiration I’ve gotten the last few months from Zoom meetings is great,” he jokes.

Long term, Mr Lindh believes that increased flexibility will be the order of the day. “BC (Before COVID-19), organisations weren’t fully confident that entire organisations could go remote while still keeping productivity levels high. We have clearly proved that this is the case, and the doubters have been proved wrong,” he asserts, adding that employees who didn’t consider working remotely prior to the lockdown are now understanding the benefits.

Moving forward, Mr Lindh believes the next step should be to think about what the expected trend towards remote work will mean for the future.

“If, in theory, having an office is not relevant for productivity, then should the nature of an office change?” he questions. “Having 500 employees >

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Referencing cloud-based tools that allow access to information remotely, and similar communication and video conferencing programmes used widely throughout this period, Hero Gaming also launched other tools focused on employees’ sense of social belonging. “People have been patient and keen to learn about new technologies and how to engage with them. I think those practices will live on. I think we’re all developing new muscles to work virtually,” the CPO maintains.

Marie Theobald, Hero Gaming

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Moving forward, Ms Theobald echoes the sentiments of others when it comes to her belief that there will be more demand to work remotely from employees, and managers will likely be more comfortable allowing it. “Flexibility does come with challenges,” she warns, however. “Organisations and their managers need to manage it, and the employees benefitting from flexibility need to be made accountable.”

might not automatically mean that you need 500 desks.

Maybe the function of an office should be to spur on social interaction and ‘coffee talks’, which is where a lot of the innovation happens.”

“The iGaming industry reacted exceptionally well to the sudden switch, swiftly making the necessary changes to ensure business continuity and, most importantly, the wellbeing of its employees,” says Ariel Reem, CEO at Genesis Global Ltd, who noted that – while the technology needed was essentially already in place – “the major change we noticed was in attitude and the way we do things.”

“Many have labelled this as the biggest remote work experiment in history, and indeed it is,” Mr Reem continues, describing it as a very successful approach. “The meaning of work and how it can be carried out changed drastically overnight and I doubt that we will ever fully return to the old ways,” he maintains, emphasising that companies that continue to adapt and exploit such situations will ultimately be the winners of the war for talent, both in terms of retention and by tapping into talent pools that were previously inaccessible due to self-imposed geographical restrictions. “But the trick lies in striking the right balance to ensure that we do not lose human touch completely,” he warns.

“The gaming industry was able to be agile in this circumstance because working from home was not new to us and we were technologically set up to be able to do so.

Having said that, our remote leadership skills today are better than they were three months ago. Despite the fact that remote working was not new to us, we have learnt lessons that will stay with us for the long run,” Ms Theobold affirms.

“Our workforce is made up of 30 different nationalities and our offices were the space where we could keep everyone engaged and connected,” says Federico Milanetti, Head of HR Malta at Gamesys Group, describing this as the biggest challenge in the first few weeks of remote working.

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With offices in Malta and Sweden, Marie Theobald, Chief People Officer (CPO) at Hero Gaming, asserts that remote working is not new to the company, with all new employees being given a laptop and tools for remote communication and collaboration, as well as the flexibility to work from home as needed.

“In our case, we were at the office on Thursday and working from home on Friday,” she says, highlighting the swift pace of the switch. “HR Connect, an HR Space for all HR professionals in the gaming industry, immediately brought gaming companies together to share our experiences, discuss our challenges and to support each other through these challenging times, and we have all gained immensely from it,” Ms Theobald continues.

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Federico Milanetti, Gamesys Group

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Meanwhile, “with regards to the IT industry, our company and our workers adapted fairly quickly to a reality which we were faced with from one day to the next,” says Antoine Bartolo, CEO at Megabyte, a software company offering IT solutions to assist with the WFH process within the iGaming sector and beyond.

“During this shift, we switched to a task-based regime and protocols were put in place to facilitate the WFH experience. On-site services were still carried out as necessary with the same level of service and quality offered pre-COVID-19, while ensuring that we adhered to all health directives to protect both our staff and our customers,” he says.

Speaking of the technology required to make this happen, Mr Bartolo refers to VPN, communication and collaboration platforms that enable teams to continue working seamlessly in a secure environment, and Megabyte offers two such products that can assist companies within a remote-working scenario.

Antoine Bartolo, Megabyte

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Friday drinks, team breakfasts, lunch contests, quiz afternoons and music competitions have just moved online, and teams kept the engagement levels very high!”

And while technology is undoubtedly a factor, Mr Milanetti asserts that, what makes it work is, essentially, the people. “The technology has always been there, but how to use it in an efficient and effective manner, and how to make sure you can make the most of this challenging situation is something that can only be attributed to our amazing people.”

“The first is an online communication platform called Megabyte E-Learning (MEL), which allows several concurrent rooms to be set up and meetings to take place as required,” he explains, while “the second is the Megabyte Monitoring System (MMS), which is an IT and IOT monitoring solution that can oversee any system or device within a company’s infrastructure, and which allows businesses to work remotely in the safe knowledge that they will be notified of any issues which need to be addressed.”

Looking to the future, Mr Bartolo affirms that this situation has changed mindsets with regards to remote working, even within his own company.

“So much so that we may consider allowing this flexibility to our staff even post-COVID-19, or engaging new staff members as remote workers,” he concludes.

Talent Acquisition Manager Ryan Cilia explains that Gamesys Group was among the first companies to make the switch. “Our efforts were focused on ensuring business continuity and minimising stresses for our employees within already-turbulent times – having ensured any equipment needed was either taken home or delivered,” he says.

Looking at the long-term, Mr Cilia describes the past few months as a learning experience for employers and employees alike. “From the employer perspective there will be a shift in perception when it comes to those roles that, historically, would have been thought impossible to carry out remotely,” he says.

“Then, from an employee perspective, it will affirm whether working from home is for them or not. After all, while working from home isn’t for everyone, companies that reel back WFH measures might run the risk of losing some of that talent in their business, and also make them a less attractive proposition in the market.”

Ryan Cilia, Gamesys Group

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SUMMER 2020 INTERVIEW

“We are optimistic about iGaming” The digital economy is a success story, but it is never wise to rest on one’s laurels. The Junior Minister responsible for the sector, Clayton Bartolo, has decided to set up a think-tank to take it forward. Ray Bugeja catches up with him to see what else he has in mind.

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layton Bartolo was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy in January 2020, with a portfolio that covers financial services regulation, the promotion of financial services, the digital economy, research and innovation, as well as science and technology policy.

When Mr Bartolo – a certified public accountant and registered auditor by profession – assumed the role of Parliamentary Secretary, the Maltese economy was booming. But he was soon to face a global crisis that still rocks the world. That could be a misfortune but also a challenge or opportunity. How did he take it?

Mr Bartolo explains that the island of Malta is well-known for its ability to turn challenges into opportunities. “This pandemic,” he continues, “gave us the time to take a step back and assess the limitations that are currently present, and also plan a way forward – especially given the importance of technology during this pandemic and beyond.”

He notes that the availability of technology is making people much more familiar with the option of teleworking and, in his view, video conferencing will not only improve productivity but will also better quality of life and address negative externalities such as traffic congestion.

The Parliamentary Secretary explains that, like most other sectors, the iGaming industry was hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Given its digital nature, however, it managed to seek and reap benefits by diversifying and intensifying cooperation elsewhere,

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he notes. Obviously, Mr Bartolo points out, the postponement of sports events meant that the sports betting industry came to an abrupt halt. But other areas, like online casinos, were given more prominence and the pandemic saw the emergence and the rise in popularity of Esports betting, another new sector “that is here to stay”.

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“ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION WILL ALSO LIMIT THE EXTERNAL SHOCKS IF ONE OR MORE SECTORS ARE TO BE AFFECTED IN THE FUTURE.”

Sports betting companies saw their revenues plummet during the pandemic, the Parliamentary Secretary points out, quickly adding, however, that the Esports and casinos sectors experienced more positive results as new opportunities arose to tap into this new market.

Government aid in the form of a wage supplement given to private companies as textbook examples of how the workforce in Malta was sustained, as well as how they limited the financial burden that most businesses had to shoulder in these unprecedented times.

The Government, he explains, launched a strong financial package to help Maltese industries, including the gaming sector.

He defines the deferral of taxes and

In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Malta Council for Science and Technology, together with Malta Enterprise, launched a €5.3 million research and development fund, and the >

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Parliamentary Secretary notes that iGaming companies are free to apply to benefit from it.

The fund was approved by the European Commission and is supported by the Ministry for Finance and Financial Services, as well as by the Ministry for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses. Mr Bartolo explains that the Government felt that such a fund was needed to ensure that, postpandemic, more companies will thrive through investment of this type.

It is, of course, crucial for Malta to maintain its leading edge in attracting iGaming companies, and further initiatives and investment in the sector are, therefore, to be expected.

Mr Bartolo is upbeat about the performance of the iGaming industry. “It is safe to say that we are very optimistic about the gaming industry and will keep striving to further consolidate this very important pillar of the Maltese economy.

As the Junior Minister responsible for this sector, together with my team, I am committed to ensuring that the iGaming sector prospers and is provided with all the tools necessary to continue flourishing,” he asserts.

“As part of my role, and following various discussions with key stakeholders in the industry, I have recently launched a digital economy think-tank under the chairmanship of Kearon Bruno, with the main aim of addressing limitations and further consolidating current sectors, and also to look into the possibility of attracting new niche economic sectors. The ultimate aim and strategic vision of this thinktank is to further diversify Malta’s economic portfolio to ensure a more resilient and sustainable economy.”

Looking ahead, Mr Bartolo says the Government is committed to providing the necessary impetus so that, rather than a crisis, the postpandemic period will be an opportunity to strengthen Malta’s iGaming industry. The Government intends to continue building on the sterling work that has been undertaken so far in the industry, he explains.

“Beyond that, economic diversification will also limit the external shocks if one or more sectors are to be affected in the future. We must learn from this pandemic and ensure that we vary and mitigate all possible risks that can exert a negative effect on our economic growth prospects,” Mr Bartolo explains.

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Photo by DOI - Jason Borg

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Soon after being appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy, Mr Bartolo said that the Government, the private sector, and the Malta Gaming Authority are determined to revisit available regulations and schemes to continue sustaining the market’s growth. It appears those plans are still on the cards notwithstanding the turmoil caused

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The Government, Mr Bartolo maintains, has a strong track record in sustaining economic growth and the iGaming sector is no exception. The Government is committed to further enhancing the ecosystem that it created so that iGaming companies that resided their operations in Malta will remain here for the years to come. Beyond that, the country will remain attractive and open to new companies willing to locate their operations here, he promises.

local talent and, if need be, to opt for rescuing and upskilling the current workforce, where needed, as well as attracting talent from overseas,” Mr Bartolo insists.

With this in mind, while speaking at a graduation ceremony earlier this year after 50 students successfully completed a course in eCommerce organised by the Malta Communications Authority, Mr Bartolo had referred to the National eCommerce Strategy.

He said the strategy seeks to ensure Maltese businesses have the necessary means and skills to capitalise on opportunities brought about by eCommerce.

The new Parliamentary Secretary has gone further, pledging to continue to strive to intensify efforts ensuring that Malta provides the right environment to attract top talent and nurture more homegrown talent. This will guarantee a talent pipeline for the sector, a build on the efforts made by the European Gaming Institute of Malta and a sector-focused Student Placement Programme. Even here, he is determined to deliver what he had promised.

“Human capital is a key and crucial component that will lead to the successful implementation and driving force of the digital economy industries.

We are committed to ensuring that we consolidate

There’s no doubt about it: the Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy has quite a full plate.

“WE ARE VERY OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE GAMING INDUSTRY AND WILL KEEP STRIVING TO FURTHER CONSOLIDATE THIS VERY IMPORTANT PILLAR OF THE MALTESE ECONOMY.” 038

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New kids

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With over 300 iGaming companies set up in Malta, the islands remain a popular choice in the international community. Here, Jo Caruana chats to some of the latest companies to make the move and discovers the interesting reasons behind their choice.

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alta is still very much in-demand in the iGaming world. With 300 companies now licensed here and the number of recent applications matching up to 2018 and 2019 figures, it’s clear that the sector still sees huge value in licensing itself here.

“The fact that Malta has regulated the industry since close to its inception has paved the way for the creation of an ecosystem of operators, suppliers and service providers,” says Malta Gaming Authority CEO Heathcliff Farrugia. “This, coupled with sound regulation and an openness to dialogue between Government and the regulator on the one hand, and industry stakeholders on the other, makes the country an ideal place for establishment.”

Speaking about the role the Authority plays in encouraging iGaming companies to license themselves here, Mr Farrugia says this is crucially linked to regulation. “Our objective is to ensure that only individuals and entities that are deserving of a licence can obtain it, and that licensees adhere to the applicable regulations. We want to ensure that we keep gaming free from crime, and that our licensees provide a safe gaming environment to their players, so that we can protect the vulnerable and make sure gaming is fair and transparent,” he stresses. >

“THE HOPE IS THAT, ACROSS EUROPE, THERE WILL BE MORE FOCUS ON REGULATORY CONVERGENCE BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT EU STATES.” Heathcliff Farrugia, CEO, Malta Gaming Authority

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“AS A SUPPLIER TO THE ONLINE GAMING INDUSTRY, SETTING UP IN MALTA JUST SEEMED LIKE AN OBVIOUS CHOICE.” Christine Parkhill, Head of Account Management, Push Gaming

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David Flynn, CEO and Co-Founder of new games provider Swintt agrees. He is using the company’s base in Malta to create sustainable gaming products that are delivered for a new generation of player. Since obtaining its MGA licence last month, the company has been busy rolling out its product suite of over 50 slots games and gamification features to Maltese licensees. “Our next phase is the release of our Play-It-Back platform, which gives players the ability to do good while enjoying their favourite games,” Mr Flynn says.

“Regulated iGaming in Europe has only been around for 15 years, and we believe this industry will continue evolving for the years to come. The hope is that, across Europe, there will be more focus on regulatory convergence between the different EU states. This will become similar to other industries, where a common set of regulations ensures consistency across the bloc, avoiding overlapping and enabling regulators to focus their efforts on what truly matters,” Mr Farrugia goes on to explain.

One company that quite recently chose Malta as its base is Push Gaming, which has grown to host the commercial side of the business on the island, including account management and sales, marketing, finance and legal.

“As a supplier to the online gaming industry, setting up in Malta seemed like an obvious choice,” says Christine Parkhill, Push Gaming’s Head of Account Management. “A very large percentage of our client base has established offices here over the past few years and this, of course, helps us to build and nurture these partnerships more effectively.”

Ms Parkhill explains that more and more companies in the sector are setting up here, which is continuing to strengthen Malta’s global reputation. “The networking opportunities here are just fantastic, and it really allows everyone to get together easily and keep up-to-date with what is going on,” she says. “Of course, the quality of life and Mediterranean lifestyle we have is highly-appealing too, while being so well-connected makes it even easier for staff and clients to travel when needed.”

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He explains that, since 2003 when he started his career in the sector, Malta has been of growing importance as a central European jurisdiction for iGaming. “Today, from a supplier’s perspective, and where relationships are an essential part of doing business, Malta enables businesses to interact in a totally different way than anywhere else. The progressive nature of legislation in Malta, coupled with local support services and local talent, provides a solid basis from which to start a new business venture and help it flourish.”

“By far the most positive element has been the support and encouragement from industry colleagues and the industry in general. One might think that an additional competitor in the market would be seen as a negative for many, but my experience has been quite the opposite. Industry peers are interested in our offerings and want to learn more about our strategy and how we may help shake up the marketplace for the better.” >

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For Pallavi Deshmukh, CEO at NetGaming, the key factor that works in Malta’s favour and which resonates with her company is the number of iGaming companies based here. “This makes it easy to engage with customers personally and understand their needs,” she says, explaining that NetGaming formally registered in February 2019.

“Malta has established itself as a pivotal iGaming hub for the European region. It also has a large pool of high-quality iGaming talent, specialising in commercial, marketing, product and customer service roles. This gives us the opportunity to build a world-class iGaming team. The island’s location and connectivity are also useful, with good transport links to major gaming hubs, such as the UK. The favourable tax regime for iGaming companies helps massively, especially for new companies launching businesses. And although the cost of living is increasing in Malta, it is still relatively low in comparison with some other European nations. This certainly played a key role in our decision to move here,” Ms Deshmukh says.

Asked about the flip side to this – the challenges – Ms Deshmukh says that NetGaming has not necessarily faced any that have been localityspecific. “As a start-up, you can imagine the challenges that we have experienced,” she smiles.

“We have had our fair share of delays in receiving iGaming licences, while developing technology has also taken some time. But I am confident we have one of the best tech teams in our sector.

We were conscious of these challenges and were prepared for them. This helped us to overcome issues and execute our plan of action with confidence.”

with Maltese companies, working, living and banking in Malta since 2017 – it took a lot longer than I anticipated. This is one area that many of my peers would agree needs a drastic overhaul. Banking that supports responsible businesses in Malta must improve so the island can continue to attract entrepreneurial business and thus help it continue to flourish.”

For Mr Flynn, one of the significant challenges has been local banking. “Trying to set up a business and pay for initial services is a challenge without a company bank account,” he explains. “This was one of our top priorities as a business and we wanted to get it sorted early in the process. Despite my experience – including previous directorships

“MALTA HAS ESTABLISHED ITSELF AS A PIVOTAL iGAMING HUB FOR THE EUROPEAN REGION.” Pallavi Deshmukh, CEO, NetGaming

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Looking at things from a policy perspective, Ms Parkhill believes that, thanks to the new Gaming Act 2018, Malta has enhanced its regulation to become even more attractive as a technological-neutral space with a risk-based approach at its core. >

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“Malta has the perfect regulatory environment for a B2B supplier, which ensures an affordable and capped licensing cost that allows it to support all EU/EEA licensed operators,” she says. “We are confident that it will continue to retain its prominent position in the iGaming world – with the MGA continuing with its already-ongoing cooperation with other licensing jurisdictions to align on technical standards, player protection measures and exchange of information.”

I ask each gaming company to give their advice to other iGaming operators considering Malta, and they are extremely forthcoming. “Make the most of the strong iGaming sector here,” Ms Parkhill advises. “The networking opportunities are endless and really help to strengthen the relationships you can build here.”

“THE PROGRESSIVE NATURE OF LEGISLATION IN MALTA, COUPLED WITH LOCAL SUPPORT SERVICES AND LOCAL TALENT, PROVIDES A SOLID BASIS FROM WHICH TO START A NEW BUSINESS VENTURE.” David Flynn, CEO, Swintt

This resonates with Mr Flynn too. “Get involved,” he says. “By this I mean socially, and with the local government and initiatives around iGaming – such as Gaming Malta and iGen associations.

Being so close to the competition and customers ensures that you have to excel at all times. Being in Malta really ensures that you have your finger on the pulse at all times, so use that to your advantage. Take the five-minute coffee requests because, quite often, they lead to new business opportunities and lasting friendships. And, unlike in most places, you won’t have to make a huge commute to make that meeting.”

Finally, for Ms Deshmukh it’s also about enjoying the perks of life in Malta. “Most Maltese are accommodating and like working with different nationalities.

Hiring advisory services from companies that are experts on corporate structure set-ups, fund management and financial services helps a great deal. They give you the right advice and peace-of-mind that reduce stress. So, for those of you who have recently moved to Malta: ‘mela’, enjoy the ride!” she quips.

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GAMING MALTA:

Photos by Tyler Calleja Jackson

The catalyst for gaming sector solutions

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GamingMalta has been a steady force over the past few months, helping iGaming companies to focus on safeguarding their operations. Here, the Foundation’s COO, Ivan Filletti, talks Jo Caruana through his plans for the sector’s post-COVID-19 recovery and success.

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alta’s iGaming sector wasn’t necessarily one of the ones cast into the spotlight at the start of the COVID-19 crisis. While hospitality and travel, for instance, saw their business grind to a halt, gaming faced operational challenges due to new work-from-home necessities but – luckily – was often able to soldier on.

But that doesn’t mean that the past few months haven’t been extremely disruptive and gamechanging. For Ivan Filetti, COO of the GamingMalta Foundation, it has been an opportunity for the whole sector to come together in ways that may not have seemed possible in the past. His team, specifically, was focused on being the best supporting act possible.

“We were primarily concentrated on coordinating efforts to provide help needed by public entities,” he explains. “This included outreach to the community by donating funds for 12,500 highquality surgical masks to be given out to those who needed them, and also helping to repatriate staff members back to Malta if they had been caught overseas.”

Throughout the crisis Mr Filletti held a weekly conference call with the sector’s top CPOs to help him understand the issues their companies were facing – from mental health to remote

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working. His team made every effort to be the catalyst for solutions every step of the way.

“The gaming sector certainly stood up to be counted during this crisis,” he asserts. “From donating to charitable food banks and making apartments available for front-line workers, to assisting their staff to cope with any mental health issues exacerbated by this crisis, the sector showed depth, knowledge and empathy throughout it. We even saw the CEO of a videogaming studio loan his home in Msida to medical doctors free of charge.”

Mr Filletti says that this behaviour further highlights how the industry has adopted responsible gaming protocols. He is also delighted to note that many operators are continuing to act responsibly and are overseeing the long-term health of their customers, which has also extended to all their marketing communications. Here they have adopted best-practice scenarios, such as communicating with customers to evaluate their gaming control and carrying out assessments to allow players to assess if they do carry over, or if they need to stop and reduce their online habits.

Change has also been afoot for Mr Filletti and his own team. As

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a non-profit tasked with promoting Malta as the home of gaming excellence, being on the road was part of their DNA, and they quickly replaced participation at physical conferences with online virtual ones. “Moderating an international panel of industry leaders from the front room in my house was a new experience,” he quips. “But we even organised an online international trade mission with prospective investors to replace our usual onthe-ground trade missions, so it was productive.”

He goes on to highlight that, if the crisis has taught him anything about Esports, it’s its resilience within the industry. “No matter the state of affairs in the world, as long as there’s a reliable internet connection, you can be assured that someone will be gaming through it,” he says. “Hopefully, the companies and individuals that populate the sports industry have learned something too: that Esports is a valuable tool, and it should be used as such to supplement the content that can be created through social media and traditional broadcasting, and to reach a wider audience. It is here to stay.” >

“With hindsight, I now call the COVID-19 period the time we came of ‘AGE’ – using adaptability, growth, and empathy. Now the sector needs to look beyond the pandemic to prepare a mindset and business model for the world that will emerge on the other side.”

Chatting about Esports specifically, Mr Filletti believes the crisis has demonstrated the resilience of the gaming sector, with a record number of online viewers replacing live physical events. “For the first time ever, Malta was featured during the ESL Pro League Season 11, which saw the Top Tier 1 CSGO teams competing,” he says. “To put this into context, it peaked at 489,120 viewers.

It was an event earmarked to be held in Malta but, unfortunately, the lockdown coincided with the timings of the tournament from 16 March to 12 April.”

“THE SECTOR NEEDS TO LOOK BEYOND THE PANDEMIC TO PREPARE A MINDSET AND BUSINESS MODEL FOR THE WORLD THAT WILL EMERGE ON THE OTHER SIDE.” 051

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“NO MATTER THE STATE OF AFFAIRS IN THE WORLD, AS LONG AS THERE’S A RELIABLE INTERNET CONNECTION, YOU CAN BE ASSURED THAT SOMEONE WILL BE GAMING THROUGH IT.”

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programme at MCAST to consider how programmes related to Esports and video-game development can be supported, for instance. And the COO stresses that it is only by enhancing Malta’s academic curricula to the needs of the sectors promoted locally that the island can ensure a talent pipeline.

The video game sector is also of growing importance, and Mr Filletti says Malta has a small but busy ecosystem in this area. “Our ambitions here are very clear moving forward,” he says. “We want the sector and Esports to account for 1 per cent of the GDP within the next 10 years, with 2,500 employees.”

“But we are getting there. After all, MCAST, St Martin’s Institute and the University of Malta all run education programmes on the video gaming sector already. In fact, the University was recently recognised for its Masters programme by the Institute of Digital Games; it ranked 15th on the Princeton Review List,” he says.

“The companies already set up in this space are doing great work, and it is internationally recognised. We are in the process of finalising plans for a new incubator space to house new companies setting up video game studios and intensifying efforts to enhance the ecosystem.”

Finally, Mr Filletti highlights the fact that education will be critical for the sector going forward and, through the European Gaming Institute of Malta, GamingMalta has set education high on its plan for strategic efforts.

These efforts include having an iGaming

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“As for us at GamingMalta, we are excited to look at the post-COVID-19 world and are preparing to hit the ground running as things continue to improve. Being flexible and adapting to a very dynamic and fluid scenario will be critical to our success going forward,” he concludes.

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Of new leadership A N D S TAY I N G O N TO P

Following the appointment of a new COO at LeoVegas last February, Martina Said catches up with Mårten Forste, who took the helm at a delicate time for the industry. Here, they discuss work during COVID-19 times, his priorities, and where the company goes from here.

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n February, life as we knew it changed drastically for everyone – for employees, for employers, and for all businesses locally and globally. Within the gaming sector, the situation was no different and, with the impacts of the aftermath of COVID-19 yet to be fully analysed and understood, the future is uncharted territory.

For casino experts LeoVegas, their first response to the outbreak was to ensure a safe work environment for all their teams. Mårten Forste, the company’s Chief Operations Officer, says: “in February, it was difficult to assess the impact that COVID-19 would have on people’s lives. But, from the very start, our main priority was the safety of our employees. Then, in parallel with an employee-safety focus, we built a business continuity plan,” he asserts. “The company strategy was to, as fast as possible, create a duplicate working environment that would allow our teams to plan, drive and deliver from remote, safe locations.”

As an international company with a presence in Malta, Sweden and the UK, among others, Mr Forste says that every LeoVegas office followed the rules and guidelines of the local health administrator. “The administrations’ approach to COVID-19 has been different in every country and, as a consequence, so has ours. While there are many differences, the common denominator has been that most of us have been working from remote locations,” he explains. “That said, we’ve also created safe working environments in our regular office – you get very effective social distancing when you have 10 people in an office designed for 200.” >

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“THE COMPANY STRATEGY WAS TO, AS FAST AS POSSIBLE, CREATE A DUPLICATE WORKING ENVIRONMENT THAT WOULD ALLOW OUR TEAMS TO PLAN, DRIVE AND DELIVER FROM REMOTE, SAFE LOCATIONS.”

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Photo by Alan Carville

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Mr Forste adds that one cannot discuss changing work environments and remote working without mentioning video. “We stopped counting hours spent on Zoom a long time ago. It’s been interesting to watch how quickly people adapt to it and how the quality of the meetings continues to improve technically and socially.”

For several companies operating in various industries, making a hurried shift to working online proved challenging and often left them exposed and unprepared. Being a predominantly online industry, is the gaming sector better equipped to adapt to current and similar future scenarios?

“A consequence of COVID-19 is the accelerated shift from offline to online. This applies to the gaming sector and also to retail, healthcare and others,” Mr Forste continues. “The LeoVegas Group is a leading mobile gaming company with a digital offering backed by significant investments in people, tech, culture, and Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG). With this in place I believe we are well positioned to provide a customer-focused, safe gaming experience, in a growing market.”

Following the cancellation of practically all sporting events and the forced closure of entertainment venues, including land casinos, the last few months have caused a few ripples in gaming business. A survey conducted by the Malta Gaming Authority among its licensed online operators in April 2020, assessing the impact of the

pandemic on the industry, found that the worst-hit sector in terms of revenue is the B2C sector, and, in particular, operators of Type 2 games. ‘The Gaming Revenue for this sector is projected to be 40 per cent lower than that projected in earlier budgets for the same full year 2020,’ the survey found.

Being primarily online casino operators – LeoVegas’ strategy has been ‘mobile first’ from the start, whereby product and technology development for all its brands are focused on mobile devices and product innovation – Mr Forste’s opinion on business and based on Q1 earnings “is that the crisis has had a neutral-toslightly-negative revenue impact for LeoVegas on the Swedish market. For our international revenues, the assessment is that those have increased somewhat, relating to market shares moving from land-based to online gaming.” >

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Looking at the gaming industry from a broader perspective, the COO says that sports betting has taken a real beating, and “as a sports enthusiast, this has been painful to watch. Naturally, it will bounce back with possibly-increased interest and activity. The accelerated shift from off- to online will compensate for some of the impact of shortened leagues, rescheduled playoffs, fewer tournaments, and so on, but I don’t think the major sport books will be completely back until 2021.”

Working through the crisis hasn’t been without its challenges, but Mr Forste affirms that a concerted effort helped to keep up morale and enthusiasm among the LeoVegas workforce. “Maintaining contact and strengthening relationships while working remotely can prove to be hard; however, we managed just that for the Malta office and globally as one group,” he explains.

“Various fun and engaging activities have been adopted during the past few weeks and we have managed to have team meetings on a more occasional basis. In addition, appreciation packages have been sent to all employees’ households, there have been online fitness sessions and health awareness talks, a Group-wide quiz every Friday, and we also contributed to our community.”

Although only a few months into his new role as COO and at quite a delicate time no less – previously, Mr Forste served as the Chairman of the company’s board for three years – he considers he is “taking the position at very exciting times. The company has had, and will continue to have, focus on growth and efficiencies while maintaining leadership in terms of customer experience and innovation. All leading to our position as King of Casino,” he asserts.

“A CONSEQUENCE OF COVID-19 IS THE ACCELERATED SHIFT FROM OFFLINE TO ONLINE. THIS APPLIES TO THE GAMING SECTOR AND ALSO TO RETAIL, HEALTHCARE AND OTHERS.” The COO adds that, central to achieving category leadership is to have an organisation that is truly passionate about the product and that can adapt to rapidly-changing market needs. “At LeoVegas, we have this, and it is all glued together by a strong culture and the advantage of a proprietary tech platform.”

“Prior to joining LeoVegas, I spent many years at the world’s leading company for dating products. From there, I learned what it takes to gain and maintain category leadership, and some of those learnings should come into use when we continue our growth journey.”

Looking towards the rest of 2020 and plans for the remainder of the year, Mr Forste shares that LeoVegas “recently launched a totally new brand, LiveCasino. com, which – no surprise – focuses on the live casino product. It was an important project for us, and one that we managed to get ready in time, despite COVID-19.

There will certainly be more launches – but when and what remains to be seen.”

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Photo by Leo Vegas

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exploration TIME FOR

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nline consumer behaviour is undergoing a shift, one that’s undeniably worth exploring and capitalising on. Due to the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have witnessed a paradigm shift in increased users of mobile and online platforms, with the popularity of such platforms increasing exponentially during such volatile times.

With such an evident surge in online platforms ranging from adult and dating sites to casino and gaming platforms, we are observing an unprecedented amount of traffic and conversions across different verticals, particularly in the iGaming sector. Consequently, this has truly disrupted consumer behaviours in unpredictable ways, with individuals consuming certain online services more than others. The underlying question is how such changes in consumer behaviour may be interpreted and decoded to truly understand the future of online consumerism in this new digital era.

Moreover, how Malta responds and proactively reacts to such changes will determine the future it is envisaging in terms of the degree of diversity and adaptability it strives to achieve.

Increased reliance on more digital and home-centric tools. During these challenging times, consumers have shifted their preferences online and found means to manage all their activities from their homes.

Such exponential growth in online dependability has also induced increased proclivity towards stronger consumer-centric sentiments. And whilst deep analysis and structured exploitation of such sentiments generally pose business opportunities, they also present challenges and dilemmas related to the welfare of our consumers, particularly when it comes to mental well-being. While it is beyond Tech. mt’s scope to fuel an unjustified stigma around the combination of increased online activities, consumer behaviours and mental health, it would be a fallacy to overlook the perceived or potential correlation between these elements. >

Dana Farrugia, CEO of Tech.mt, highlights four key reflections and opportunities when it comes to consumers’ online behaviour.

They reflect interests and expectations that have emerged from the pandemic and how technology plays a role in all this.

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BY FOCUSING ON THE LONG-TERM AND INVESTING IN VALUE CREATION FOR CONSUMERS, MALTA WILL EMERGE FROM THIS CRISIS STRONGER AND BE READY TO GENERATE MORE GROWTH AND INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE. >

Higher propensity for digital adoption. The pandemic has profoundly reformed consumer behaviour, making digital adoption and transformation a necessity for businesses. However, digital adoption or digital transformation cannot occur in isolation. It needs to be complemented with an integrated approach towards consumer experience and expectations. Through technology, there needs to be a renewed focus on investing in digital tools to understand consumers and analyse consumer data. Remaining effective and understanding consumers’ needs and patterns by reimagining the role of digital is crucial. From constructing consumer insights by manipulating data, agile online testing systems, tech and data-driven consumer-centric marketing to engaging consumers more effectively and scaling up online sales, new and innovative opportunities will emerge swifter and stronger, just as we have seen with online education and tele-health.

Opportunities for businesses. Adjusting business strategies to maximise revenue and reach an extended consumer base is essential to ensure success. The triumphant businesses will be those that revolve swiftly and cost-effectively around COVID-19-induced behavioural patterns. Such businesses will have a competitive advantage, as they will have a deeper understanding of their customer experience. There is, in fact, huge potential in altering consumer preferences online and opening up new opportunities for artificial intelligence and automation. In light of the shift in consumer behaviour, it is within our businesses’ best interest to align their models to better serve the needs and demands of consumers, and to ensure that their products and services accurately match the consumers’ appetite. Undoubtedly, technology plays a significant role in this period of adaptation and reinvention. Two key areas are behavioural consumer segmentation and analytic proficiencies, and these are two areas which technology can significantly improve in terms of maximisation and response.

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Adaptability is key. Businesses best positioned for adapting rapidly to cross-channel consumer services and technological solutions will find it less problematic to adjust and adapt to the evolving patterns in their relevant fields. As more consumers seek indulgences online, it is imperative that businesses equip themselves with additional enticements to enhance consumer engagement and experiences.

This positive surge of consumers online also infers a consequential tendency for consumers to have a zero-tolerance or impartial attitude towards online platforms, particularly considering the increased quality and fierce competition in online products and services. This should serve as a further impetus for businesses to invest in digitallyinnovative solutions. >

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What do these four reflections mean for Malta and potential investment?

If Malta wants to truly capitalise on the changes being imposed by the pandemic, providing positive consumer experiences online is more important than ever.

While one may not predict how long, or to what extent, this changing consumer behaviour will prevail, the increased acceptance of doing things digitally and the enhanced trust in digital platforms is indisputable. With a robust technological backbone and resilient digital infrastructure, Malta has been able to contain the pandemic efficiently and cushion its economy from the emergent aftershock. Already operating in a highly-saturated ecosystem, understanding and exploiting consumer behaviour is what will set businesses apart from one another. While keeping ahead of consumer behaviour online is vital for any industry’s growth and survival, it also needs to become Maltese businesses’ main digital strategy.

power to understand consumers will improve businesses’ operational efficiency and reputation, which will, in turn, generate the interest of new investors, new niches and new standards. Start your digital transformation now!

Crucially, by focusing on the long-term and investing in value creation for consumers, Malta will emerge from this crisis stronger and be ready to generate more growth and investment in the future. Through its entrenched relationship and ongoing dialogue with local and foreign investors, Tech.mt firmly believes that Malta’s flexibility to successfully adapt and diversify to new norms is what will keep investors yearning for more. The

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Tech.mt urges policymakers, regulators, industry leaders and business owners to push themselves to ensure an environment in which the trust the consumers place on their platforms, products and services is not agitated but further secured. For this to happen, an intricate balance needs to be established between meaningful and smart action from industry and political will from Government.

Building on data-driven and technology-focused consumer insights and innovation, Malta can truly explore and exploit the opportunities of this challenging but exciting journey.

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T R E N D WATC H :

iGaming real estate

iGaming set the stage for large, open-plan offices and sprawling residential hubs – but will those trends continue? Jo Caruana chats to some of Malta’s leading property experts to assess where iGamers are likely to live and work in the months to come.

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ne question that’s kept coming up over the past few weeks has been this: will property prices go down as a result of COVID-19?

It’s a good question – but one nobody quite knows the answer to yet.

Rita K Schembri, Frank Salt

What we do know is that, even before the pandemic hit, property prices were starting to adjust. After years in ‘boom’ mode, it looked like the tables were turning from a sellers’ market to a buyers’ one. It might not have been the massive slump that some people prophesied but it was likely to signal a twist in the tale.

Of course, the iGaming sector sits very centrally in that tale. Many credit Malta’s rise in both sales and letting prices to iGaming’s arrival on the island – and they know that the industry is still critical to it today.

In fact, over the years, the iGaming sector has set the standards for many aspects of Malta’s property sector. For instance, with gaming hubs choosing Sliema, St Julian’s and Ta’ Xbiex as their bases, so prices for residential properties in these areas skyrocketed. Similarly, with gaming leaders choosing larger,

Alan Grima, Dhalia

open-plan spaces with excellent facilities for their teams, so commercial buildings of this type became hugely in-demand, with developers clambering to complete projects in this category.

Now, I wonder – both with general trend developments and the curve ball thrown

by COVID-19 – what trends can we expect the iGaming sector to bring to our property market in the near future? And will COVID-19 bring major changes to property demand?

“The iGaming sector has certainly evolved over the years, largely because of the increase in foreigners taking up employment here in Malta,” says Dhalia CEO Alan Grima. “Then, when borders closed because of the pandemic, demand dropped – although we do expect this to return to previous levels now that the ports and airport will be open again.”

“At this stage, I feel it is still a bit too early to determine or forecast how the sector will react. There seems to be a push or consensus towards what is being called the ‘new normal’ which will likely require companies to determine the right set-up for a better work-life balance for their employees.” >

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Photo by Rene Rossignaud

Steve Mercieca, Quicklets and Zanzi Homes

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Speaking about property rates specifically, Edward Agius, CEO of RE/MAX Lettings Malta, says that, in his experience, prices have not dropped but they have corrected themselves. “This was actually needed,” he stresses. “Prices have now come to real market value, so rentals have picked up and clients are getting good value for money. Previously, the fact that demand outweighed supply meant that prices had gone up to a point that some people – including locals – couldn’t afford them. This correction is good news for everyone and was certainly needed in the rental market especially.”

Zeroing in on trends, Mr Agius says it is clear that working from home is going to be something that more and more clients will consider postCOVID-19 – although he doesn’t think it will make offices defunct. “Yes working from home can be cost-effective, but our clients have made clear they still believe in the importance of an office environment as this promises better results.

Besides, it is nice to be able to wake up, get dressed and head to the office!” he smiles.

“As for prices, most rental rates were revised downwards between March and April, but prices seem to have now stabilised. According to a recent survey we carried out at Dhalia, over 50 per cent of such revisions were actually triggered by landlords to support their tenants during these times.”

Rita K Schembri, the Commercial Division Manager for Frank Salt, also believes that it is only a matter of time until things pick up again – and adds that clear trends are emerging. “Moving on, expansion projects will unfreeze and the demand will start to grow,” she says. “However, companies will try to negotiate better rates together with more flexibility to sublease, provided the floor area can be easily subdivided.”

“Now various studies suggest that the property market will recover quickly. That said, the Government’s role in re-starting the economy is crucial and, in my opinion, the recent decisions to relax various measures show such a commitment. Given that the sector is one of the main pillars of our economy, it is therefore important for the Government to introduce incentives that should help both the industry, and also the country, to return to normality,” Mr Grima says.

Agreeing that recent changes are likely to be temporary, Steve Mercieca, CEO of QuickLets and Zanzi Homes, says a lot will be determined once the dust settles on the past few months. “Many people are just slapping a bandaid on it and hoping it will blow over quite quickly. I can’t really commit to what’s going to happen as no one really knows. The only thing that will determine prices is demand and supply. There are lots of offices currently being built, so if property prices are to remain high, then new companies will need to keep setting up shop here. Admittedly we are seeing the opposite at the moment with COVID-19 still a major concern.”

“Looking to the future, I do think a few things will change and I think a number of new locations will creep onto people’s radar. For instance, we are already seeing a massive increase in web traffic for searches about Mgarr, Siggiewi and Xemxija.

Commutes have improved, taxis are more efficient, bike lanes are getting better, and more people are working from home. As a result, I think that the people working in the iGaming sector will choose new locations to live in going forward.”

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“The trend for open space working is still important, but I think that the sector now also sees the value in more secluded areas that can provide the room for concentration or privacy. >

Edward Agius, RE/MAX Lettings Malta

SUMMER 2020 PROPERTY Philippa Tabone, Frank Salt >

It is possible that some companies will also start moving to smaller spaces, not least as their revenues are being impacted by more regulations. It all remains to be seen.”

Wading in on trends in the short-let residential market, Philippa Tabone, Letting Manager for Frank Salt, says that there is a healthy supply of properties currently on the market, so landlords will likely start reducing their asking prices for quick rentals. “It’s a tenants’ market right now,” she says. “Tenants have much more to choose from and landlords are far more open to negotiation than they may have been in the past.”

“Pre-COVID-19 prices were at an all-time high, and this escalation couldn’t be sustained. The mentality that prices had to keep increasing year-on-year, without landlords improving or investing in their property, was getting out of hand. In my opinion, prices needed to be adjusted from the high-end category downwards, as price hikes were making Malta less competitive as a country. I think there will be a shift in the market now and prices will adjust. As long as supply remains healthy then we won’t run the risk of getting into take-it or leave-it situations, and that is a good thing.”

At the same time, Ms Tabone stresses that ‘home’ has never been more appreciated than it is now, with people putting more and more value into the places they live. “People have spent more time at home in the past few months than they ever have, so they know what they love about it now.

Whether for home schooling, relaxing or entertaining, space has been shown to be important and many people have taken the opportunity to upgrade. Having said that, people are also looking forward to being back at work with their colleagues, so residences close to their work will be high on their wish list. As a result, I think that St Julian’s, Sliema, Gzira and Ta’ Xbiex will still be the most in-demand rental spots, especially as prices become more negotiable.”

Henry Zammit, Ben Estates Elite

Finally, Henry Zammit, Office Manager and Franchise Owner at Ben Estates Elite, says there is no doubt that – like with so many other businesses – COVID-19 will affect the way things work in the future.

“Remote working is now more attractive, while having a good office environment has also been shown to have great benefits,” he says. “This kind of understanding will doubtlessly flavour the way things develop over the next few months, but prices will likely go down a little until we have a new routine in place.”

“Either way, the great news from the iGaming world is that it has been one of the strongest sectors to face COVID-19 head-on, and this will be a good thing for its future – both for its employees, and all those connected to it.

Let’s keep positive, as things are definitely on the up again!” he concludes.

AT A G L A NC E : P R O P E RT Y T I P S

Our real estate experts share their quick-fire property advice for those in the iGaming sector

• Do your homework. That way you’ll know what you really want and what a really good deal looks like when it comes along. When it does, don’t postpone, as this could mean you end up missing out. – Henry Zammit • Now’s the time to conclude on residential and commercial deals, because the market has corrected itself.

Just make sure your employees’ residential agreement has been registered with the authorities so that they can be covered by the laws of Malta. – Edward Agius • Build a really strong relationship with a reputable agent who is a member of the EAS association, and make sure to vet any property contract with your company lawyer or the Housing Authority. – Steve Mercieca • Over the past five or six years we have seen a substantial improvement in the level of quality in our sector.

Whenever renting out property for residential use or as office space, or even when investing in a property, make sure to give due importance to quality – whether it is the quality of construction or a property’s finishes. – Alan Grima • House your people close to a central area and pick a mid-way between a central hub and work. You don’t want to isolate people, so make sure they have access to shops, cafés, restaurants, the beach, and so on. At the same time, it’s good for them to be close to the office so they cut down on commute times. – Philippa Tabone • Now that pricing pressures can be felt, take the opportunity to lease a larger space with the possibility to sublease. With more properties on the market, I recommend selecting the most convenient location to match the demands of the day. – Rita K Schembri

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SUMMER 2020 KNOW

Malta in numbers

TIME

POPULATION

493,559 GMT +1 (94 per cent Maltese, 6 per cent foreign) INTERNATIONAL DIALING CODE

AVERAGE YEARLY TEMPERATURE

+356

27OC

AREA

316 KM²

MALTA’S ECONOMY GDP GROWTH

4.4

GOVERNMENT DEBT

43.1

per cent in 2019

per cent of GDP in 2019

GOVERNMENT SURPLUS

ANNUAL RATE OF INFLATION

0.5

per cent of GDP in 2019

1.52

per cent in 2019

GAMING IN NUMBERS APPLICATIONS FOR A LICENCE

COMPANIES LICENSED

BY MGA

VALUE ADDED BY THE GAMING INDUSTRY TO THE MALTESE ECONOMY

in 2019

as at end 2019

per cent as at end 2019, representing 9.6 per cent growth over 2018

89

294

Sources: Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), National Statistics Office (NSO)

13.3 073

FULL-TIME JOBS

CRIMINAL PROBITY SCREENINGS

7,417

1,300

as at end 2019

in 2019

SUMMER 2020 FOCUS

CLOSING THE GAP:

Addressing Malta’s skills shortage

With 875 unfilled vacancies in the local iGaming market in 2019, where is Malta falling short? And will the after-effects of the coronavirus pandemic make it harder to close the gap? Martina Said catches up with industry experts to find out.

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n 2019, the total employment generated by the Maltese gaming industry – which includes activities in and ones associated with the sector – totalled 11,747 full-time jobs, approximately 4.8 per cent of the total employment figure. The figures, published by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) in its 2019 annual report, reveal a consistent upward trend in employment in online and land-based firms licensed by the MGA over the past six years – from under 4,000 full-time jobs in 2014 to more than 7,400 by 2019.

pandemic and the support measures taken by the Government. The share of respondents planning a temporary closure of business is negligible.”

Addressing the existing skills gap in the sector, Mr Filletti says it is certainly no secret that the industry is on a constant search for experienced workers. “Attracting talent has become one of the top priorities for the industry. From recent surveys conducted by the MGA with their licensees, we know that most of the vacancies were at the operational level that could typically be filled by those just leaving formal education.”

The encouraging figures reflect the well-known growth of the local iGaming sector in recent years, but, parallel to this, is the issue of the shortage of skilled workers needed for the industry to continue growing. The MGA report states that, at the end of 2019, there were 875 unfilled vacancies, an increase of 19.5 per cent compared to the previous year.

He adds that, notwithstanding this, the industry is becoming more selective in terms of its human resource requirements concerning qualifications and experience. “There are now around 290 companies based in Malta and all of them compete for the best talent and for candidates with the right attitude and cultural fit. This is something very specific to the gaming industry – companies have their own cultural values which they tend to strongly uphold.”

Since then, much has changed beyond the confines of the gaming sector. The COVID-19 pandemic struck, threatening the livelihoods of many businesses and employees, while making others busier than they were before. Some sectors had to let go of staff; others needed to recruit. Where did the gaming sector lie on this spectrum?

However, he adds that not all jobs within the gaming industry are sector specific. Companies require individuals with skills that are also required by other industries, in the areas of technology, legal, compliance, finance and HR. “Career opportunities also await candidates who come from different sectors. In fact, surveys have shown us that sourcing talent from firms in another industry is practised by 20 per cent of the companies.”

Ivan Filletti, Chief Operations Officer at Gaming Malta, a non-profit entity tasked with promoting Malta as the home of gaming excellence, refers to a survey conducted in April by the MGA in the thick of the COVID-19 storm. The survey set out to assess the impact of the pandemic on the gaming sector and it “revealed that the majority of operators within the different distinct sectors (B2C/B2B) do not plan to change employment levels at this stage,” Mr Filletti explains. “This decision is, however, subject to a high degree of uncertainty, implying that employment within the sector is sensitive to the outcomes of the

Ben Pace Lehner, Co-Founder and Director at Broadwing Recruitment and the Muovo Job Board, asserts that, from his company’s day-to-day

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experiences recruiting for the iGaming sector, he corroborates the MGA’s findings on skills shortages, most notably the lack of good developers and other tech talent in Malta, as well as STEM skills.

“I would, however, like to see further statistics related to language-specific roles that I believe make up a significant portion of the operational marketing roles, consisting of native-speaking content writers, customer care agents, affiliate managers and account managers. The demand for languages also applies to live game presenters or dealers – a role which is always in demand and often has a high staff turnover rate.”

Ivan Filletti, GamingMalta

Zooming in on the impacts of the pandemic on the iGaming sector’s human resources, Natasha Gowans, Communications Consultant at the iGaming European Network (iGen), an association of iGaming companies based in Malta and operating on the European and international markets, believes the industry has been able to maintain the status quo well so far.

“We don’t think the iGaming industry has been affected the same way other industries have because our industry is essentially online. This meant that most companies already had the correct roles and infrastructure in place to work remotely.”

Mr Pace Lehner adds that further studies should be carried out in relation to the sourcing and relocation of international talent to Malta. It should also analyse the number of foreign employees that are leaving Malta and why. “This is the only way companies can overcome this hurdle and operate in specific markets, or open new ones such as Japan and Korea. We need to identify the best locations for international talent, how these countries are producing so much talent, and what it would take to relocate them to Malta. For instance, Sweden’s investment in new schools and institutions that focus on STEM skills make it a hotbed for tech and related candidates, however they also offer high salaries, which makes it harder to relocate these individuals to Malta.”

Highlighting a change in demand for specific roles within the industry in recent months, Mr Pace Lehner says, with the global spotlight on Malta and much stricter AML procedures, he has noticed a significant increase in demand for experienced candidates in compliance and AML, with fierce competition over the best candidates.

“On the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic has also caused a shift in Malta’s employment market, which has balanced heavily-biased employee’s market in most industries and sectors other than iGaming, which still faces strong competition when sourcing the best candidates,” he asserts.

Ben Pace Lehner, Broadwing Recruitment and Muovo Job Board

Photo by Alan Carville

SUMMER 2020 FOCUS

There have been a few exceptions, however.

“The customer service team is used to being in the office to answer phones, and sports traders too are more comfortable working from the office so they can use big screens. Both teams work day and night shifts, so they aren’t used to working from home. Most other teams, however, would be – all they need is a laptop and mobile to set themselves up. Also, wherever there were shortages in the set-up, companies invested right at the beginning and are now maintaining for business continuity in case this happens again.”

Across many other sectors, several companies made tough calls and let go of staff to save their business.

In the iGaming sector, too, redundancies have been reported, albeit whether this was due to the pandemic is unclear. Does Ms Gowans think a time could come when the industry experiences similar struggles to maintain its large number of human resources?

“I don’t think we will see mass redundancies in the sector directly due to the pandemic. The sector has been resistant to that because most of its services are digital – we are not running physical casinos and do not have concerns of spreading the virus in brick-and-mortar operations,” she explains. “Customers use the services of gaming companies from home, so there hasn’t been much of an impact in this respect. The worst affected are those who work in sports betting, because many big matches have been cancelled.

However, from what we can see, this is temporary.”

As an industry, Ms Gowans says companies have adapted well. “Many gaming companies are used to building their culture around being in the office, face-to-face work, afterwork activities and so on. They will now need to rethink that and come up with innovative ways to maintain the feeling of camaraderie and teamwork without necessarily being in the

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Addressing the impact of the pandemic on the recruitment industry, Mr Pace Lehner says this was “major” and classified as an ‘Annex A’ sector by Malta Enterprise. “Within a week of the outbreak in Malta, we started to receive feedback from clients putting roles on hold due to the uncertainty. Over the following three weeks things slowed down drastically. Companies needed to make quick decisions to safeguard the health of their businesses and employees.”

Natasha Gowans, iGaming European Network

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office. Also, recruitment hasn’t stopped during this time – companies have hired without meeting recruits in-person, and new employees have joined companies without seeing the office. There are ways to adjust, and some of these measures might stick around in the future.”

As an operator within the gaming sector, Alexia Frendo, HR Lead at online gaming business Kindred Group, says the jobs market within the industry has been challenging and, for a long time, the gaming sector has suffered from bad press. “As a tech company, we are fighting for the same talent as Microsoft, Google and Spotify, and it is tough. We have seen a global drop in recruitment over the past few months and it will be interesting to see where gaming sits in terms of its attractiveness to people who potentially wouldn’t have considered a career in gaming previously.”

Ms Frendo maintains that, for Kindred, not much has changed in terms of issues, contact and interaction with the company’s human resources. However, some new and unforeseen challenges have arisen.

“Employees who left to their home country before the pandemic are now unable to return. Beyond that, some parents are finding it difficult to work and cope with their kids at home,” she asserts. “To this end, we are giving extensive tips and offering further support when it comes to coping and adjusting to the situation. I believe we have succeeded at caring for each other as colleagues and as fellow humans.”

Another challenge, which has been cited by many who transferred their operations to working remotely is the need to be constantly present and motivate the team. “Whatever you do, in the short term it will become boring and one would have to reinvent the wheel,” says Ms Frendo. “On the other hand, it is an opportunity to practice the value of innovation, whereby management has to find ways to engage and reach out to every single employee, such as through virtual coffee breaks, online Friday drinks and challenges of any shape and form.”

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Mr Pace Lehner believes, however, that despite its fair share of ups and downs – namely the major negative impact on sports betting and a rise in Esports, online casinos, bingo and poker – the iGaming sector handled the fallout from the pandemic well and adapted staff in most departments and roles, other than live game presenters, to work remotely. “As the number of new active cases started to decrease and Malta acclimatised to a new normal, iGaming companies were the first to kick off their recruitment efforts, which has been a challenge due to the need for expatriate workers who haven’t been able to relocate to Malta or get their work permits processed.”

Coming out on the other side of this pandemic calls for widespread adjustment across all economic sectors, and Mr Pace Lehner strongly urges employers to make remote working a part of the new norm, by implementing a hybrid approach and roster system that can offer the best of both worlds. This, he explains, has the potential to increase performance through flexibility and independence gained through remote working, as well as the collaborative and creative energy from a face-to-face physical environment.

“A shift of this nature will require more resources within IT departments that will now also be responsible for assisting with the set-up of home offices and the management or support of remote-working tools, while maintaining a high level of availability and security,” he concludes. “I also anticipate additional workload on HR departments due to additional policies and requirements. In the same way, the demand for team and project leaders should also increase with larger teams being split up for more efficient and effective communication and management when working remotely.”

Alexia Frendo, Kindred Group

SUMMER 2020 TECH

Driving digital maturity From its inception in 2014, the eSkills Malta Foundation has spearheaded developments in ICT policy and education, while also championing local tech talent both locally and overseas. Here, Rebecca Anastasi speaks to Chief Administrator Carmel Cachia, who outlines the entity’s vision to motivate greater digital competences, in the time of COVID-19 and beyond.

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s the COVID-19 pandemic spread across Europe and infiltrated Malta, employees and school children – as well as processes and meetings – moved to the digital sphere, with millions across the continent adhering to health department instructions in the quest to limit the proliferation of the deadly virus.

Yet, the almost-wholesale shift to a tech-based society highlighted the glaring gaps in digital skills among different populations, and posed challenges to institutions that were left grappling with the consequences. Indeed, the coronavirus crisis, according to eSkills Foundation Chief Administrator, Carmel Cachia, exposed the many deficiencies in digital maturity of organisations and critically affected business, commerce and education.

“Industry and education almost ground to a halt. But after a month or so, the digital ways of doing things had, all of sudden, sparked hope. And many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and education providers faced the challenge of using technology to survive. A lot of credit must be given to them. Were we prepared? No. Did we manage to transform? Somewhat. During COVID-19, everyone relied, almost totally on technology, and this meant that digital skills had to be raised to a higher bar,” Mr Cachia asserts.

The Foundation itself also had to adapt quickly, since many of its initiatives depended on some stakeholders who “were not digitally prepared,” the Chief Administrator explains.

However, the entity stepped up its efforts, offering free training resources, career guidance and online courses to these target groups, as well as to SMEs across different sectors. And, this work is set to continue, with Mr Cachia explaining that e-learning modules, webinars and online activities are currently being prepared, underlining that the Foundation is also open to “collaborations coming from any

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sector so long as it relates to increasing digital skills and competence efforts.”

For, this is, in fact, what the eSkills Malta Foundation was set up to do: acquire knowledge on the state of digital competences on the island, translate this information into reform within ICT education, expand training programmes, and to increase the IT professionalism of the tech sector.

Moreover, the entity, which was established in 2014 – in collaboration with the Ministry for Education and Employment, the Malta Information Technology Agency, the Malta Communications Authority, Malta Enterprise, the Malta Gaming Authority and the Malta Chamber of Commerce Enterprise and Industry – uses its remit to lobby the Government and leading industry players to effect changes to eSkills policies.

The Foundation has its work cut out for it.

According to the Malta ICT Skills Audit of 2017 – a research project conducted to ascertain >

SUMMER 2020 TECH

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the gaps and demand for digital skills, with respondents from a spate of Maltese ICT firms and related stakeholders – “there was an overwhelming consensus that the current tech pipeline in Malta is a depleting resource and this was impeding business development.”

Moreover, 67 per cent of respondents’ demand was for entry- and competent-level ICT practitioners, with 31 per cent requiring expert levels, and “there was very strong consensus that industry certifications are an important ingredient for employees since these reflect specific sectorial needs,” Mr Cachia says.

Yet, the shortages identified by the study also, and “more prominently”, the Chief Administrator says, included deep-tech as well as soft skills, including interpersonal, verbal and written communication, together with project management, problemsolving, and innovation capabilities. A lack of strong work ethic was also registered. This is compounded when one considers the emerging technologies of Artificial Intelligence, Big Data Analytics, the Internet of Things, High Performance Computing, Next Generation Security and many others. In fact, he says, “these have already emerged with the current technologies”.

“Since then, Malta has improved in some of these deficiencies, and the collective effort has reaped fruit when one considers the European Commission Digital Economy and Society Index for 2020,” Mr Cachia adds, saying that this year’s eSkills Demand and Supply Monitor (previously called the ICT Skills Audit) will give a clearer picture of the current scenario. However, he expects “the usual suspects on the lack in quality and quantity” to still be present.

To address these challenges, the National eSkills Strategy, which runs from 2019 to 2021, recommends an increase in the type and range of tech training; a drive towards professional certification; the need to ensure a match between ICT courses and the needs of the sector; as well as proper career guidance for students in the IT profession and on the requirements of employers. Moreover, Mr

“MALTA HAS IMPROVED IN SOME OF THESE DEFICIENCIES, AND THE COLLECTIVE EFFORT HAS REAPED FRUIT.” Cachia says, there needs to be a “development of a coherent skills development strategy” and efforts directed towards helping “new entrants in the labour market transition from their studies to their professions.”

To these ends, the Foundation has implemented numerous initiatives, the Chief Administrator asserts.

“It has provided study material for the relevant stakeholders so that these may be considered for their development plans. It also organises career guidance sessions to secondary and higher school students, and industry visits to the ICT sector; it provides training and encourages the use of the European e-Competence Framework, while championing local and international digital initiatives such as EU Codeweek, CodesSprint, iChoose, PingFin, and the Million Dollar Idea,” he explains.

Indeed, the adoption of the European e-Competence Framework (eCF), outlines the minimum requirements of competence (ie a threshold) in the workplace: it includes typical knowledge and skills examples that are not standardised but provided to support orientation and understanding. Although the eCF has been a standard since 2016, it should be thought of as a comprehensive set of guidelines to help the digital sector.

“The eCF creates a common language between European ICT professionals, and, together with the Framework of IT Professionalism, helps players in the ICT industry develop their skills transformation plans. It is also used by management and HR for recruitment and training, as well as by ICT professionals to check that they have the correct skills for specific roles. Beyond that, in terms of tertiary education and training, it is used by providers to align their content closer to industry,” Mr Cachia explains.

Moving on, Mr Cachia underlines that addressing the gender gap in eskills has also been a cornerstone of the Foundation’s work, and this has included

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the setting up of a focus group, known as Women in ICT. “We would like to make our digital economy contribution more effective for women. And, through this group, several projects were carried out, including guidelines on the best practices of how to increase and retain women in ICT, aimed specifically at employers, followed up by a 2020 study on the local gender situation in the digital sector.”

“WE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE OUR DIGITAL ECONOMY CONTRIBUTION MORE EFFECTIVE FOR WOMEN.”

Moreover, networking events were organised, and prominent women were appointed ‘tech ambassadors’ to encourage the take-up of courses, and the development of ICT skills for people of all genders. “The Government has set a commitment on this issue, and we are full supporters of this. Today, we are pleased to see so many organisations undertaking more efforts in addressing this issue, and taking the opportunity of making their organisations more diverse and stronger,” Mr Cachia says.

Society Index (DESI) 2020 – work for the eSkills Malta Foundation continues. “Like many other countries, we have many important challenges to face. These include the further decrease in the digital divide – since around 44 per cent still lack basic digital skills – the upskilling of SMEs, national recognition of the IT profession, and engaging further with our European counterparts and the European Commission,” he explains.

Looking ahead, while Malta has made great strides in raising the bar – even ranking fifth out of the 28 EU member states in the Digital Economy and

To further these goals, an online digital platform is being planned in the future, and this will allow stakeholders to “access information, opportunities, funding, courses, events and many more initiatives” to increase digital skills and contribute to, as well as further, Government policy in this area. For the eSkills Malta Foundation itself, the plan is to continuously strive to “increase our efforts and be of further effective service in the digital economy,” Mr Cachia concludes.

For more information, visit eskills.org.mt or the Foundation’s Facebook page on www.facebook.com/ESkillsMalta

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SUMMER 2020 PRESS

It’s all about intelligence Driven by his passion for artificial intelligence, blockchain technology and data science, Alexei De Bono launched IDEA Intelligence. Here, he shares his insight on the sector and answers key questions on how businesses can get involved.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Business Intelligence (BI) are big words that are often used, misused and abused. How would you distinguish the two in simple English?

Let me start by saying that, contrary to a common misconception, Artificial Intelligence is not an offthe-shelf tool that you can purchase and that will magically solve obstacles faced by a company. A solid Business Intelligence foundation is empirical before AI is considered. On top of that, when opting to use AI, there needs to be a clear objective as to what to apply it to. This way, proper training data can be collected for its purpose. The start goal of AI is to automate a task that can be done by a human, but with much higher efficiency. Business Intelligence serves to take a collection of data (often in high quantities) and tell a story so the company can gain context of what is happening in the business.

From your experience, can the technology be applied to different industries? How pliable is the technology to be adapted to different business models?

It is crucial to note that there is a significant difference between companies’ processes and operations across multiple industries, and even those within the same industry. That is why I strongly believe in offering bespoke solutions. Off-the-shelf products are easier to propose in the short-term but often lead to compromises from the client’s end and a high number of modifications required from the provider, making the short-term gain redundant. As a result, I feel comfortable recommending bespoke solutions when providing BI and AI work, as I can guarantee that what will be built is done so with the client’s organisational goals as the target to be hit.

Looking back at how COVID-19 shook our business models and the way we operate, how can a company use BI to plan better and build more resilient systems?

I think we can all agree that COVID-19 has made us aware of how important it is to use our time and resources in the most efficient way possible.

By implementing sound and scalable business intelligence practices and systems, companies can

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find out what is lacking among their clientele and what they are not addressing, which can be improved.

The basic motto is ‘what can be measured can be improved’. Business Intelligence is all about telling the right story while giving you context to ask the right questions as to how to improve.

IDEA Group offers AI consultancy through its IDEA Intelligence arm. From your experience, do you think local firms believe there is enough awareness on how technology can be embedded in the company’s infrastructure to increase efficiency?

I think there are two kinds of local firms right now, those that are aware of the strides made by technology and which are taking advantage of it to dramatically improve their efficiency and products, and those that are not aware or which are intimidated by what it takes to introduce BI to their business. I am here to say that implementing bespoke BI and AI platforms into your business isn’t an overwhelming task. If done right, it can control the pace at which to start introducing these practices and not disrupt your operations. The key bit of advice I can offer is to go bespoke, so the new practices will be better but still familiar and intuitive to you. intelligence.ideamalta.com

SUMMER 2020 PRESS

All aboard

W I T H B OATC A R E

Hard work deserves to be paid off, and how to make the best out of working hard in Malta, if it is not by enjoying our sea?

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esides the opportunity for relaxation and enjoyment, the seas also provide the opportunity for tons of activities that stimulate teamwork. Your team can form everlasting bonds and discover new leadership skills through boat-based activities including sailing or yacht racing (all with the help of professional sailors, of course!).

We can also offer one of our vessels for an outdoor meeting and business breakfast. It’s a great alternative to the usual ‘claustrophobic’ reunion in the office.

Boatcare has plenty of options for your team and packages that can be customised to your exact needs. We can stock up on all of the required beverages, food and snacks.

Having each of your employees take their turn as the skipper and having them lead the team will instil a sense of confidence in them and facilitate excellent communication. The team will end their day proud of their accomplishments and the new leadership skills that they discovered.

We can also organise for you to have water toys, such as jet-ribs, jet skis and exciting Seabob underwater scooters, so that you and the rest of the team will have the most memorable time.

Your team may have the opportunity to visit less crowded and new places that are otherwise inaccessible. This will definitely motivate them and increase their loyalty towards the company, which will result in better work flow.

With a variety of small boats, ribs, motor boats and sailing yachts to choose from, ranging from 20 to 100 footers, you will surely find something that suits your tastes, needs and budget.

We invite you to have a look at a variety of yachts we are able to offer you, by clicking on www.charterayachtinmalta.com.

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SUMMER 2020 WORKSPACE

bricks concrete G O I N G B E YO N D

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Photos by Darren Agius

Having taken online casino Dunder’s offices from design phase to completion, there’s plenty for Christopher Micallef, Partner at Forward Architects, to reflect on about this stylish space.

The results are fresh, elegant, practical and inspiring, as Sarah Micallef finds out.

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hen it comes to a company’s offices, not all are created equal.

Tasked with housing a unique team of individuals in a way that reflects the business’ approach, it stands to reason that a workspace will have its own personality, and the recently-completed offices of online casino Dunder project an upmarket, sophisticated vibe within a space for the young company can grow and flourish. >

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“WE LIKE TO THINK OF IT AS A TIMELESS WORKSPACE THAT WILL ALLOW FOR ADAPTING TRENDS IN THE WORKFORCE TO EVOLVE AND TRANSFORM THE SPACE.” >

“This particular workspace showcases the execution of the design philosophy we approach such briefs with – that workspaces need to be adaptable for different workforces, activities and trends, while embodying the particular brand’s promise, language and mission,” says Christopher Micallef, Partner at Forward Architects, the local architecture firm entrusted with the design of Dunder’s offices in Swieqi.

What this meant, he attests, was that the office needed to respond to the needs of the company now, whilst ensuring longevity for the team to grow within. “Absorbing the brand’s values, priorities and mission allows us to inform our design decisions, creating spaces that adapt to the nature of the particular company. With Dunder, the priority was to provide an executive space that balances the quiet working open-plan area, the closed meeting rooms and the leisurely breakout space.” >

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Speaking of the initial brief, Christopher maintains that it called for the architects to make bold decisions that respected brand guidelines whilst allowing a fresh, motivational environment in which employees could prosper. “We enjoy working with brands that prioritise their employees’ satisfaction in the workplace, understanding that the majority of their day is spent here and therefore their output is directly affected by the context in which they are asked to be productive,” he maintains, adding that for this reason, the workspace needed to feel smart and spacious, and the lighting and materials needed to feel as natural as possible.

And, as is ever the case within a working environment, the issue of balancing aesthetic appeal and practical usage of space was not lost on the architects. “Workspaces need to prioritise the ease of their use for staff,” says Christopher, affirming that practicality and functionality are key ingredients within the design process to ensure that the space and its design can be adapted throughout the lifetime of the workspace.

In order to achieve this, the architect divulges that the design concept was closely developed with Group CEO Thomas Rosander from the outset, who remained involved throughout the entire process. “Rather than opting for a playful environment, the brand was after a more executive, smooth aesthetic – one which projects an image of a serious, efficient company with attention to detail. This is reflected in the choice of natural materials and the neon logo visible as soon as you set foot into the offices,” he maintains.

Looking back on the start of the project, Christopher reveals that the team took the building on when it was still in shell form, “literally just bricks and concrete”, which enabled them to design it from scratch. “From the air ventilation and lighting partitions to ensuring acoustic isolation between meeting rooms, to the flooring system,” he attests, adding that they opted for a raised floor, which gave them the flexibility of passing all services underneath.

Speaking of the process, and what it took to bring the project to fruition, the architect maintains that the first step was creating the concept design, which included initial sketches to get a feel for the place whilst also enabling the team at >

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Forward Architects to build a relationship with the client. “This first stage is crucial to align the design with what the client wants the final project to look and feel like,” says Christopher, adding that once this was done, they could move on to the detailing phase, which took about two months, to ensure that every little detail was mapped out with precision. Meanwhile, the final stage of the project involved moving onto the site, “and all the coordination with suppliers and final snags!”

Looking back on the challenges the team faced, he adds, “one main challenge was ensuring a high level of quality delivered from all the suppliers. We also needed to ensure that the works happened in a smooth sequence within the agreed deadlines.”

Turning his attention to the choice of materials and finishes, Christopher explains that the team introduced a darker bold palette with a mix of concrete finishes, warm woods and leather. “They contrast with the harder, bolder finishes, borrowing from a contemporary architectural style,” he says.

Speaking of style, I ask, how would the architect describe the design style achieved? “We like to think of it as a timeless workspace that will allow for adapting trends in the workforce to evolve and transform the space,” Christopher maintains, adding that the finishes borrow from the contemporary aesthetic whilst empowering the brand language, which is unique. “The visible branding cues of the Dunder sign contribute to the iconic quality of the space.”

And iconic it certainly is.

“WORKSPACES NEED TO PRIORITISE THE EASE OF THEIR USE FOR STAFF.”

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SUMMER 2020 CALENDAR

iGaming Calendar Never miss an appointment! Here are some of the most important iGaming events, trade shows and conferences happening worldwide (online and in person!) over the next few months.

Photo by SiGMA

AUGUST 2020 THURSDAY 20TH

Gaming Expo Francophone Africa Casablanca, Morocco

TUESDAY 25TH

SiGMA iGathering Moscow Moscow, Russia

WEDNESDAY 26TH

SPiCE India Goa Marriott Resort & Spa, Goa, India

SEPTEMBER 2020 WEDNESDAY 2ND

EGR US Power Summit 2020

Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, California, USA

SiGMA

TUESDAY 8TH

Casino Esports Conference Luxor Las Vegas, USA

JULY 2020

SBC Summit Barcelona (#sbcsummit)

THURSDAY 9TH

Digital

Player Protection Forum

FRIDAY 11TH

London, UK

NCLGS Summer Meeting

FRIDAY 10TH

Chicago, USA

Totally Gaming Academy: Sportsbook & Virtual Sports Masterclass

MONDAY 14TH

Webinar

All-American Sports Betting Summit 2020

TUESDAY 14TH

San Francisco, USA

iGB Live! Online

TUESDAY 22ND

Digital

iGB Affiliate Amsterdam

WEDNESDAY 15TH

RAI, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Pre-event webinar for AI In Gaming

ASEAN Gaming Summit

Webinar

Manila, Philippines

TUESDAY 21ST

iGB LIVE!

EGR B2B Virtual Awards 2020

RAI, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Online

SiGMA LatAm Focus

TUESDAY 28TH

Digital

GAT Expo (FADJA) Digital

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SUMMER 2020 CALENDAR

an Sc

di na via

WEDNESDAY 23RD

nG

MONDAY 26TH

International Masters of Gaming Law (IMGL) Autumn 2020 Conference

am in

g Show

World Lottery Summit 2020 – Vancouver Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

WEDNESDAY 28TH

MONDAY 28TH

ICE Africa South Africa

CEEGC Penta and CEEG Awards 2020 The Ritz-Carlton Budapest, Hungary

NOVEMBER 2020

Scandinavian Gaming Show 2020 Stockholm, Sweden

THURSDAY 5TH

TUESDAY 29TH

iGG (iGaming Germany) 2020

EGR Power 50 Summit: Live Edition Puente Romano, Marbella, Spain

Berlin, Germany

iGaming NEXT 2020

SUNDAY 8TH

Digital Marketing International Expo (DMIEXPO) Digital & Affiliate Marketing

Intercontinental Arena, Malta

WEDNESDAY 30TH

Rishon LeTsiyon, Israel

ENADA PRIMAVERA

MONDAY 9TH

Rimini Expo Centre, Italy

TribalNet’s 21st Annual Conference & Tradeshow

EGR Power Affiliates: Live Edition

Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center, Grapevine, Texas, USA

Marbella, Spain

TUESDAY 10TH

OCTOBER 2020

Casino Marketing & Technology Conference Bally’s Las Vegas, USA

THURSDAY 1ST

THURSDAY 12TH

iGaming IDOL 2020

Cyprus Gaming Show

Intercontinental Arena, Malta

Nicosia, Cyprus

FRIDAY 2ND

TUESDAY 17TH

GAME (Gaming & Affiliate Marketing Expo)

EEGS 2020

Royal Olympic Hotel, Athens, Greece

Inter Expo Center, Sofia, Bulgaria

MONDAY 5TH

SiGMA Malta 2020

SiGMA iGathering Las Vegas

MFCC – Malta Fairs and Convention Centre, Malta

Las Vegas, USA

WEDNESDAY 18TH

Global Gaming Expo (G2E) 2020

BEGE 2020

Las Vegas Sands Expo & Convention Center Las Vegas, USA

Inter Expo Center, Sofia, Bulgaria

WEDNESDAY 25TH

MONDAY 19TH

EGR Central & Eastern Europe Briefing 2020

iGB Affiliate Berlin

Golden Prague Hotel (Formerly Intercontinental) Prague, Czech Republic

Station venue, Berlin, Germany

TUESDAY 20TH

Betting on Sports Europe (#boseurope) Kia Oval Cricket Ground, London, UK

THURSDAY 22ND

EGR Operator Awards 2020

Source: www.igamingcalendar.com

Grosvenor House, London, UK

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SUMMER 2020 CASE STUDY

PLANNING AND P R E PA R I N G F O R

an optimistic future Despite the unprecedented strains placed on most businesses due to the coronavirus pandemic, the iGaming sector has registered losses in some areas but gains in others. Deborah Vella, Partner at E&S Law and Advisor at E&S Group, chats with Martina Said about the industry’s hurdles, its prospects, and the implementation of the 6th AML Directive.

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Prior to the pandemic, at the beginning of 2020, the iGaming industry was considered to be one of the fastest-growing industries in Malta. It had been showing promising signs and scope in new emerging markets that were boosting revenues for the industry as a whole,” says Deborah Vella, Partner at E&S Law and Advisor at E&S Group.

Zooming in on subcategories, Dr Vella says sports betting had been leading the market, followed by online gaming casinos. In addition, payment technology has been constantly developing, which has imposed the need for the iGaming industry to adapt to new trends, such as acceptance of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment.

“Safer iGaming solutions were being seen as one of the biggest areas of competition in 2020, considering that operators were looking for solutions and competing to build the best reputation for consumer protection in Malta, Europe and other markets,” she says.

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SUMMER 2020 CASE STUDY

“SINCE A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN IN LOCKDOWN AND ACTIVITIES WERE LIMITED, REVENUES IN THE iGAMING SECTOR HAVE GROWN. HOWEVER, WE CANNOT DENY THAT THE SECTOR WILL BE AFFECTED

BY THE ECONOMIC FALLOUT.” In light of the dramatic events of the past few months, however, some tables may have turned. In fact, Dr Vella says that sports betting has been the most negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, even though the sector as a whole has registered an increase in its revenues. Any effects, good or bad, of COVID-19 on the iGaming sector, she adds, are not being considered as long-term effects.

“Since a lot of people have been in lockdown and activities were limited, revenues in the iGaming sector have grown. However, we cannot deny that the sector will be affected by the economic fallout,” says Dr Vella. “Such circumstances will intensify the competition, and the gaming authorities are being even more cautious to monitor the situation closely. Also, considering that most iGaming companies have embraced working from home, some have had to reduce their staff, which is certainly a negative effect of the pandemic.”

Being a primarily online sector, where several operators already offered employees the facility to work remotely, was it easy for gaming companies to transition during this time? “It is true that being an online industry made it easier for this sector to adapt to the COVID-19 scenario, and this might be considered an important era for iGaming,” says Dr Vella. “There has been increased turnover for companies following the shutdown of traditional sports. We have also seen many online casinos and iGaming businesses focus on providing mobile apps to ease and improve their customer experience. The industry will continue to grow >

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SUMMER 2020 CASE STUDY

“THE INDUSTRY WILL CONTINUE GROWING UNTIL IT REACHES ITS PEAK – COMPANIES SHOULD BE PREPARED AND PLAN AHEAD SO THAT THEY CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE ONCE THINGS GO BACK TO NORMAL.” >

until it reaches its peak – companies should be prepared and plan ahead so that they can take advantage once things go back to normal.”

Sharing the concerns of local gaming operators, Dr Vella asserts that some companies had to rapidly restructure the way they work to continue succeeding in the market. “Testing the efficiency of their employees while working from home has been a concern, as this would impact how the work of the company will be distributed in the future. In addition, due to increased interest in Esports and virtual games, gaming companies had to focus more on hardware and software development and/or maintenance to ensure best experience to their customers,” she explains.

The concern for sports betting companies, however, remains at the forefront, as the ones most heavily impacted by the outbreak following the cancellation of all major sports events. “Taking into consideration that this all happened in a short span of time, operators are also optimistic that, once events commence again, they will see an increase in their growth.”

Overall, Dr Vella asserts that E&S’s gaming clients have worked hard to keep up their pace and stay abreast of ongoing developments in the sector. For some, workloads have also increased significantly. “We have been advising our gaming clients on how to structure their business and

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guiding them through the challenges they’ve faced, including how to be more cost-effective and implement the projections they set for their companies. Most of them have their businesses up and running, and benefitting from the growth and increased interest within the industry during these challenging times.”

With many citing the economic fallout caused by the pandemic as a central factor that could affect companies’ revenues for the rest of the year, I ask Dr Vella whether this assessment could be applied to the gaming sector as well. “I think that the iGaming industry will continue its growth and, probably by the third quarter of 2020, traditional sports will commence and return to normality,” she says.

“For sure, once the world ‘wakes up’ and understands the effects of this pandemic on the economy, it might affect the gaming industry in general. However, this will encourage new tech developments that the gaming industry will need to adopt immediately to enhance the user experience,” Dr Vella explains. “Gaming companies need to have different partnerships with other entertainment sectors, such as TV and music to provide different experiences to their users. Also, as part of a long-term transformation, gaming companies will embrace the delivery of games via mobile and cloud-based platforms, boosting their relationship with customers.” >

SUMMER 2020 CASE STUDY

>

Turning to the legal side of the industry, Malta has until December 2020 to implement the latest EU Directive on Anti-Money Laundering, called the 6th AML Directive (6AMLD), which complements and reinforces the previous directives, with the addition of new criminal law provisions relating to money laundering and financing of terrorism.

“The 5th AML Directive was mainly focused on increasing transparency whereas the 6th AML Directive lays down a uniform interpretation of the criminal offence of money laundering across the EU. Malta has already implemented the 5th AML Directive and made the relevant amendments to its legislation,” says Dr Vella.

She adds that this new directive will be an opportunity for the iGaming sector to further strengthen its anti-money laundering capabilities and for subject persons and/or firms to become more efficient in dealing with financial crime risk. “From a long-term perspective, this is critical for the iGaming sector and its reputation in general,” Dr Vella asserts. “This directive provides a uniform definition for criminal activities that constitute offences for money laundering.

The 6AMLD requires that offences shall be punished by ‘effective, proportionate and dissuasive’ criminal penalties.”

Singling out the most crucial changes to the 6AMLD in comparison to its predecessor, Dr Vella highlights the harmonised definition of a ‘Predicate Crime’, which now includes offences such as cybercrime, environmental crime and tax crimes; the extension of criminal liability to legal professionals, including those acting on their behalf or people with the authority to make decisions on their behalf; enhanced punishments for money laundering offences, where the maximum imprisonment for money laundering offences will increase from one year to four years and may be accompanied by sanctions and fines (up to €5 million), including the shutdown of a business; and cooperation between member states when two or more claim jurisdiction for a money laundering offence, on deciding which of them will prosecute the offenders.

“THE 6TH AML DIRECTIVE LAYS DOWN A UNIFORM INTERPRETATION OF THE CRIMINAL OFFENCE OF MONEY LAUNDERING ACROSS THE EU.” “Even though the 6th AML Directive is adding further obligations, local businesses have already grasped the fact that this helps keep risk levels low and ensures business is conducted with integrity,” says Dr Vella. “This is really important to the gaming industry considering the nature of its business and the element of high risk placed on companies. On the other hand, from the authorities’ perspective, it will help our country attract serious businesses who are keen to provide their services with transparency and integrity,” she concludes.

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SUMMER 2020 GLOBAL

5G is the name of the game Watch out for 5G because it is the technology that could be a gamechanger in the iGaming industry, Jesper Kärrbrink, now back in Sweden after spending three years in Malta, says. He also tells Ray Bugeja things will be different post-COVID-19.

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SUMMER 2020 GLOBAL

M

ost visitors to Malta are attracted by the sun, the sea, its chequered history, and its rich heritage. But what brought one industry veteran to this tiny Mediterranean rock in 2016 was the island’s regulatory system.

Its success in becoming an iGaming hub possibly made him extend his planned two-year stint here to three.

“MALTA IS A SPECIAL PLACE FOR iGAMING.”

Jesper speaks openly about his love affair with Malta: “For everyone within iGaming, Malta is a special place.

It was here where it all started. And, yes, the sun and the sea play a role, but the hub that Malta has become is more important. We know that hubs – Silicon Valley being the most famous example – create competition and competition creates innovation.”

Jesper has now returned to Sweden having been appointed chairman of Pariplay, but he still retains a strong relationship with Malta – both via the people he met who he now considers friends, and via his board assignments in Green Jade, Pariplay and Internet Vikings, which have offices and employees on the island.

Speaking so soon after his move to chair Green Jade Games, Pariplay Internet Vikings and the Danish operator CEGO A/S, Jesper laughs when asked what he considers to have been his main achievements and contributions to the industry during his time in Malta and how he would describe his legacy.

“I don’t want to call what we did at Mr Green my legacy,” he smiles. “We achieved a lot, we set a totally new strategy with increased focus on the brand, an improved product, green gaming, targeted growth, and talent development. All this was the result of 250-plus amazing people working hard and loving what they did.”

He says the iGaming industry in Malta is full of talented people, pointing out that it is a fast-growing sector of the digital industry and, having realised this, young professional talents see an assignment in the industry as a stepping stone in their careers. Jesper deems it cool to see how diversified the industry is with people from all over the world working in the 290-plus gaming companies in Malta.

He acknowledges that his new role as chairman will be different to those he has fulfilled so far. Being the CEO, Jesper explains, is, in periods, a 24/7 job, mixing operations and details with strategy and planning, three-tofour years in advance. Thus, one cannot miss a beat and can never relax. As CEO, one always fears being second on the ball, especially in a competitive industry like iGaming.

“As chairman, you are more a sounding board and more focused on the next step rather than everyday matters,” the industry veteran adds.

After serving as CEO for more than 30 years, he realises that having such a background is actually a real asset that is great to share with others.

The entire industry, the business administration graduate remarks, has taken giant steps over the last 10-to-15 years: “From the wild west to a professional industry that, in many ways, leads the development,” he says. “One particular area worth mentioning is responsible gaming, where most companies today understand how important player safety is. This is also the area where we see the fastest development in AI in the industry.”

His new role at Pariplay is helping the managing director, Adrian Bailey, to develop the company into its next phase. In that sense, he acknowledges he has a quite an easy task, crediting Adrian and his team with doing ‘a fantastic job’.

Looking forward, Jesper believes there will be a shift to a more entertainment-focused style of games, as a way for the stronger brands to start broadening their audiences. There has also been a first wave of consolidation, especially among operators and, in his view, this will continue and eventually spread to game providers too.

The plan they made, he notes, is really strong and it currently looks like Pariplay is even a bit ahead.

However, he points out that that plan was made by the management and his role is to support, guide and be there when they need someone to ask or discuss things with. “And open some doors, where I can.” >

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SUMMER 2020 GLOBAL

“AS CHAIRMAN, YOU ARE MORE A SOUNDING BOARD AND MORE FOCUSED ON THE NEXT STEP RATHER THAN EVERYDAY MATTERS.” >

“All markets are different from each other,” Jesper hastens to note. Even within Europe itself, players behave differently and games perform differently in different markets, he adds, to some extent attributing this to cultural differences but also to how long the transformation from bricks and mortar to online took.

The first wave of players moving online, Jesper explains, are those who play video lottery terminals and casino slots, and they want to play the games they are used to when they go online. On the other hand, the next generation of players expect more advanced slots, hence, the ‘new’ players in the 18-25 age bracket demand games that are more like the app and computer games they are used to. This is why, beside slots, Green Jade Games is also developing a line of Arcade Casino games mixing 100 per cent skill and RNG (random number generator).

The coronavirus pandemic is inevitably raised in our conversation, the question being to what extent it affected the iGaming industry. “Luckily, we are a young industry with very few people in the risk zone and basically free from analogue business depending on people being out on the streets, so, besides sportsbook (with no events to offer), I think the iGaming industry has come out quite well,” he says.

When discussing new technology coming on stream in the future and that could significantly affect the industry, Jesper is very categorical. “5G. I don’t think we really understand how this will change ours and other entertainment industries.

But 5G is not only a holy grail with unlimited possibilities with larger games, 3D, VR, in game betting, data streams, personalisation, and so on. It is also that kind of underlying technology that can be the tipping point for disrupting iGaming as we know it today.”

“The industry was also impressively fast to react and respond to the challenges, and moved staff and operations from office work to work-fromhome in a couple of weeks, without losing any momentum.”

Apart from being a tough period for all sportsbookrelated companies, the only negative aspect he raises is that some governments used the coronavirus pandemic to impose further regulation and restrictions.

In his view, all these increased restrictions will be counterproductive. “Instead of protecting the problem gamblers, it risks pushing them to non-regulated operators and, at the same time, destroy years of canalisation work.”

“Unfortunately, Pyrrhic victories and solving problems by creating new ones further down the line seem to be a fashion among politicians these days,” Jesper laments.

Still, he is confident the industry will continue to perform well post-COVID-19, pointing out that it has always been good at adapting, and the pandemic is no different. However, he does suggest there will be quite a lot of changes in how the industry operates when this is over, and sees more distributed workspaces, new meeting structures, new travelling policies, and so on.

In welcoming him on board, Tsachi Maimon, CEO of Aspire Global, which owns Pariplay, highlighted Jesper’s deep knowledge of the European iGaming market as one of his key skills. But is the European market any different from others?

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“This is something I follow carefully in my role as chairman in four gaming-related companies,” Jesper concludes.

No wonder he has his hands full.

Photos by Tyler Calleja Jackson

SUMMER 2020 EXPATS

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SUMMER 2020 EXPATS

“Familyfriendly, safe and specialised” iGaming power-couple Nick Barr and Christine Lewis made Malta their home 10 years ago after visiting on a whim, and they consider it the perfect place for career progression and happy family living. Here, they share their tips for other incoming expats with Jo Caruana.

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elocation is rarely an easy decision. Extracting yourself from existing networks of colleagues, family and friends, and turning the page on something new, can be daunting – but it can also be exhilarating. It is a decision that Nick Barr and Christine Lewis made 10 years ago, and one they haven’t looked back on.

The duo is something of a powercouple within the iGaming sector.

Nick joined Red Rake Gaming as Managing Director for Malta in 2018 with the distinct aim of driving their Malta operations and go-to-market strategy. He has helped to secure its niche in the production of online slots, and developed its offering of some of the most reputable content in the industry.

Christine, meanwhile, worked as Global Commercial Director for NetEnt until recently and is currently transitioning between roles following six years with the company. She was responsible for the commercial activities, team and customer management globally, across the entire NetEnt operation.

Reflecting on the similarities they bring to the table, Christine

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explains that both she and her husband came from similar career backgrounds within client-facing roles, predominantly within sales and partnership management prior to their move to Malta 10 years ago.

“Our earlier sales experience working with key financial organisations and having the responsibility for the revenue and operational management provided the foundation and experience that are still used in our roles today,” she explains.

We start our conversation with the obvious question: what’s it like to work in iGaming together, balancing business with family life?

“We’ve learned there are advantages to working in the same industry, because it helps us to understand each other’s goals and objectives, as well as the challenges,” Nick says with a smile, making it clear that they very much value each other’s professional insight and expertise.

Nick and Christine say working in the sector together is also a benefit because they share and discuss changes in the market, as well as the impacts they could have on the industry as a whole. “As for us >

SUMMER 2020 EXPATS

“MALTESE CULTURE IS ONE OF THE FRIENDLIEST IN THE WORLD.” again, and gain industry knowledge,” Christine continues. “But it didn’t take us long to become established. We are now 10 years on and pleased with what our life here has given us – we have an eight-year-old daughter who was born here and we are still happily working in the gaming sector.”

Both Nick and Christine agree that the iGaming industry helps expats to settle on the island, by offering a lot of support and guidance to individuals that have chosen to relocate here. “The integration process was effortless,” Christine says. “There is flexibility and guidance on every level, and it is extremely easy to integrate and network within the industry or obtain advice around housing or childcare.

“From a lifestyle perspective we have been very fortunate to have had a positive experience and always found the right person to ask for help.

Maltese culture is one of the friendliest in the world.”

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personally, I would say we have adapted well as a couple in terms of juggling business travel and priorities, but we have also been very fortunate to have flexibility from both of our companies. We have managed to create a good work-life balance by crafting time as a family away from any work factors. We are acutely aware that we work to live and not live to work.”

Looking back on their move to Malta, Nick recalls that they both wanted to move away from the UK but were uncertain where they wanted to go. “At the time we didn’t know much about Malta or what it had to offer from a career or lifestyle perspective,” he explains. “We initially arrived here on a two-week vacation 10 years ago but decided not to return to UK when the two weeks were up!”

They say they were both fortunate to begin their careers in iGaming, which meant it was easy to settle into Malta life in a very short space of time. “Of course it was a challenge initially because we had to start from scratch in a new industry and country, which also meant we had to build our professional and personal network

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Of course that’s not to say that Christine and Nick didn’t have their reservations about going all-in on island life. They were originally quite concerned about Malta’s size and worried there might not be much to do here. “We got over that pretty quickly though!” Christine quips. “The island has so many hidden gems. There’s lots to explore and so much of it is family-friendly. It’s also central to several European hubs, so it’s easy to take a flight for a weekend break and be in another lovely destination within a couple of hours. As we became parents, we also became more appreciative of how safe Malta is, and its excellent options for international schooling.”

If they had to pick a challenge to life here, the couple say they would zero in on childcare and schooling hours – which can be difficult to manage with both of them working full-time in demanding roles. “We don’t have regular family support so we’ve had to adapt and prepare in advance around additional support day-to-day, when we travel and during the threemonth summer school break,” Christine says. “We have managed to overcome this by engaging our daughter in afterschool activities and various clubs and activities, though. There is also a summer school option but the fact it is only available for >

SUMMER 2020 EXPATS

“THE PAST 12 MONTHS HAVE SEEN SIGNIFICANT OPERATIONS RELOCATE TO MALTA, THUS ENSURING INCREASED JOB OPPORTUNITIES AND GROWTH PROSPECTS ON THE ISLAND.” >

reduced hours means we do need additional options too.”

Switching their thoughts to the iGaming sector specifically, the couple agrees that things have changed in their 10 years here. The space is becoming more saturated, with competition increasing and regulation playing an important role. They believe there is still growth potential for the industry in general, and Malta has an important part to play in that.

Offering their advice to individuals or families thinking of moving here, Nick and Christine stress the importance of shopping around the property market and organising schooling well in advance of a move, as there can be long waiting lists. “Make getting your Maltese ID card your priority the day you arrive, as you will need it,” Nick goes on to say.

“Then, from a business perspective, do what you can to get involved in local iGaming network events. That will give you access to a massive pool of knowledge and experiences that will be openly shared, and will make a huge difference to how quickly and well you settle in.”

“The revitalisation of the MGA licensing regime has made it easier and more attractive for operators and suppliers to relocate to Malta,” Christine continues. “Over the past 12 months we’ve seen significant operations relocate to Malta, thus ensuring increased job opportunities and growth prospects on the island. COVID-19 signalled a major swing to remote working but, as an industry, this wasn’t new, and both operators and employees were highly adaptable. The industry has also shifted focus towards Esports, which helped gain the vertical growth needed to facilitate additional opportunities that were lost when traditional sport betting events were paused.”

That network is something that the couple have missed in the last two months of working from home. In fact, as we wrap up our chat, they say that they are looking forward to the increasing sense of normality that is returning. “Travelling was a regular part of our working life pre-COVID-19 and we’re eager to start that again,” they say.

But they won’t be away from Malta for too long. “We’ve chosen the island as our home for the foreseeable future and love the life we have created here. We are excited about planning an outdoorsy summer and catching up with family and friends.”

“As for our careers in the sector, we very much remain committed to driving that part of our lives forward and watching the ever-changing regulatory landscape develop.

We welcome any challenges and growth opportunities that it may bring,” they add.

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SUMMER 2020 PRESS

Gozo: A smart island for your investment If you are seeking locations for a European base, or looking to expand or relocate your operations, Gozo definitely warrants some serious attention. Companies relocating here can count on excellent transport links, super-fast internet connectivity, competitive tax rates, a skilled local workforce, networking opportunities, and an idyllic island lifestyle offering 300 days of sunshine a year!

Let’s give you a glimpse into life here. Gozo is a captivating island steeped in history, with stunning coastal and rural landscapes, beautiful beaches and landmarks, and a laidback family-focused way of living. The island’s natural beauty and relaxed pace attracts an eclectic mix of artists, professionals and academics.

Although just 67 km² in size, Gozo has huge potential and big opportunities for you to grow your business.

Consider our sister island Malta: its economy continues to flourish as a centre of excellence for the finance and gaming sectors. But it is Gozo that’s now commanding attention from savvy investors inspired by the island’s economic potential, and they are also wowed by the great quality of life we have here.

Visitors enjoy our clean-living lifestyle, coastal walkways, historical treasures and stunning beaches. They love discovering our restaurants, and savouring mouthwatering Maltese cuisine while watching the world go by. Beyond that, Gozo’s reliance on tourism means there’s always a plentiful supply of rental properties; from character farmhouses with pools, to modern townhouses and stylish seafront retreats.

The realisation of Gozo’s Innovation Hub and the installation of an additional fibre-optic cable across the island ensures Gozo can credibly offer next-level digital solutions to tech, digital and online-based companies.

Identifying and integrating emerging technologies assures investors of our ongoing commitment to Gozo’s Smart Island Digital Economy, and this has tempted partner companies like Microsoft and Google to invest and commit to a future here.

Investors bringing businesses here are eligible for exclusive financial schemes administered by The Ministry for Gozo, like our Employee Generation Refund Scheme which gives employers partial salary reimbursements for newly-recruited Gozo-based staff.

There are also Business Relocation Schemes to Gozo, which provide grants to help newcomer businesses penetrate the local marketplace with a lucrative ‘startup’ financial package. Finally, there are financial grants that incentivise back office establishments in Gozo. It’s all waiting to be discovered!

Distance learning done right At Leicester, students aren’t confined by academic boundaries. Students are given the space and support in which to be creative and develop both personally and professionally. Programmes are contemporary in content and provide the specialist subject knowledge and international outlook demanded by employers around the world. With access to unparalleled academic resources and facilities, students gain real-world transferable skills that will ensure they stay competitive in the global job market, and join the University of Leicester’s ranks of alumni who have made positive contributions to their industries and fields of expertise.

As a Top 25, UK-based university, Leicester has always been home to the great minds; academics, researchers and students who aren’t afraid to challenge the status quo, advance new practices, and develop a fresh way of thinking. Through ground-breaking research, the university’s distance learning students tackle emerging social, corporate, economic, political and scientific issues head on and set the agenda where others simply follow.

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Represented exclusively by FHRD, the University provides Diploma, Bachelors, Masters and Doctorate programmes to a thriving base of candidates from all walks of life. FHRD was one of the first providers in Malta to offer academic distance-learning programmes, with the first intake of Maltese students in 2000.

To learn more about the University of Leicester programmes and join the almost 2,000 Maltese alumni, email dl@fhrd.org, visit www.fhrd.org or call 2131 3550.

SUMMER 2020 PRESS

Treat your employees with The House of Lunch Wouldn’t it be nice to be welcomed with breakfast when walking into the office? Or to stop mid-day for a hearty lunch? Karrot & Ko. – The House of Lunch – seamlessly offers these simple but effective ways of showing appreciation to your staff and team.

What better incentive to start off the week than with a light breakfast on a Monday morning? Platters of fresh summer fruits, freshly-baked pastries, selections of bread, freshlysqueezed orange juice, protein smoothies, yogurt cups, healthy avocados or cheeky cheesecakes.

Treating employees to breakfast, lunches or snacks can be a great incentive. Karrot & Ko. knows this well and so do its clients. The House of Lunch has been breaking down barriers between employees and creating pleasant work environments simply through its tasty and wholesome food.

Karrot & Ko. operates a café and a production kitchen in the Central Business District in Birkirkara, while also running a number of school and office canteens. For the past eight years, the company has also specialised in B2B and contract catering services, lunch ideas and outside catering. At a time when the catering industry is full of amateurs, Karrot and Ko. has the infrastructure and experience to offer a flawless and timely service.

The House of Lunch is able to provide canteen facilities based on your requirements.

From morning breakfasts to mid-morning and midafternoon snacks, and from lunches to pre-packed snacks for those long nighters, there is a solution for every meal.

Should you want to provide a ‘canteen service’ without offering canteen facilities, Karrot & Ko. may even provide daily or weekly lunches and breakfasts that can be offered both individually-packed or as a ‘help yourself’ meal.

Since 2019, Karrot & Ko. – together with its IT partners – have introduced an innovative online canteen service where companies may offer office meals. Employees, through an online system, may place their daily/weekly order and have it delivered, individually-packed, in time for breakfast or lunch.

Karrot and Ko. caters for any office size and budget. From stocking fridges and fruit bowls to fully-fledged breakfast or lunch options. Whether you are a small office of 10 employees or an office community of 400, the House of Lunch can come up with solutions adapted to your needs and office space.

Karrot & Ko. ‘bringing their House into yours’.

For more information, visit www.karrotandko.com or call 2752 7768.

Trust Payments subsidiary granted sports betting vendor licence in Colorado The US branch of Trust Payments, the leading unified payments Group for global pay-in, pay-out and customer journey technologies, has been granted a vendor licence for its US gaming platform by Colorado’s Division of Gaming.

The licence permits the company to process payments on legal bets placed within the state as well as run customer onboarding and verification on players for the licensed operators within Colorado.

capable at maturity of annually generating as much as $6 billion in bets, $400 million in gross operator revenue, and $40 million in tax revenue, according to estimates

by PlayColorado.com, which analyses the state’s newlyregulated sports betting market.

About Trust Payments Trust Payments is a global unified payments group for global pay-in, pay-out and customer journey technologies. Services include a global cloud-based payment platform with point of sale offering and US gaming platform, backed by acquiring.com, the company’s own EU licensed institution. Trust Payment’s passion for customer experience extends beyond merchants to its partner and developer communities.

This community benefits from its 20-plus years of payments experience and unrivalled customer focus.

Its trusted and robust technology solutions deliver 1.6 billion transactions annually for 7,000 active clients across eCommerce, mobile and Point of Sale (POS) and in 14 settlement currencies. With over 160 payment types and growing, the company is transforming the way people pay. Trust Payments love technology but, when its community members want to speak to them, they guarantee a real human every time, 24/7.

Jonathan O’Connor, CEO of the US division of EU-based Trust Payments said: “I’m delighted that we have been awarded a licence in Colorado. This complements our existing licences in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Nevada, and positions us for further expansion and growth in the US. Our ambition is to support operators in all US states where sports betting is legal.”

Kevin Dodson, SVP Gaming at Trust Payments added: “This is great news for all our existing and future customers. We are looking forward to delivering our unified offering for pay-in and pay-out services to operators within Colorado.”

Sports betting has been legal in Colorado since May 2020, making Colorado one of 23 states to have passed legislation allowing players to place bets on sporting events since the Supreme Court ruled the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) to be unconstitutional, thus allowing individual states the power to regulate sports betting within their borders. Colorado has a bright future,

Visit them at www.trustpayments.com and www.acquiring.com.

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SUMMER 2020 COACH

ASK THE COACH

M A N AG I N G R E M O T E TEAMS FOR EFFICIENCY A N D M O T I VAT I O N

As a C-level executive with over 20 years’ experience, Marion Gamel knows what it takes to keep teams motivated – including online. She started her career as an entrepreneur before working for Google, Eventbrite and Betsson Group. Marion has been coaching entrepreneurs, founders and C-executives around the world since 2015. In this regular column, she provides advice to business leaders to empower them on issues ranging from improving efficiency to driving transformation and international growth within the company.

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here is nothing new about remote management: most gaming companies have employees in international locations, some of them working from home in non-regulated or in brand new territories.

What COVID-19 has brought to the surface is that there is an art to remote-managing people that was not indispensable to master when only 10 per cent of your team was working from home. As leaders now often manage 100 per cent of their team remotely, best practices should be shared, understood and adapted.

What are we really talking about when we refer to the challenges of remote management?

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Well, the core of the challenge is a by-product of the long period of isolation, and, questions are raised about how to keep team members engaged and on track.

The risk with a lowering level of motivation is that it spreads throughout entire teams like wildfire. On Monday, you have one demotivated employee; by Friday, 80 per cent of your team is wondering why they do what they do.

Here are a handful of tips I have learnt working in tech for the past 20 years, managing international and isolated team members, with a focus on keeping motivation high, as well as alignment with the company strategy.

SUMMER 2020 COACH

YOU’RE DEMOTIVATED? WE’RE DEMOTIVATED! LET’S TALK! At some point, lack of motivation affects everyone who works solo. Let’s get the guilt out of the way! When I coach leaders, I often ask them how they speak with their team members about demotivation. 99 per cent of leaders simply don’t! It’s the elephant in the video conference meeting.

Leaders, too, can suffer from a lack of motivation at times. When I repeat to them what they’ve just opened up to me about and ask them how it sounds: ‘Understandable’, ‘Like what a lot of people go through’, and ‘Authentic’ are common answers.

So I invite leaders to open up with direct reports about their own occasional lack of motivation. While

you’re having a one-on-one online meeting with one of your direct reports, try something like ‘I have been procrastinating about [task] because I feel demotivated right now. Does that ever happen to you?’ and see what comes up.

By turning demotivation from a taboo into a valid topic and by framing it as a reality we’re all dealing with, leaders can deepen the bonds that unite their team, based on authentic feelings and experiences. So talk about demotivation with your team members! Ask them to share their tips to get motivated again. Try to find out when it happens and to whom, so your team can turn into a support system.

CARROT AND STICK: CLEARLY IDENTIFY THE CARROT

(YOU WON’T EVEN NEED THE STICK!)

In today’s context, the factors that lead to demotivation are shared among many: isolation, lack of structure, distractions, uncertainty about the future, lack of benchmarks, and so on.

But the good news is that factors that lead to high levels of motivation are also shared among many. So find out what they are in your team and for each of your direct reports, and use them.

During one-on-one meetings, ask about times when your direct report was the most motivated. Understand what his sources of motivation are. Was it a recent big win? Reward or recognition? A new role or responsibility? The start of a new year or quarter? Use this information to lead this particular person moving forward. New circumstances call for a new leadership approach. It’s the role of leaders to adapt.

BE CAPTIVATING: INVITE YOUR TEAM TO THE BALCONY When people feel isolated, it is important for leaders to remind them why they joined the company in the first place. Leaders are the only ones who see the entire context of what’s going on as, below them, people tend to focus on their task and on delivering to the best of their ability.

Leaders should share what they ‘see at the top’ with their team more often, and across more formats. I encourage leaders to become aware of what they know (because they’re at the top) that their team does not know, because it could be helpful and motivating. Executive coaches call it ‘from the dance floor to the balcony’: • Employees are on the dance floor, where they dance among team members and see all the

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details of what’s being done. They’re ‘in the trenches’. They see in detail what’s being worked on around them.

• Leaders are on the balcony. From this high viewpoint they see the entire venue, the dance floor where employees are dancing, the cloakroom, the bar, the entrance door… However, they don’t always know the mood on the dance floor.

Leaders need to invite their team ‘to the balcony’ often to give them a long-lasting glimpse of what’s going on ‘up there’, which will help to put their own work into a broader context. It will also help them to stay motivated and focused on the projects that fuel the company’s big objectives. >

SUMMER 2020 COACH

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PEOPLE FORGET NUMBERS, STRATEGIES AND CLEVER QUOTES. BUT THEY NEVER FORGET A GOOD STORY! Stories are used from birth to communicate complex concepts such as courage, loyalty, kindness, and so on. I encourage leaders to do the same at work. You want to talk to your team about resilience?

Efficiency? Keeping your eyes on the ball? Giving it all you have? Collaboration? Making the most of an opportunity? Share a story! Structure your message into a memorable and logical thread. Each leader should find the storytelling structure that best suits him and customise it. For instance, one of these storytelling structures is the Intentional Change Model. It works for most situations, and uses five steps:

MANAGING TIME WHEN BENCHMARKS ARE FADING One of the main differences about working from home is that time is a lot more fluid and seems to disappear! In the office, you just need to look around you to know what time it is:

1. Where do we want to get to? Fast forward to January 2021 for instance. Think about your company size, impact, revenue, position… Make it aspirational.

2. Where we are now? The good and the bad.

3. How are we going to get there? The steps and the timeline matter. Explain what the journey’s likely to look like, step-by-step.

4. What will need to be tested and learned along the way? Describe the lab mentality you want to create, where even ‘failures’ are valuable if they bring learning. It’s not going to be a straight line – there may even be some drawbacks. But what matters is psychological safety, an agile mentality and to keep on making progress towards our big goal.

5. What resources are at our disposal? HR, training, colleagues, the intranet, Slack, shared know-how, experts, mentors, coaching… Your team should feel supported and empowered as support functions and programmes are available to all!

• Smells of coffee? It’s before 10am.

• People starting to leave their desk in groups?

It’s lunchtime.

• Gathering in the kitchenette? It’s snack-time so probably around 3.30pm.

None of these benchmarks occur when you’re working from home. So how do you control and manage time more efficiently when it seems to have become much more volatile?

A simple tip is to block chunks of time in your calendar and allocate them to specific tasks on your to-do list. Slice your day into a multitude of 30-minute units. If you’re not efficient or motivated during a specific time slot, move on to the next task. Don’t focus on what you just failed to achieve, do something else! Tomorrow you can allocate a new time slot for the task you did not complete today.

FEW PEOPLE CAN RUN A MARATHON, BUT EVERYONE CAN GIVE YOU THEIR BEST 100-METRE SPRINT! When people are isolated, long-term goals mean less to them. They tend to find ‘now and here’ guidance a lot more helpful. Some employees even admit that, what is most helpful to them when working remotely, is to have a quick call with their manager every morning to help decide their to-do list for the day.

This means leaders should help their direct reports focus on what needs to be done now. Ambiguity is the mother of lethargy. Help to lower ambiguity by agreeing on shortterm goals and immediate recognition and rewards. Shorten the seasonality of objectives and key results (OKRs) from quarterly to monthly, make feedback immediate instead of bi-annual. Remote teams often respond better to sustained rhythm that comes in short waves, as short as a day!

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REMOTE MANAGEMENT HAS ALWAYS BEEN CHALLENGING FOR LEADERS Make sure you don’t let demotivation settle in. There are several ways to help teams stay on track, from talking openly about the elephant in the room and identifying what motivates people and using it tangibly, to using storytelling to keep people engaged, encouraging people to work in short bursts of energy, and blocking time in calendars to accommodate and plan the execution of each task. Pick the tips you feel are the best-suited to your style and values as a leader, and the most helpful to your team.

Test, enhance and customise!

Got a question for Marion? Email her on marion.gamel@gmail.com

SUMMER 2020 PAPARAZZI

PAPA RAZZI

Life has certainly looked a little different over the past few weeks as so many of your events were put on hold or cancelled completely. We didn’t want to overlook the social side of 2020 entirely, so we’ve chosen social shots that showcase the community all the same – some dating back to those pre-social distancing days, and others from your activities online.

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BETSSON

1. Supporting the environment Earlier this year, Betsson Group partnered with Saggar on a quest to transform the Maltese environment in a sustainable manner by planting one million trees.

Betsson has been in Malta for over 15 years now, and the team cares a great deal about the island. By supporting the planting of trees, they hope to improve the environment and climate for all who live here.

2-3. Betsson wins again It was exciting news when Betsson was recognised at the Gaming Intelligence Awards, and was awarded the ‘Socially Responsible Operator of the Year’. Then, at the International Gaming Awards, the company scooped two amazing awards: the ‘Great Place to Work’ award and the ‘Innovator of the Year’ award.

4. Taking training online Like so many companies, Betsson went completely online during COVID-19. Here’s a shot of some of the team getting their Foundation Training done online at the start of the pandemic.

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SUMMER 2020 PAPARAZZI

BLEXR GAMING

5. Making donations Blexr Gaming made a donation of €1,500 to the Malta Trust, which worked with the Valletta Foodbank to help feed people affected by the pandemic lockdown. The company also donated 500 bottles of mineral water to COVID-19 patients at Mater Dei Hospital, to help keep them hydrated while they battled the disease.

6. WiiG Blexr launched its Women in iGaming (WiiG) meetup, to create a safe space for females in the industry to come together and support one another. The panel of speakers, as well as a packed room, met at Crust in St Julian’s to discuss various topics relating to iGaming.

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NETGAMING

7. ICE London NetGaming made the trip to ICE London in February, to attend one of the world’s largest iGaming shows. This industry platform showcases the latest and greatest, giving those present the chance to network, and meet existing and potential clients.

NetGaming was set up in the Super Car display area, where it celebrated its brand association with MTV and Shelby.

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SUMMER 2020 PAPARAZZI

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SWINTT

8-10. ICE London Swintt also made the journey to ICE London, where one of the highlights was the CasinoBeats London Baby party. It took place at the city’s Proud Embankment where Swintt was a headline sponsor. There they entertained friends, partners and famous faces from across the iGaming industry.

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TRUELAB/TRUEFLIP

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11. Online Activities Like everyone else, life at TrueLab/TrueFlip went online when COVID-19 hit – but the team made the best of it.

Zoom meetings were a source of good conversation, and the team even connected for online poker tournaments.

12. Adventures in Ukraine Before that though, key members of the team travelled to Kiev for a meeting that led to great results – professionally and socially!

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SUMMER 2020 PAPARAZZI

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LEOVEGAS

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13. Women’s Day Celebration To mark Women’s Day, LeoVegas held an event that focused on equality for all.

14. The Friday Quiz Fridays meant online quiz day for LeoVegas throughout lockdown. Employees would get together for a social call and some light competition, led by quizmaster and Head of Content Brian Hallas.

15-17. Winter Summit Back before social distancing, the Winter Summit was one of the highlights of the LeoVegas calendar.

It proved to be an excellent opportunity for learning and networking for the whole team.

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