Malta’s position in the middle of the Mediterranean has long been a key factor in its economic fortunes, which have ebbed and flowed in synchrony with regional developments.
Standing ready to pilot shipping stakeholders, come what may, is Miriam Camilleri, founder of MCConsult, a boutique maritime advisory firm and service provider. The firm was launched in the early days when the concept of ‘Maritime Malta’ was still in its infancy. Today, MCConsult is, in its own right, a noteworthy stakeholder of a robust and wide encompassing vibrant reality.
Ms Camilleri’s fascination with the industry goes back to her childhood days, when the ship repair yard owned by her father presented a window into an amazing world full of potential.
In fact, after having been in the employ of Air Malta for a number of years – “I was the first woman to work in in the weight and balance (load control) of aircraft,” she says, referring to the technical job of trimming and adjusting the stability of the aircraft – she jumped at the opportunity when asked to move to the maritime industry to help in logistical affairs.
“Once there, I never turned back,” she says. “Once the sea calls you, it won’t let you go.”
Ms Camilleri was eventually roped in to provide support to the team tasked with the review of shipping legislation as part of the Maritime Malta concept being developed towards the end of the 1980s, a period when the country was opening itself up to the world.
She describes the opportunity to become intimately acquainted with the process with gratitude, saying she was “lucky” to be involved in this holistic approach.
One thing led to another and Ms Camilleri was appointed as the first female director on the board of the national cargo handling company, spurring her to further her studies with the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, whose Malta branch she now chairs.
In time, the maritime call and the family spirit of entrepreneurship impelled her to set up her own company, MCConsult, to this day still proudly driven on by the motto that has led Ms Camilleri to success: Proud to be of service.
“I was 38 when I decided to move on,” she says, “at the turn of the millennium. It was a time when you start thinking, ‘It’s now or never’. You need a lot of strength, courage and drive to make it, in any business, but perhaps more so in what was then still a male-dominated and international sector like shipping.”
It was not an easy step to take: “It was very difficult to leave where I was. But I felt I needed to move on and start my own business. I was always very independent, and I wanted to continue building on that.”
Nowadays, when she meets women who are unsure whether they should follow the call to strike out on their own, Ms Camilleri points to her own experience.
“Women I meet too often express too much doubt in themselves. ‘As if I can,’ they tell me. Of course they can! Of course you can! But you absolutely need to have belief in yourself and commitment.”
She explains that the first year of MCConsult was very difficult: “All you do is spend money, travel, try and meet new clients, venture into new horizons, and simply try and get more involved in the industry to get your name out there. I did this because I believed that my efforts would eventually bear fruit, and indeed they did.”
Key to this success, she believes, is a cautious approach followed by firm decision-making: “My risks are very calculated, always grounded in the knowledge that nobody owes you anything and that nothing should be expected to come on a silver platter. Reaping the benefits of any decision requires perseverance and perspiration, and a great deal of belief in what you are doing.”
This self-belief, she continues, can be found in any individual once they find the thing they excel at.
“If you don’t excel, it is very difficult to believe in yourself, and to eventually make a mark," says Ms Camilleri. "For us, excellence ties into our motto - we are proud to be of service because we know we are providing an excellent service. Once you know that you can do a good job, it helps tremendously. It gives you the confidence to sit in front of very important individuals and speak with authority. If you do not believe in yourself, in your own expertise, it will not be easy. Yet, to achieve excellence you must always strive for that one more step towards full excellence. I call it the paradox of excellence.”
Turning to the state of the Maltese industry today, Ms Camilleri is proud of the current status of the Maltese flag as the largest shipping register in Europe and one of the largest in the world, and of its appeal to all kinds of owners, managers, operators and financial institutions. “I see a flag that can cater to the needs of all maritime stakeholders, with its advantages always increasing. We try to reach out to everybody, and that’s very important for sustainable growth.”
Asked about possible improvements, she says that targeted updates are more important than large scale reform, with certain pieces of legislation ripe for redrafting to ensure that Malta continues to serve the maritime industry’s needs into the future.
“From the structural side, the setting up of a maritime court has been on the agenda for too long, and it is imperative that it happens,” she says, adding that “hopefully, I think - I want to believe – we are nearly there.”
Just as pressing, however, is the need for the deep expertise seen in many private operators to be matched by similar expertise on the side of regulatory and ancillary institutions.
“Unfortunately, we do not always get the support the industry requires,” says Ms Camilleri. “This is not because the Government is not listening or unwilling to provide support, nor that such support cannot be given. More simply, we do not always have the right experts in the appropriate fields.”
Banks, for example, are a major sticking point in the continued development of the local maritime sector. “Banks need to understand the needs of the industry, and what it is all about. What is shipping? What are these ships transporting? This understanding is crucial to the forward march of the industry.”
Similarly, the compliance regime has become more onerous, and the workforce, she says, is not sufficient to meet this expansion. “The availability of specialised human resources is a very important issue, one that needs to be addressed by the country as a whole,” she says.
Ms Camilleri has high hopes for a re-invigoration of Malta’s maritime tradition through education, saying, “We are a maritime nation, and this is embedded in our tradition. From their early days Maltese youth need to rediscover this heritage, and remember that we have a claim on the sea, by right.”
Turning finally to the state of MCConsult today, Ms Camilleri speaks in typical fashion: “MCConsult today is where it should be after years of hard work and perseverance. We work very hard – not just myself, but the whole team. We never relent on our belief that we are proudly there to serve our clients to the best of our ability and knowledge.”
With her daughter, Lisa, now at the helm, Ms Camilleri is confident that MCConsult will continue to see bright days ahead.
“Handing over the baton is a process,” she says, “and not an easy one. However, I trust that the company will become stronger and reach its projections.”
She says that the firm has a “very strong, very loyal” client base which is pivotal to its continued expansion through their recommendations. Getting new clients through word of mouth, for Ms Camilleri, is “one of the biggest satisfactions you can have when you operate in such a volatile industry, one that the world cannot do without”.
As if her plate is not full enough, Ms Camilleri still finds time to engage in voluntary not for profit activities. She chairs the Malta branch of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, represents the Korean Register of Shipping, sits on the board of the Malta Maritime Forum, and engages herself actively as the Honorary Consul for Georgia.
Whatever her activity, for Miriam, and for MCConsult, the approach never varies: take nothing for granted, never relent in the belief that even at your best excellence remains one step away, and always be proud to be of service.
