Lesson Learned. And Learning Means Growing.

Mark recently assumed the role of Chief Visionary Officer, a title he chose to reflect the viewpoint from where he wants to be looking at the company he founded and leads. “I did not invent this title, and this executive function is like a CEO or a COO, widely adopted abroad. However, certain fellow islanders (who could do well to expand their narrow mindset) and a recent post on social media sought to ridicule my designation. Some people could do with a little humility,” says MARK AQUILINA.

“I chose to kick off this last article for 2022 in this way because this past year has taught me many things. The most important lesson was how important it is to stick to your values and remain humble. “Humility, I have learned, must never be confused with meekness; humility is being open to the ideas of others.” – Simon Sinek. 

“Humility is key in everything we do and essential for leaders. It helps us keep ourselves in check because when you are humble, you remain aware of your faults and weaknesses, and as a result, you become more open to learning.”

“I learned that once you admit that you have more to learn, you set yourself on the path to more growth. Seeking growth with humility is also a way to grow more sustainably,” says Mark.

Mark explains how sustainability has been a tremendous business driver for NOUV’s operations over the past two years.

“In January, it will be two years since NOUV acquired Tuning Fork Advisory, a business advisory firm specialising in business performance optimisation, transformation, competence building, people management, and sustainability. This move not only brought us in line with international best practices by allowing us also to offer specialised advisory services such as business process re-engineering, operational reviews, and environmental management. It was another learning curve for us at NOUV because our new colleagues from Tuning Fork brought unprecedented expertise, which has enriched our service offering a lot.”

“More importantly, it signified an important milestone for our growth strategy at NOUV and proved our resilience and predisposition to grow and achieve new heights. Indeed, acquiring a sustainability expert company taught us more about how to grow our organisation sustainably, and this was one of my more important lessons this year.”

“Another vital lesson I learned is the value of communication with our stakeholders outside the company and internally with all our people. When I founded NOUV in 2008, we were only a handful of people, and communication was much easier. Today, although we still intend to consider ourselves a boutique management consulting firm, we are a team of nearly sixty people, so communication between the various teams is crucial”. 

“We communicate internally constantly, including publishing a quarterly internal newsletter which we also share with our clients and stakeholders. This newsletter keeps everyone updated with our firm’s journey and lets us get to know each other better.”

Mark notes that growing sustainably should always be a priority and that sustainable growth means being sensitive to market requirements and positioning oneself to cater to those requirements. 

“Now that NOUV is nicely gearing up to offer its clients a holistic business consultancy service, we also seek new growth opportunities in other areas, especially in the Risk Assurance sphere. We see our Internal Audit division as our biggest area of growth, and 2023 will signal even more growth in this area, which should further strengthen our position in the market.”

“Another lesson I have learned is the importance of pushing one’s company to strengthen its knowledge base and never to stop learning, which is one of the biggest strengths I see in NOUV. And even though NOUV is a boutique firm run by a relatively young team, being a knowledge-based company has positioned us in a way that we can now offer a large pool of disciplines from professionals with a wealth of experience.”

But perhaps Mark’s biggest lesson this year was the importance of nurturing loyalty within the organisation. 

“Loyalty can only come when the team members share the same values, aspirations, and goals. Values are essential to any organisation; they define who we are, how we operate, what we stand for and how we want others to see us.”

“This point is particularly crucial because when you are in business, you are essentially on an infinite journey. You want to be on that journey with people who share your same values, objectives and purpose. Only when everyone is on the same track following the same path can we aspire to the same goal.”

Looking ahead, Mark plans to spend the remaining few days of 2022 formulating his aspirations for next year.

“Undoubtedly, one of my biggest aspirations – and I know that all the partners and team at NOUV share the same aspiration – is that we continue to see ourselves as a reliable contributor to an industry which, notwithstanding the volatility of the past couple of years, has a lot to offer.”

“I am particularly proud of our team, and the confidence that the people at NOUV give me convinces me that we have what it takes to chase this aspiration together.”

“On a broader level, another aspiration is that our country takes the much-needed political decision to modernise its political system, fiscal legislation, and public service system, coupled with bringing our educational system in line with the best models in Europe. Again, we must be humble and admit that we must step things up.” 

Collectively, we must aspire to a significant cultural evolution starting from ourselves. On these islands, more than anywhere else, we need each other and the sooner we learn that, the better for us all. We hope for a better future where these aspirations will become a reality. 

Wishing all readers a peaceful Christmas season and a better 2023!