Two Malta BNI initiatives for Maltese entrepreneurs

Malta BNI, a business referral organisation linked to more than 10,000 other BNI chapters across the globe, has launched two initiatives for September 2021: an international meeting with entrepreneurs from Rome and a business briefing about neurodiversity at the workplace.

On Tuesday 14 September, Malta-based entrepreneurs who are envisaging expansion into foreign markets, and in Italy in particular, may want to explore a number of leads. On that day, Malta BNI will be having a zoom meeting with BNI Rome International from 7.30am to 10.30am. The meeting will be conducted in English. BNI Rome International team includes members from several companies involved in such sectors as legal and financial advisors, export managers, translation and interpretation, training and consultancy, real estate, recruitment and much more. Visitors from Malta, including non-BNI members, are welcome to attend this free session.

Entrepreneurs who will join the meeting will have the opportunity to present themselves, their products or services, their needs and markets of interest. Members and visitors alike attending this virtual meeting will have the opportunity to make a sales pitch introducing their respective services or products while exploring possibilities of business cooperation.

For the meeting with Italian entrepreneurs, one can register here by Saturday 11 September at 12noon:  https://bit.ly/3gZT58f

This particular chapter was created in Italy, where there are over 400 BNI chapters, to act as a bridge between entrepreneurs based in Rome and the world in both directions. It was created after listening to the needs of a number of Italian entrepreneurs who wanted to expand their business abroad through business communications in English. This meeting is the 8th one in this series of international meetings organised by Malta BNI since July 2020.

The following day, on Wednesday 15 September at 12noon, the subject of Neurodiversity at the workplace will be tackled during the 11th session of the BNI Business Briefing delivered by business consultant Joseph K. Muscat. Born in Toronto, Canada, at a very young age Joseph was diagnosed with learning difficulties, now called Neurodiversity. This condition has always existed at the workplace but has come to the forefront during Covid-19 as employers, managers and team members discovered both the challenges they face and their preferred working conditions.

Neurodiversity refers to the learning difficulties that people are born with, such as dyslexia, ADHD, dyscalculia, Asperger’s syndrome or autism, to name a few. Neurodiverse employees and entrepreneurs face challenges on the job not just because of these diversities, but as well because business focuses too much on the challenges these persons face rather than on their strengths. Most businesses have no policy or strategies to recruit such persons or how to on-board them as they struggle to understand how to utilise a neurodiverse person’s strength as this would respect the individual and, in turn, improve productivity and profit.

Muscat will be explaining how such a positive attitude will create and develop a culture of awareness, skill development for businesses, and an environment that is both inclusive and diverse. Despite facing these challenges during his school years, he graduated and proceeded on to University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts with Honours Degree.

After graduating, he started his own business of professional photography in the portrait and commercial industry. In 2014, his family moved their life and business to Malta. During that time, Joseph and his wife transformed their business model, which gave Joseph the chance to explore many other opportunities. Throughout the years, Joseph has had to face the challenges in managing his neurodiversity within his business, with clients, and employers. It is because of these experiences and the lack of external support that he then decided to establish his consultancy business. His aim is to bring both awareness and skills development in the business world.

For the 40-minute Malta Business Briefing on Neurodiversity at the workplace, one can register here by Sunday 12th September at 12noon: https://bit.ly/3DJQVDM