‘People want to make up for opportunities missed over past two years’ – Michael Warrington

As Malta looks forward to the first ‘normal’ Christmas since the pandemic, expectations for a festive holiday period are running high. Companies want to make up for subdued staff events that took place over the past two years, while people want to make the most of their time with friends and loved ones.

AX Group CEO Michael Warrington agrees that “people want to make up for the opportunities missed during 2020 and 2021” and expects there to be far more celebrations.

Indeed, the CEO was asked to comment on what makes this festive season particular, and what he expects the new year will bring. 

As we move towards the end of 2022, CEOs try to anticipate the future based on trends identified over the past months. The main discussion points among C-level executives globally throughout Q3 of 2022 have been economic slowdown, raw materials, and Industry 4.0 (which especially applies to smart factory strategies within the manufacturing industry).

It was found that mention of sustainability decreased in the last quarter, as the topics highlighted above are taking precedence.

Speaking to MaltaCEOs.mt about these trends and how significant they are in Malta, Mr Warrington agrees that local business leaders are preoccupied by the same concerns and added that “climate change is also high on our agenda, as are rising interest rates.”

The CEO’s advice when asked about prevailing uncertainty is that “economic downturns all come and go.” Instead, he suggests focusing on “long term goals and vision will help CEO’s guide their organisations through challenging periods.”

Speaking of his business and personal goals as we move towards the new year, Mr Warrington stated that “the business priorities are to complete our key capital projects in order to ensure that our investments start to pay back.” On a more personal level, the CEO’s “personal goals are to ensure that the business does well in these challenging times and that we do not forgo any opportunities.”

Mr Warrington’s outlook for the new year is indeed positive, as he feels that “Malta’s economy will continue to grow” and he hopes that “in 2023 tourism arrivals will again reach 2019 levels.” He also believes “that international political tensions will ease in 2023 creating better stability which will help boost economic growth further.”