Coming from the small island of Malta in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, an island well known for its magnificent Grand Harbour and for its long tradition in maritime services, it is my turn to sail the ship for the coming two years and it is my honour to do so.
A famous English author, Lewis Carroll, wrote that “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there!”
Much has happened since our last issue, not least of which have been the productive meeting of the FECMA Council in Italy (my sincere thanks to George and Arthur for their splendid hospitality) and the elections across all 28 members of the European Union for new members of the European Parliament.
There is a saying – “time flies when you are having fun” – and here we are, already with Issue No. 4 of CreditManager Europe. Much of this issue is taken up by full coverage of the FECMA Pan-European Credit Management Congress held at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest on 16 and 17 May, 2013.
Welcome to the third issue of CreditManager Europe, the final issue before the FECMA Pan European Credit Conference, which is being held in Budapest on 16th and 17th May, 2013. Issue 3 is packed with articles and information, both practical and relevant to today’s credit managers working in Europe, as indeed is the forthcoming Conference. The venue, the Hungarian Academy, is a magnificent building, full of history and beauty, as is the Hungarian capital itself.
Nobody ever said that being a credit manager was easy – it never has been, and if we can be certain of anything in these troubled times, it is that it is not going to get any easier in the foreseeable future. On the contrary, experience has shown over and over again that though recessions hurt, and hurt deeply, the pain continues until well into recovery.
From Berlin to Barcelona and Birmingham to Budapest,the central most important function in any business is credit management. It does not matterthat the law in Italy is not the same as the law in Belgium, or that the French speak French and the Dutch speak Dutch. Nor does it matterthat in the United Kingdom they drive on the left, and everywhere else in Europe they drive on the wrong side (or in the case of Italy, any side they choose).