Policy rewritten to assist cash flow and support commercial broker customers
This article is sponsored by BOQ Group
Karen Carter believes in giving back to an industry where she has excelled. As the BOQ Group’s general manager, commercial third party, she shares her insights and experience as a trusted mentor with professionals within and outside the industry and colleagues at the customer-focused, innovative lender.
On the business front, Carter’s leadership has significantly contributed to capability uplift initiatives for business bankers, business development managers and branches. She has played a role in developing and delivering training programs that enhance the skills and knowledge of the company’s workforce. In conjunction with Accendo Financial, these efforts have enabled the team to provide high-quality client service.
One of her professional development highlights has been participating in the BOQ Women in Finance mentoring program, where she engaged with aspiring female leaders in the banking sector.
“Most recently, I have joined the COMPASS program, with Our Lady’s College, Annerley, that connects us with talented students who are interested in pursuing a career in banking,” says Carter. “I have been matched with a fabulous student eager to learn more about the industry and the opportunities it offers.”
Carter possesses a profound understanding of the needs of small businesses in niche industries such as health, agriculture, property and insurance that have been negatively impacted over the past few years by the pandemic, rising interest rates, increased electricity and insurance costs and rising staff expenditures.
BOQ Group’s business model helps these clients’ transform their businesses with tailored solutions to their unique challenges – and capitalise on emerging opportunities. By collaborating with leaders across the group, Carter contributes to developing market-leading products that assist with small business needs.
“We are proud to support small businesses in niche industries, especially during these challenging times,” explains Carter. “We believe these industries are vital for the Australian economy and society, and we are committed to helping them survive and thrive.”
To help ease the pressure on small businesses, BOQ Group has made the following policy changes:
- owner-occupied lending policy extended from $3 million to $5 million, allowing small businesses to borrow up to 85% LVR over a 30-year term
- reduced interest cover starting from 1.2 times actual
- reinvigorated our Lease Doc facility, changing interest cover from 1.4 times actual and increasing our loan terms
- investing in the BrokerPoint system for insurance premium funding brokers, improving user experience, turnaround time and competitiveness
“We are not a one-size-fits-all lender,” says Carter. “We deeply understand that each industry and each customer has unique needs and challenges, and we tailor our solutions accordingly. We also have deep industry knowledge and expertise, which enables us to provide relevant advice and guidance to our customers and brokers.”
Building and maintaining strong relationships with aggregators, brokers and strategic partners is central to Carter’s role, as she understands they are both the face of BOQ Group’s strong and growing brand and trusted advisors to its customers.
She has led the lender’s commercial broker unit for six years and, more recently, oversees the insurance premium funding business, driving strategic and tactical sales across all three units to support small businesses with a comprehensive range of products and services.
Her dedication to fostering a culture of innovation and excellence within the teams ensures the right people, processes and systems are in place to support growth and deliver outstanding customer service.
“We are constantly improving our customer experience and satisfaction and investing in technology and innovation to streamline our processes and enhance our capabilities,” Carter says. “Our brokers are our key partners and our competitive advantage. We support them with flexible products, competitive pricing, fast turnaround times and dedicated relationship managers.”
MPA recognised Carter as an Elite Woman of 2024, honouring her outstanding leadership, dedication to the industry, and commitment to driving growth and innovation within her organisation.
Working at a smaller bank allowed Carter to gain expertise in strategy, sales, product, policy, marketing, compliance and more. This experience taught her to be versatile and adaptable. She credits the wider BOQ team as the driving force behind its market delivery and satisfaction.
