Editor's Letter: Buoyed by optimism

Conferences can often be staid and awkward affairs where you have to force yourself out of your comfort zone to approach and talk to strangers. Brokers and journalists really should be experts at this, but for most of us it still doesn’t feel entirely easy or natural.

So it’s a rare and novel experience when the connections are immediately genuine and the small talk turns into something more meaningful.

That was my experience after two days in Adelaide’s Barossa Valley at the Loan Market Leading Ladies summit. Without gushing too much, the women at this conference are prime examples of the brokers this industry needs to be promoting and championing to combat the recent negative industry scrutiny.

I was struck by how ambitious, passionate and committed they are to their clients, and how they go above and beyond for them because they love to. So it also made sense when some of them expressed how gutted and depressed they felt at the constant barrage of royal commission headlines.

At MPA, we are trying to strike a balance by keeping you informed of the news and changes happening in the industry, while also celebrating brokers who are going the extra distance to achieve good customer outcomes.

This issue is a good example of that. We celebrate 2018’s Top 10 Brokerages, which are dealing with changing lending policies and increased compliance requirements by investing in back-office staff and consistent training, and strengthening their value proposition by providing personalised service and education to clients.

We also have full coverage of the MPA Aggregators Roundtable, which featured seven aggregator leaders debating the future of commissions, how the royal commission could change brokers’ obligations, and whether vertical integration should have a place. One of the highlights of the event came from a broker who asked the aggregators what they were doing to defend the industry.

I returned from the Barossa Valley feeling energised and optimistic about brokers and the value they provide. To keep this sense of optimism going, MPA would like to know how you are improving customer service, compliance, productivity and professionalism. Email me your stories at otiena.ellwand @keymedia.com.

Otiena Ellwand
editor,
MPA