Plan's Anja Pannek on regulation and professional development

Aggregator chief in discussion with MPA about changes to PD days and training following CIF recommendations

Plan's Anja Pannek on  regulation and professional development
Aggregator chief in discussion with MPA about changes to PD days and training following CIF recommendations

MPA: What does ASIC's Proposal 3 on soft-dollar benefits mean for the future of professional development events?

Anja Pannek: This is a pivotal time for our industry. The ASIC and Sedgwick reviews resulted in significant recommendations in 2017, which led to the release of the Combined Industry Forum (CIF) report in December - a major milestone for the industry. 
  
ASIC’s recommendations addressed the risk of reduced competition and poor customer outcomes arising from soft-dollar benefits.  The Combined Industry Forum (CIF) report (the industry’s response to ASIC’s recommendations) incorporates a clear focus on professional development. It promotes equal access to different learning formats and a substantive level of educational content at events. In fact, the CIF considers education and professional development for brokers not as rewards but as essential to driving competency and improved customer outcomes. 

This is a great position for us, as an industry to work towards and one that I wholly support. Ongoing education and professional development is vital, playing an essential role in supporting brokers to maintain and grow their skills, product knowledge and industry expertise. Broking is a profession and professional education and development is key to helping brokers perform at the top of their game, run successful businesses and provide great customer outcomes. 

We expect to see a greater emphasis on the educational component of events right across the industry. At PLAN Australia we have been on this journey for a number of years now and continue to innovate our professional development offering. We are looking forward to rolling out a number of exciting new initiatives in 2018.

We also expect to see changes in the way professional development events are funded via lender ‘sponsorship’. In fact, at PLAN Australia, we have already changed the way we manage sponsorship to emphasise the importance of investment in professional development. Our events are developed to add value to brokers and their business aspirations and this is recognised by our lender partners as well. We were first in market to do this – this is about getting real alignment and transparency on professional development with our members and our lender partners. 


MPA: How has the ASIC’s remuneration review and CIF response changed the perception of training and professional development provided by aggregators?

AP: I believe the ASIC review and CIF report have provided a great opportunity for all corners of the industry to reflect on the professional development provided by aggregators. 

Generally speaking, the ASIC review has revealed that professional development standards are strong but that there is room for improvement and opportunity for the industry to come together to raise these standards further. Our own decision to transition from lender ‘sponsorship’ to ‘investment’ is just one way of ensuring positive perception of professional development events.


MPA: What is the importance of professional development for brokers in ensuring good consumer outcomes?

AP: We believe in the role the broking industry plays in the lives of our members and of all Australians, and that professional development is vital to continuing to raise our standards.  
Access to quality training and education not only helps brokers grow their business, it also helps them to deliver outstanding customer service and achieve greater customer outcomes. We believe this means consumers will further value the advice coming from their broker and have increased confidence and respect in the broker-client relationship. 
To reiterate my earlier point – broking is a profession. This means professional development needs to be targeted at the technical aspects of being a broker, successful business management and in helping brokers to provide great customer outcomes. 


MPA: How is PLAN Australia investing in its professional development program?

AP: Supporting brokers to grow and develop their business has always been, and will remain, a top priority for PLAN Australia. We are continuing to invest in our program to deliver unique experiences and market-leading opportunities to our brokers.

Our focus is on preparing our members for the future of a growing and changing industry. Over the past few years we’ve evolved the level and standard of professional content at our events. This is particularly evident at our National Conference and High Performers Conference. These were historically events focused on reward and recognition but are now designed to provide a ‘money can’t buy’ educational experience, tackling the big issues and challenges facing the broking community and encouraging solutions that will take the industry forward.

We also recognise the importance of catering to brokers’ varied preferences for learning formats. While face-to-face training will always play a key role in our professional development program, our digital PD Days continue to grow in popularity and will remain a key focus for us. 

In 2018, we also will be launching a number of opportunities that are not available with other aggregators, including access to global thought leaders and experiences. For example, PLAN Australia has teamed up with the prestigious Stanford Graduate School of Business to offer a Strategic Leadership Program for six months commencing January this year. Self-funded by brokers, this program is a unique opportunity for members to learn from leading business experts via peer forums, case studies, webinars and a week-long campus training component.