ABS. For the last year I’ve been working with a great group of credit union people on the Aggregated Balance Sheet project as a strategist and facilitator. The goal is to create a new and sustainable business model. It’s about creating scale benefits while maintaining local diversity. It could help build part of the Fifth Pillar in banking in Australia. Watch this space.
Strategy. I regularly facilitate strategic planning workshops for mutuals and other organisations, and write their strategic plans. Strategic planning is not business planning. To me it’s story telling. I’ve been working closely with some clients now for 5 years. It’s a mix of hard numbers, hard work and real creativity. For more on my approach to Strategy.
Board reviews. Tricky, aren’t they? I enjoy helping clients improve their governance processes and get more out of their people. For mutuals and non-profits, being a director is hard. Even with professional skills and experience, you only ‘visit’ the organisation. Good review processes can help time-poor directors make a better contribution. As a taster of my approach, here’s a sample Survey Questionnaire.
Legal. My background is regulatory compliance in financial services. Licensing. Managing regulators – APRA, ASIC, ACCC, among others. Product design and transaction documentation e.g. credit and capital raising. I still do work in that space …
Abacus. In 2010 I wrote Making Sense of the Prudential Standards for Abacus for directors and managers grappling with the challenges of ADI compliance, and we published an update in early 2011. Contact Abacus Legal for a copy.
Sub Debt. I designed and documented a ‘small scale offering’ capital raising for AWA Credit Union, structured as a sub debt issue of unsecured notes. Under the Corporations Act you can raise up to $2m over a 12 month period by this method. It’s a powerful option for mutuals to access supplementary capital.
Electricity Derivatives. I obtained an AFSL for Energy Action to advise on electricity derivatives to expand their client risk management processes. The project involved working with senior management over 18 months to prepare the licence application and design the compliance system.
For more on what I might be able to do for you, see Services.
