Insights

The effects of COVID-19 are far-reaching but one of the more immediate ones was the rapid cancellation of conferences across the industry. This wasn’t only a headache for organisers, and devastating for the event industry, but it also had knock-on effects for anyone who uses events to keep up to date with their continuing professional development (CPD).

As Melbourne locks down for the second time and state borders tighten, the wealth management industry has endeavoured to adapt to the new normal.

Between the economic depression and the government’s early release of superannuation scheme, the future of Australia’s superannuation sector is in flux.

The Royal Commission into banking and finance put a fine point on what had been a growing point of concern for institutional investors and superannuation trustees: operational risk.

Chief executive officer of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees, Eva Scheerlinck, has an intimate knowledge of the organisation’s Trustee Director Course. As executive manager, governance and stewardship when the program was launched seven years ago, she was closely involved in its development and even attended the course in its first year.

As a headline, it’s striking.

There seems to be two types of advertising in the market right now: either you're pushing out a message about shared pain and togetherness, or you're waiting patiently for all of this to blow over so you can go back to normal.

More Australians are paying attention to their super than ever before.

KPMG has conducted a survey that reveals insights into what consumers expect from their superannuation and financial services institutions in the ongoing pandemic world.

Zenith Investment Partners has just released its sector report for Australian Shares Large Companies. As the pandemic hit Australia in the middle of the review, half of the fund manager visits ended up being conducted via video conferencing, a development which was not entirely negative according to Jacob Smart, senior investment analyst.

While the panic of early March may have dissipated and Australia seems to have done relatively well when it comes to COVID-19 cases, Chi-X’s CEO Vic Jokovic says that people should still be cautious. He does not expect the volatility VIX index to return to pre-pandemic levels anytime soon.

In their latest report on Gender Equity, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) included an unequivocal conclusion: “More women in key decision making positions delivers better company performance, greater productivity and greater profitability.”

Over the course of the last year, several high-profile cases of underpayment of staff from companies like NAB, Westpac, Bunnings, and Woolworths have been headline news.

Outside of the challenges of setup (my dining table is comfortable for a meal, not for an eight-hour workday) and needing to look after children, Sinha says the pandemic experiment showed that there can be a different, successful way of working. “Yet, even under these sub-optimal conditions, the pandemic showed that flexibility can work, with many people thriving in their safe, home-bound conditions.

Like the rest of the world, WealthO2 had to make significant changes to how they do business almost overnight. Face-to-face meetings were going to be impossible for the foreseeable future at a time when people needed to get financial advice and information more than ever.

Is the job market turning the corner? New jobs figures from SEEK and Kaizen Recruitment indicate that the job market is improving after a painful few months. The question is, however, are we seeing the light at the end of the tunnel or are companies simply accepting the new normal and going about essential business?

The Financial Planning Association of Australia has announced a restructure that will mean a streamlined organization that is able to focus on advocacy.

George Lucas is chief executive officer of micro-investing platform Raiz Invest Limited. Since launching in 2016 the platform, which is targeted at a younger demographic, has grown to more than 218,000 active monthly customers and over $404 million in funds under management.

Executive recruiter E.L Consult's May 2020 summary shows demand for new executive positions slowing down as more organisations are making due with what they have while management and most staff are working remotely.

Netflix, Stan, and Disney may have some new competition. Pitch Labs, a product of Pitcher Partners Adelaide, is taking on the account and advisory industry by revising how people pay for financial advice.