Loan Market’s new Head of Development to create national standards
Loan Market has appointed a new Head of Learning and Development to deliver an industry-leading national training program that builds upon the Group’s recent surge in productivity.
Neil Manuel, who brings more than 20 years’ industry experience to the role, will curate a national curriculum that consolidates content from Loan Market’s marketing, technology and compliance divisions.
Mr Manuel will drive the learnings and teaching tools for Loan Market’s Broker Success Managers (BSM) who personally oversee the professional development of 50 businesses brokers each. He’ll support the continued upskilling of every support member with Lean Six Sigma and Kaizen productivity principles – a business growth resource currently exclusively offered by Loan Market.
“Kaizen and Lean Six Sigma framework is undoubtedly a game-changer for our brokers and their businesses, in a single session we find hours of process improvements that can save our brokers quantifiable time,” he said.
“Every Loan Market BSM is training to be a qualified Lean Six Sigma certified yellow-belt, so we can extend Kaizen methodology to help every broker in the network to achieve net productivity gains.”
Kaizen principles are not new to the Loan Market network. During the last 12 months, Loan Market has combined time-saving tech with Kaizen-focused initiatives led by Loan Market’s Head of Business Improvement Michael Zavelberg, to record an increase in average broker lodgments from 35.2 in the six months to March to 38.4 for the six months to September – double the industry average.
Mr Manuel will work closely with Mr Zavelberg in incorporating Kaizen principles within the national training program, eliminating wasteful tasks and unlocking productivity across lodgments, approvals, prospecting and other process-driven metrics.
Mr Manuel also plans to tap into the knowledge of brokers from different sizes and models and share their recipes for success with the broader Group.
“Brokers want to hear from other brokers,” said Mr Manuel. “The power of peer-to-peer learning shouldn’t be underestimated. My job is to create an environment for this to happen.”
Mr Manuel, a former Broker Success Manager in Loan Market, said he would share the best practices and tactics of larger brokerages that are dominating their marketplaces, recruiting wisely and sustainably servicing high volumes.
“Equally, I’ll be shining a light on leading small brokerages – including many husband and wife teams – that are leading the way and what systems and procedures they’ve developed to achieve that.
“Through digital education and face-to-face training, I’m looking forward to showing brokers that success comes in many shapes and sizes.”
Loan Market’s Executive Director of Network Success, Andrea McNaughton, said establishing a uniform training program across Australia would increase broker productivity at a time when Best Interests Duty (BID) and rising market share was making brokers busier than ever.
“Last year was like no other the industry had seen,” said Mrs McNaughton.
“At the same time, we had a huge surge in new brokers who joined the network. Loan Market continued to support business growth through our innovative training via small broker sessions and digital learning.
“We have a unique opportunity to take the industry’s benchmark for education and learning to a new level in 2021 through collaboration and sharing the practices and insights of the best minds in broking,” said Mrs McNaughton.
PUBLISHED February 1st, 2021 IN News
Angela Tracey
Angela is obsessed with marketing solutions that heighten brokers’ online visibility, build their profile in their local marketplace and ensure potential clients are knocking on their door (so to speak).
With over a decade of experience leading her own digital marketing agency, helping SMEs win local area market share through the strategic integration of online, social and database marketing, Angela has the know-how to support brokers with solutions that help them find and keep clients.
