I didn’t think I would be contemplating a career in my mid 50’s. I had always planned to retire at the ripe old age of 58. Then a series of events happened that forced me to rethink and re-educate myself to go on.
Adversity taught me to be resilient again. I had become soft with all the trappings of investment banking. A friend of mine often referred to it as being sucked into the investment banking vortex. He meant that no matter how much you earn you always upgrade your lifestyle to outstrip your wealth.
Unemployment taught me how to survive on very little again. It also taught me a far more difficult lesson – that I am not defined by my job. More importantly, it taught me that retirement would probably kill me of boredom instead of stress.
After two years of GFC unemployment I was offered a job as a commercial banker at around a quarter of my pre-GFC salary. I accepted with tremendous trepidation. It was the worst organisation I have ever worked for but the best thing that has happened to me (career wise). Many of my former colleagues and quite a few head-hunters advised me to remain unemployed. This would all be over soon, it can’t last forever, I’d be in demand again, I’d be polluting my CV. It was all guesswork. Meanwhile, I had a family to look after and provide for.
This new career path taught me about commercial banking. Something that I loved as it entailed working with business owners. All lending is built on the fundamentals of the management of risk. Simplifying it to it’s very basics you ask: if I lend money to this organization/person will I get it back? How will they repay me? Can they repay me with the resources at their disposal and how long will it take?
It doesn’t really matter if it’s a top 10 listed company, a person applying for a home loan or anyone in between. Sure, there are various complications but that’s simplifying it to its basics.
I also learned that the quality of bankers at this level varied greatly. You had people, like Nick, my business partner, who was always selected as one of the elite corporate bankers at this organisation and was asked to go to several year-end conferences for top performers. Then you had people who really should not have been in banking at all. They just did not get it and sadly more than a few of those that did not get it were in risk.
Then you had jaded people like me who had seen how it could be done and voiced their opinions loudly and often. Needless to say this did not sit well with management. The danger of this type of employee is that they don’t need the job and they will back themselves. In short these people are un-manageable. Simply because they have more experience and know better than management.
But I didn’t know everything. Whilst I was outspoken about many of management’s shortcomings I was learning about commercial banking.
So, when Nick sent me a link to enroll in a course for broking. It took me around three seconds to make up my mind to enroll.
Ironically, this time around many of our colleagues were full of encouragement at this leap we were taking.
In the first six months after going into business we still thought we were bank employees. This period of adjustment – where we had to do everything ourselves and there wasn’t a balance sheet to rely on – came as a revelation. Particularly as we now had no income.
After another three months we did our first mortgage, then we did another and another and so on.
But our commercial banking endeavours always ended in failure. We didn’t give up on it.
So, after two years we executed our first commercial banking deal in business, then another and another…
Along the way we learned a lot. For instance, that banks are not the only source of funding. Sounds obvious but it’s not like these private funders take out TV ads. We had to slowly find them and learn what their risk parameters are.
We also learned, like banking, there are good and bad brokers. We were determined to be good but just as importantly we were determined to be a one stop shop. Banks call this share of wallet. Basically, you leave very little on the table but you need to demonstrate to your client that what you’re offering is better than what they currently have.
If a business owner wants finance for their business but also wants us to look at their personal debts we do that seamlessly these days. Sometimes this is a little more difficult when a private funder is involved.
Right now, I’m learning about the wholesale diary industry. Last month it was the wholesale baking industry and the wine industry. Last year it was the debtor financing industry.
These business owners, accountants, lawyers and financial planners don’t come to us because we’re experts in their fields. They come to us because we’re experts in our field: finance. But we’re happy to learn the nuances of their industries as we travel on this journey of discovery. We’re now being referred business by bankers. How we’ve come full circle.
One industry we’re seeing much less of is property developers. They appear to have disappeared altogether. Whereas in our first year that’s almost all we saw. I’m sure they’ll be back.
These days it’s easy to complain about management. Mainly because we own up to our mistakes very quickly and fix what we’re doing wrong. If we don’t, we don’t get paid.
So, life is good for now but both Nick and I know that unless we keep learning and keep investigating we will be just another broker. One thing banking has taught us is that the products you’re selling are largely commoditised. What we actually sell is our knowledge of the industry and also our service proposition. In short, we make sure we do what we say we’re going to do. Our clients expect nothing less.
It’s interesting that for the first time since I was in high school I look forward to Monday mornings. I pick up Nick for the drive into the office. Usually by the first corner we’re both in stitches of laughter. I’ve never had a job like that before.