ARTICLE...
The Dynamics of Change
Preparations begin to gather pace for CSA conference
Preparations for the CSA annual conference in September are continuing apace.
Entitled 'The Dynamics of Change - Working Through the Crunch', the conference aims to build on last year's success and ensure all members are best equipped to deal with some of the most challenging times the industry has ever faced.
The programme has been designed to cover all aspects of the collection and debt sale and purchase arena, with split sessions for CSA and DBSG members, whilst the CSA has been lining up a number of key speakers to impart their expertise.
With the credit crunch foremost in everyone's minds, the speakers will share their wisdom on current issues impacting upon the credit industry, as well as offer their advice on how to improve business performance.
Damian Hales, Credit Risk Director at Deloitte will be presenting on Dynamic Credit Portfolio Management, examining how banks are adjusting to the crunch in order to use their capital more efficiently.
Damian explained: "Historically, banks tended to adopt an originate and hold on balance sheet strategy. This subsequently developed into the use of securitisations as the predominant balance sheet and capital management strategy. With tight times ahead, there is a need for banks to be more efficient with capital. Dynamic Credit Portfolio Management is increasingly becoming essential as a technique to assess the value of existing and new portfolios under a number of alternative scenarios that may include, selling the assets off or altering operational procedures to get more value from them.
"This new strategy will be of interest to conference attendees as the role of DCAs and debt purchasers is likely to increase but will therefore require greater flexibility to maximise this opportunity. Attending the conference offers delegates the opportunity to gain an insight into current industry issues and trends combined with a fantastic opportunity to meet other professionals."
Stephen Dawson, Associate Solicitor at Shoosmiths will also be presenting on a contemporary issue essential to the industry, the new world of consumer protection.
Stephen said: "The new Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, which came into force in May this year, are already causing much consternation in the finance industry.
"Though the true impact of these legislative changes is yet to be known, it is clear that they will significantly affect the credit industry going forward. DCAs for example, who buy debt from a lender with poor lending agreements and (knowingly) continue to recover debt under the terms of these agreements, could find themselves facing both criminal and civil sanctions for unfair commercial practices.
"The presentation and conference, therefore, will provide the opportunity to examine interesting snippets from this new set of regulations and to consider the broad consequences of its implementation. For me personally it will be refreshing to explore these new regulations, having spoken on the previous changes for so long!"
Like Damian, Stephen believes that the networking and knowledge-sharing opportunities at the conference are a major draw. Stephen continued: "The DBSG group is extremely relevant to the debt buying and selling sector, with a broad range of members both from small companies and the major players. Attending the conference is important and worthwhile, as it offers a good talking-shop to share expertise with other credit professionals."
These sentiments are also shared by Sue Froggatt of Sue Froggatt Training and Consulting, who will be presenting on Marketing in Collections.
She explained: "The conference is important in that it presents the opportunity to talk to others in the profession for tangible thought leadership. It is important to avoid operating in silos, and gathering at the conference to exchange ideas can only serve to boost professionalism."
At the conference, Sue, who runs regular specialist training courses with the CSA, will be examining the key marketing elements that tend to get missed. She added: "People tend to focus on the familiar, missing the fundamentals that can make a tangible difference to business. I'll be looking at the qualification of leads to ensure that these are nurtured more effectively to improve the front-end processes, and will offer both useful tips to take away for operational professionals and strategic pointers for sales and marketing managers."
Also from a training perspective, Richard Fenton of Phillips & Cohen will be delivering a training workshop designed to emphasise the importance of professionalism across the industry as a whole.
Richard said: "I hope to draw on experiences from outside our industry to highlight the key differences between the good and bad, and show the successes that can be achieved when we get it right.
"Phillips and Cohen has a very strong policy of training and invests heavily in training in-house as well as working very closely with the CSA. When millions of pounds worth of finance is being placed with us there is a commitment for staff to know exactly what they are doing. However, whilst we know how we are doing things right we should always be asking if there is something missing, especially in light of the credit crunch.
"The conference provides a valuable opportunity to share good practice and see how training can be used more effectively with the aim of getting it right as an industry. Allowing us, as an industry, to drive up standards to guard against consumer criticism."
Dave Berry, Managing Director at the Lewis Group, one of the largest Public Sector DCAs, will also be sharing his specialist knowledge, looking at Public Sector debt.
Dave explained: "We have been one of the leaders in the debt recovery industry for 35 years and have a great deal of experience to draw upon."
"Dealings with government and public sector bodies are not like those on the high street; they have a different mindset. Patience is important as there are more hoops to go through and more people involved in decision-making. Understanding these processes is therefore essential to successful business in this specialist sector."
Over 250 delegates from 12 different across countries the globe attended last year's conference, to share a truly global experience.
For more information on this upcoming event, please click here.
Original article courtesy of CSA. For further information visit www.csa-uk.com.
