THE POWER OF SHARING

18/09/2009

Power is in coming together, sharing ideas and resources. This was the key theme explored by Najib Nathoo, the outgoing President of the Credit Services Association at the CSA’s annual conference in September. And the evidence was all around.

This was the largest gathering the industry had ever seen, with delegates from more than a dozen or so countries including France, Germany, the US and Australia and the largest exhibition of its kind with some 29 stands. After 12 months of challenging marketing conditions and an increasingly hostile media, the CSA had redoubled its efforts, focusing on the importance of policy and its public face.

Najib called upon members to be more active in providing vital data required for a more informed debate, especially contributing to the regular ‘Collectability Index’: “the information is confidential,” he said, “and a powerful tool in helping to promote our public face. Sharing basic statistics and data is absolutely essential in giving us our voice in the market,” he added.

The former President told how the CSA continues to invest in best practice and governance. Influencing and interpreting government legislation is an increasing part of the Association’s agenda, and there had been a tremendous response to recent consultation papers, notably the Ministry of Justice’s proposals on ‘Limitations’. He spoke too of the Association’s continued calls for access to the full electoral roll and other campaigns that would put the industry on the front foot and improve the lot of the consumer.

In closing his opening address, Najib praised “the phenomenally talented team” at head office, and how the size and scale of the conference was “a reflection of the professionalism and expertise” that now permeated the industry. He thanked the Board for their unstinting support, and was delighted to formally introduce his successor and the new President of the CSA, Dr Roger Lucas, as well as starting the first of many tributes to the work of Kurt Obermaier who would be retiring as Executive Director next year.

Leigh Berkley, newly elected to the CSA Board, followed Najib with a presentation focused specifically around the Debt Buyers and Sellers Group (DBSG) of which he is chair. He outlined the actions the Group is taking around a number of key issues, notably CCA06 and their active lobbying of BERR (now BIS) in clarifying ‘arrears’. A new Compliance Working Party has been especially set up for the purpose to clarify, in Leigh’s words, “who needs to send what, to whom, and in what format!”

He spoke also about how the DBSG is strengthening its Code of Conduct, a code that already reflected the CSA’s code but that added a range of disciplinary sanctions that were now being discussed in detail. In the future, the Group would also be looking at how a ‘Kite Mark’ or similar might help both buyers and sellers, especially around the issue of compliance.
Leigh concluded by highlighting three strands of their future strategy: PA, PR and PT: PA stands for Public Affairs, and the DBSG’s continued lobbying of government and its associated bodies such as the OFT and ICO; PR stands for Public Relations, the need to stay on the front foot, and have the data to support its campaigns; and PT which means ‘Pulling Together’, working as one for the good of the industry.

With both Najib and Leigh having concluded their respective speeches, it was left to Margaret Doyle, Contributing Editor of The Economist, to give the keynote address, and an insightful analysis of the credit crunch and the outlook for the future.
Most fascinating of all, perhaps, were her thoughts around who was to blame. In assessing ‘who dunnit?’ the major blame appears to be focused around the reckless decisions by the investment banks and their overpaid executives, and retail banks who had moved away from the 1980s model that everyone was comfortable with and began playing in markets that they didn’t properly understand. The myopic approach of certain Ratings Agencies and Regulators was also to blame, as were the insurers for underwriting risks they should never have taken and, it appears, all of us for having taken credit for granted!

In terms of her predictions for the future, the backlash against bankers’ pay in the US and the UK was clear, and her observations on the accelerating shift of power to the East (ie China) and the demand from the BRIC nations for a greater voice in the future left many in the room nodding their heads agreement.

With the morning session completed, delegates filed out to join one of several specialist conferences and workshops run throughout the afternoon.