Tim Williams (NAB)

How did you get involved in the TMA?
NAB has been involved with TMA for over 10 years. With the TMA’s focus on corporate and SME renewal, turnaround management and restructuring this is very much in line with NAB’s principles and values. When I joined NAB’s Group Strategic Business Services team I found being involved in the TMA to be a very good way to quickly establish key relationships and connections across professional advisers, specialist boutique firms and other banks, financial institutions and funds. The TMA is a great way to professionally and socially engage across the industry.

What do you think of the 2017 Conference theme – reputation, conduct and behaviour – and its relevance to current market trends?
Very important and highly relevant. Over the past 10 years there have been a spat of highly visible incidents with material impact on corporations and institutions reputations – across all industries, sectors and countries. Supervision of reputation, brand, conduct and behaviour is a developing area of risk management that permeates from the board down through organisations. Community, government and regulatory expectations of large corporates, multi nationals and financial institutions in how they conduct business activities have heightened substantially.

What would someone who only knows you professionally be surprised to learn about you?
I am a lawyer, working for a bank in restructuring/insolvency and I’m a qualified rugby referee – so I’m not very popular at social events.

What is the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever been given?
Don’t drink cheap red wine!!  Don’t be over awed by anybody. Title means nothing. It’s the character of the individual that counts. There will always be someone smarter or brighter than you. The trick is to find a way to work with intelligent and quality people to achieve the desired outcome.

 

Adrian Loader (Allegro Funds)

How did you get involved in the TMA?

I did my first operational turnaround in 1995 and always thought that the “turnaround industry” in Australia needed to develop. I first heard of the TMA in about the year 2000 and I attended a number of seminars, but never really got involved.  I decided to get more involved in 2006 as I thought that Australia needed a turnaround culture to rehabilitate companies and believed the TMA was the best placed organisation to help achieve this. I was chair of the NSW committee in 2007, President of the TMA in 2009 and was Chairman until 2012.

How do you think safe harbour reforms will change in the industry?
I think the industry will change significantly over the next 5 years.  The cause of the change is the combination of safe harbour reforms; greater availability of capital; change in bank behaviour; and the role technology can play in identifying operational improvement opportunities. If I had a crystal ball I think there will be more highly skilled turnaround advisors in Australia and less insolvency advisors (especially for larger companies) in 5 years’ time. This will create opportunities for many members of the TMA and will also lead to greater specialisation.

What would someone who only knows you professionally be surprised to learn about you?
I always lose money in the Melbourne Cup!

What is the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever been given?
Don’t change jobs for financial reasons. When you are building your career focus on getting the right experience rather than the money.

 

To read more about Adrian and Allegro Funds - here

 

Marcus Derwin (R Cubed Group)

What led you to start up your business - R Cubed Group?
Post the GFC, I undertook a longer term assessment and perspective of the global economy and determined that the next decade was going to be one of turbulence and extended volatility. To that end, I assessed that there was a market gap for large corporates to call upon experienced turnaround professionals to assist them in assessing, executing and implementing complex restructuring plans. This was the genesis for R Cubed - representing the platforms of restructuring, recapitalisation and refinancing. Its been a great journey with never a dull moment.

What inspired you to join TMA and become involved as a Director?
I was involved with the TMA when I was working in the US through the ‘tech-wreck’ period. Upon my return to Australia, TMA was in its formative stages locally. Through the efforts of many like-minded people over an extended period, it has developed domestically to a point where it is now a professional and credible organisation. I became involved through the Conference committee over the past 4 years and was invited to join the national Board. At a Board level it’s a pleasure to share industry related ideas and issues with professionals centered around a common a goal of corporate renewal.

What trends are you seeing in the Australian restructuring and turnaround industry right now?
Slowly and surely, organisations and their key stakeholders are seeing the merit and tangible benefit of calling in professional advisors to assist them in the strategic formulation and execution of considered restructuring plans. We can only advocate early intervention to enable increased optionality - Australian corporates (typically their Boards who are largely centered on risk management and governance at the expense of growth) have been slow to embrace the utilisation of dedicated professionals for purpose driven circumstances and events. Whilst this has been an established go-to strategic option for decades in the US and Europe, we are coming to realise we are operating in a global market as we embrace best practice disciplines. Other trends include more creative restructuring mechanisms, which are a combination of financial reengineering and operational elements, together with increased P2P and Debt for Equity transactions to effect 'behind the veil' restructures. Transformation Officers are the next thing...to effect substantive and systemic change!

What is the best piece of professional advice you've ever been given?
'When chaos prevails, slow it down...and run your own race'. I've practiced the discipline within each restructuring engagement that I've been involved in since.