Sector to reflect, reset and reload as market uncertainty bites

CONVEYANCERS and property professionals will get a chance to reflect and reset at a time of market uncertainty when Australian Conveyancer stages What’s Next? at the W Hotel in Sydney’s Darling Harbour on Tuesday, November 17.

The event, which expects an audience of 250, asks the industry to look back on a turbulent year for the property sector and the national economy before considering what it means for 2027.

It is organised around three themes: Reflect, Reimagine and Reload.

REFLECT

The day opens with a diagnosis of the year that was. In The Lay of the Land, three peak body leaders will discuss the issues conveyancers have confronted and what they mean for the year ahead.

They are Jennie Tonner, president of the Australian Institute of Conveyancers NSW and a practitioner of nearly 40 years, and Shakila Maclean, AIC Victoria’s immediate past president who was named the state’s Most Influential Conveyancer last year.

They will be joined by Queensland Law Society chief executive Matt Dunn.

The economic outlook follows, with Christian Bayliss, founder and chief investment officer of Fortlake Asset Management, and David Simon, executive chair of Integral Private Wealth, assessing the impact of policy decisions, Australia’s place in the world and the consequences for property. Bayliss previously worked at UBS Asset Management and the Reserve Bank of Australia. Simon has appeared on the Barron’s Australia Top Financial Advisers list eight years running.

The property market outlook will then be examined by Thomas McGlynn, chief executive and president of the Real Estate Institute of NSW and a senior executive at the Ray White Group, and Cotality Asia Pacific research director Tim Lawless.

They will tackle the market’s rises and falls, the fallout from the Budget, rate rises and what to expect over the next 18 months.

REIMAGINE

Reimagine shifts from the rear-view mirror to the road ahead.

Executive coach John Colbert of Corporate Edge will offer tools for adopting a proactive mindset so business owners and practitioners can seize the moment.

The keynote will come from Steve Sammartino, the futurist and AI expert, who will address the robotic revolution, disruptive technology and reinvented strategy. Sammartino has delivered more than 600 keynote speeches to over a million people in 40 countries, and he will encourage the audience to lean into the technology rather than resist it.

He will then be joined by Christian Beck, chief executive of ATI Global and founder of LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack, for a deep dive into AI.

The discussion will cover the implications for business, ethics and social concerns, as well as the practical, positive applications for conveyancers and paralegals. Beck, who began writing software for his father’s law practice, was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2017 and is a regular on the Financial Review Rich List. He is also a yachtsman whose supermaxi LawConnect has twice won the Sydney to Hobart.

Australian Conveyancer publisher Tony Gillies said the program had been shaped by conversations across the profession.

“Having spoken to practitioners at all levels, we believe What’s Next? will provide the critical tools and information for the year ahead,” Gillies said.

RELOAD

The final theme, Reload, is where the day turns to practical business.

David Koch, the finance commentator who spent 21 years as co-host of Sunrise, will lead A Look Under the Bonnet, discussing specific challenges and opportunities with two conveyancing firm leaders.

By The Rules, Caboolure franchisee Amy Andrews and Ballarat’s Grace Munro will talk of challenges, opportunities and best practice.

Kiani Mills, owner of Melbourne’s Impériale Conveyancing and a best-selling author recently named among MSN.com’s Top 10 Visionary Entrepreneurs, will follow with three business tips that can be applied immediately.

Digital ID – the next big thing – will be examined by InfoTrack chief executive John Ahern. Personal data security is now a first-order concern, and the session will explore the ethical collection, storage and use of sensitive information.

Compliance will get its own hearing. The Tranche 2 reforms to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws were about two years in the making and rolled out in stages this year.

AUSTRAC’s Dan Mossop, national manager of reform policy and mutual evaluation, and Neil Jeans of Grant Thornton Australia, who has almost 30 years in financial crime risk management, will assess the first 100 days and what the changes mean for business.

All speakers will be interviewed Q&A style by television presenters Amber Sherlock and Angelique Opie. Sherlock has worked as a reporter and presenter at Seven, Nine, Ten and Sky News. Opie is Property Editor at Seven News Sydney. Both co-host Australian Conveyancer’s Settlement Day and Face to Face podcasts.

More information, including event entry details, is available here: