MFAA’s new CEO says industry is in a 'maturity phase'

“So for things in a maturity phase, you see things such as consolidation, more focus around financial measures in the business to understand where your costs are, and also trying to do better initiatives around marketing so you can get a bigger bang for your buck effectively,” she said.

“That would be some of the things I would be looking to integrate into a strategy, but really it’s up to the customers to tell me as well when I get around the country.”

Looking ahead, one issue that Ms Hayden plans to tackle is consolidation in the market.

“We’ve had a lot of discussion about the challenges of a consultant pay model in the industry – so, potentially moving to a payroll model with a consolidated business,” she said.

Ms Hayden predicts there will also be some concerns surrounding diversification and potentially how it is best supported not only in small businesses, but in big businesses too.

Speaking about her primary goal as the MFAA’s new CEO, Ms Hayden said her first step is to travel around Australia and talk to members in order to understand what their concerns and requirements are as brokers.

“That information will greatly feed into the MFAA strategy as we move forward,” she said.

Ms Hayden added that it is impossible to please people all the time, and she has no intention of trying to do so.

“I’m also a strong believer in the fact that I’m not here to look good,” she said.

“I’m here to get the job done, and I do think that if you do what you say you’re going to do and say what you do and deliver on it, most of the time you’ll meet people’s expectations.”

[Related: New MFAA CEO announced]