1

UNI Europa FinanceSales and Advice campaign strategy

Fair Advice?! MiFD Project meeting, Brussels, 6th July 2011

2

Sales and advice - what is the issue?Sometimes...1. Customers are sold products that do not suit their needs

2. Customers are sold products that are too risky or eventually too expensive for them

3. Products are sold to customers who do not inherently understand them

4. Some categories of products are complex even for finance employees to understand

5. Employees feel in a dilemma between selling products and giving objective advice

6. Employees feel time constraints

7. Employees feel pressure to sell

3

Sales and advice - what is the reasons?Some basic reasons...

1. Inappropriate sales practices and policies

2. Sales targets

3. Incentive structures (including threats of dismissal)

4. Lack of training of employees

5. Lack of financial education of customers

4

Campaign on sales and advice

• Objective of the campaign

Goal = happy finance employees

• No sales pressure• High quality training• Responsible sales to customers

5

Sales and Advice campaign

Objectives for the campaign1. Bank and Insurance workers with no pressure, quality training, good

benefits, work life balance.

2. Charter adopted, monitored and enforced in banking and insurance institutions.

3. Stronger unions with real influence to change poor financial practices and be engaged in decisions making processes.

4. Regulatory protection for bank and insurance workers.

5. Supervisory practices that monitor the internal operating practices of banking and insurance institutions.

6. The campaign should be evaluated at the UNI Finance Conference in 2013

6

External Stakeholders

Employees and Trade Unions

Public pressure through media

Banks and insurance companies

Supervisors of banks

Political decision makers

Happy Bank Workers

How do we achieve these goals?

Groups who can influence this change to achieve our goals

7

1 – The Companies – the Charter

1. Charter on responsible sales – why?

1. To commit the companies to apply appropriate sales practices

2. To invite the companies and relevant stakeholders to engage in a dialogue with employees and trade unions

3. Complementary to regulation – a corporate governance tool

2. Charter on responsible sales – contents

1. Sales pressure and working conditions

2. Incentive structures

3. Complex products and training

3. Charter on responsible sales – who?

1. EWCs

2. Companies

3. Employers associations

8

1- Companies – the Charter

Charter on responsible sales – the arguments!

1. A competitive advantage

2. Adaptable – each company can focus on topics of specific relevance

3. Shows that the company is responsible

4. The companies have an interest in:• Avoiding costs related to stress• Avoiding a high turn-over of employees• Keeping a long-term relationship to the clients based on trust

5. Important to address the sales culture and the actual practices – not just the policies

6. The charter creates a link between good working conditions, high-quality training and a good advice to customers

9

1 – The companies

Campaign activity: Adoption of charter

Elements

• Identify potential support for charter.

• Develop good arguments – show link between working conditions, training, sales practices and responsible sales

• Develop material for target groups (companies)

• Choose target companies in all regions

• Use meetings with EWCs as opportunity to promote charter

10

2 – External stakeholders Incl. Employers and industry associations

Campaign activity: Use Social Dialogue and Industry dialogue to gain support for campaign aims

Campaign activity: Engage with stakeholders to gain support for campaign goals

Elements to implement activity

• Use social dialogue as forum

• Use the topics discussed in social dialogue as a way to discuss sales and advice – in particular training and working conditions

• Develop material and arguments for different target groups

• Engage with other stakeholders for support on campaign

11

3 – Political decision makers

Campaign activity: lobby political decision makers for better regulation on sales and advice

Elements to implement activity• Follow and react to the EU policy agenda

• Address European Parliament and Commission

• Develop material for target group

12

4 - Supervisors

Campaign activity: Influence supervisors to establish dialogue with unions and include internal operating procedures in supervision

Elements to implement activity• Develop our own support network to employee representatives in

ESA stakeholder groups

• Develop the bottom-up approach

• Develop contacts at national and European level and collect good practices

• Use MEPs and Commission to develop this approach as well

• Develop materials for target group

13

5 – Employees and trade unions

Campaign activity: engage and commit employees and trade unions to implement the campaign

Elements to implement activity• Get workers’ stories

• Mobilise affiliates and company level employees/trade unions

• Make sales and advice ‘tour’ to affiliates (small national level workshops) and EWCs when appropriate

• Develop sales and advice implementation tool kit – how can you address this at national level?

• Develop material for target groups (company level and national trade unions)

• Coordinated collective bargaining initiative

14

6 – Media

Campaign activity: Use various media/communications to promote campaign activities at all opportunities.

Elements to implement the activity• Develop press strategy in line with timeline of actions.

• Develop material for relevant audience for each activity.

• Develop and maintain blog.

15

UNI FinanceSales and Advice campaign

Fair Advice?!