CHAIRMANS LUNCH

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hosting a lunch for the Chairmen of 10 different societies. One of the benefits of being Chairman of the BSA this year is that I get to meet the leadership of other building societies and hear about the successes and challenges that are occupying boardroom time.I am always struck by the energy and insight that exists across the sector and by the optimism that is expressed about the relevance and importance of mutuality in a diversified marketplace. The chairmen are always keen to know more about what the BSA is doing and how we can demonstrate resilience across the sector, despite the clear fractures in our core markets of savings and mortgages. Yesterday I was particularly struck by the appetite for change amongst the group of chairmen;there was no sense of yearning for a "golden era" of the past but rather a desire to get on and thrive in a new world, whatever that world may look like. I don't know if my words to them were at all motivational, but as a group they certainly motivated me!