It almost feels like Smart Lending director Melissa Gielnik was destined to be a broker from the get-go. The vivacious economics and accounting graduate took on a job at her father’s loan writing business following a ‘career break’ at the ripe old age of 22, and hasn’t looked back.
“My dad was a broker, so I definitely learned lots of the tricks of the trade from him. And would you believe my mum’s a conveyancer? So it wasn’t a hard transition for me – I really grew up in finance. When I came back [from my OE], my dad was looking for staff so I thought I’d work for him until I got a ‘real job’ – and here I am today! I worked for him for a couple of years before he sold his company, and I started Smart Lending in 2006.”
Gielnik says all of her staff are under 30 and she prides herself on being able to share her own knowledge with young, up-and-coming talent.
“I have two support staff and Corey – he’s my junior broker. Corey was a real estate agent. He heard I was employing, so he called and pretty much convinced me over the phone – with his excellent sales technique – to employ him. He’s been with me now for two years, and he will be an up-and-coming broker to watch over the next three years.”
For now though, Gielnik says her focus is on growing Smart Lending as a business.
“I’ve been looking at the different types of models for growth. Growth is something that’s very much at the forefront of what I’m doing at the moment, and I’ve been looking at either growing my brand or going into more of a lead-generation type brand. I’d like to be at double or triple the amount of work that Smart Lending currently writes – but not necessarily for myself! I still think I’ll write, because that keeps you tapped into the industry, but I’d like to be managing a lot more than I’m writing. I just want what everyone wants – to do less and make more! At the moment, it’s really about looking at the vehicle that’s going to take me where I want to go, and then it’s going to be three or four years of really hard work to get there.
