SenatorHelen Coonan has been voted this year’s most influential person in financial services. Coonan, the Minister for Revenue and Assistant Treasurer, was given the top slot onMoney Management’sTop 10 Most Influential People 2003 list for her significant contribution to superannuation.
This marks the second year Coonan has made the most influential short list, though she didn’t make the final Top 10 last year.
The Top 10 this year includes last year’s place-getters, Ken Breakspear, Tom Collins, Richard Gilbert and Stephen van Eyk, along with last year’s winner, Pauline Vamos. New to the list are Ian Johnston, Kerr Neilson, Nick Sherry and Louise Sylvan.
The list is based on the polling of participants from a wide cross-section of the industry.
Participants were asked to nominate people who had been influential this year and had made concrete, specific and identifiable contributions to financial services.
Money Managementreceived 55 nominations, which were cut down to a short list of 22. Eight panellists were invited to join a round-table discussion from which the Top 10 list was drawn up following a secret ballot.
The panel consisted ofFPAdirector Sarah Brennan, recruitment consultant Peter Dawson, life adviser Roger Holt, FPA Sydney chapter chair Deborah Kent, veteran adviser Laura Menschik, industry commentator Paul Resnik, industry lawyer Peter Townsend and researcher Stephen van Eyk.
Panel members short-listed were excluded from discussions about their possible inclusion on the most influential list.
