opes and anzs' brand and reputation

But towards the end of McFarlane’s second contract Goode was uneasy about the ANZ CEO whom he believed was showing signs of being in the job too long. At that time Goode knew nothing about Opes Prime.

When the Opes Prime blunders were revealed after Mike Smith took over as CEO the investigation showed that McFarlane knew nothing about this large transactional structure. Once again Goode’s sixth sense was proven right.

It seems that McFarlane did not know about Opes because his relationship with the executive in charge was not particularly strong and the ANZ CEO hadn't spent enough time examining the details.

To blame Goode as ANZ chairman for not knowing about Opes Prime when the CEO did not know is simply unfair. Imagine if McFarlane had been reappointed as CEO. He would have had to face the Opes disaster and there would have been screams for his scalp. In that situation, there is no way the ANZ could have obtained a CEO the same calibre as Mike Smith.

Goode had his faults and is said to meddle too much in the detail. But when it came to the big decisions he made three magnificent calls


Note how Opes is now included in pretty well every press review of things
I note an article in the Australian ...3 or 4 sentences in .."The Opes Debacle plus bad debts"

Opes is now seen as ANZ ...
And Anzs' handling of the issue , by way of inference by the media ...is seen as appalling...rightly so in this writers view

The ANZ spin team have lost the war ...they attempted to spin it as a non issue

They held an Inquiry...and reviewed themselves and lost some 8 to 10 executives

What they have failed to do ..and the press know this intuitively ...is Be Honest

ANZ undertook to have an open and transparent review ...Mike Smith ...said they would publish its findings ...with the implication that it would be a Complete review

They didn't publish ...the whole matter..

And many ANZ followers , i suggest, know there is a cover up ..or lack of truthful disclosure

ANZ as a Brand is being eroded ...their handling of Opes is a large element of this Brand erosion

And rightly so.....This thing could become frenzied in the media ..

.if the Media become convinced that ANZ knowingly defrauded the Opes clients