Steve Maccora

Steve Maccora has gained a wealth of experience in the financial services industry during a career spanning over 41 years. During the past twenty or so years he has been the most well known person in Funds Management in Western Australia having been in State Management roles with Colonial First State and Rothschild.

Steve has had a significant impact in the training of Financial Advisers and was a Lead Lecturer for Finsia for many years specialising in Funds Management, Investment Concepts, Superannuation and Financial Planning. He is a Senior Fellow of Finsia having served many years on Regional Council, a number of which as Vice Chairman.
When training young practitioners Steve always tried to pass on his own vision for the industry: “Our purpose is to help our clients live better lives by enhancing their financial position and growing their wealth.”
Having moved to Western Australian in late 1982 after working in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney, he has become one of the most respected and well known people in Financial Services in WA.
His early career included some rapid promotions and in 1978, at age twenty nine he was a Regional Manager with a staff of around one hundred reporting to him. This required a number of skills: leadership, organisation, budgeting, analysis, training, delegation, presentation skills, motivating and diplomacy. Building sales teams was his main role and when he moved to Perth he was given the challenge of developing what was a small team into a much larger one. This team became the most successful in WA and amongst the top few nationally.
During his 41 years in the industry Steve has lived through several major investment booms and downturns and these experiences have helped him understand markets and investors so that he is able to convey the knowledge gained to assist clients in making better investment decisions – or better still helping them to avoid disastrous ones.
Prior to his retirement from his full time role, Steve was the most sought after speaker in the Financial Planning market in WA delivering around 100 presentations a year to Investors and Financial Planners. Steve is known for his ability to relate complex issues in understandable language. His style is entertaining and informative with a sprinkling of humour. His main objective is to educate and inform his audience so that they are able to understand how investments and superannuation work. His mission is to encourage practitioners to “serve” their clients.
In July 2010, Steve retired from Colonial First State and now works in a consultancy capacity so he is free to pursue a much better lifestyle balance choosing to spend time at his birthplace - the tiny island of Filicudi which is part of the Aeolian Islands just off the north coast of Sicily.
The quest for a lifestyle balance led him back to his birthplace in Italy in 1989 and this began a new chapter in his life. In 1995 together with his brothers they embarked on renovating their grandparent’s house on Filicudi. This was no small feat and required three Italian summers to complete. If you can imagine an isolated island without electricity or the technology that goes with that, you can start to appreciate some of the logistical nightmares. In 1998 the project was completed. There is a great story about family and bonding that one day may form the basis of a short story.
Steve has a passion for sharing his knowledge and helping others. He will work proactively with clients to thoroughly research their requirements and to ensure a presentation is delivered to their exacting needs and standards.

Speaker Topics Include:

The Investment Time Clock is Ticking – Is it a Time Bomb ready to explode or an Alarm Clock waking us to opportunities?
The Psychology of Investing – Or, why investors often make Irrational decisions!
Addicted to Debt
Superannuation - Minefield or Nirvana?
The Balance Between Work and Lifestyle
Retirement – Half the Income Twice the Partner
41 Years of Reflection
Market Review and Update
The Perils of Restoration on an Italian Island