David Gandolfo OAM has extensive governance and executive experience. He co-founded a business that facilitates $550 million of commercial loans and a peak body with members who arrange billions in commercial annually.

When David Gandolfo graduated from university in the early 80s, he knew he wanted to do something 'businessy in an office'.  

So, when his father got a business loan to refit his successful Melbourne pharmacy, he suggested David go and talk to Pete McAdam, his father’s finance broker, to find out more about the finance industry. 

Pete took the time to explain how asset finance worked. David was hooked and years later, when he set up Quantum Business Finance, Pete was a founding partner. The two are still close.  

Today Quantum facilitates $550 million in commercial loans annually. The company prides itself on helping clients obtain the most suitable finance for less money and is considered among the ‘Best in Practice’ in Australia. 

TO DO OR NOT TO DO 

“Early on in my career I recognised the commercial finance industry lacked a consistent way of doing things,” said David. “Ensuring the sector maintains the highest levels of professional standards, education, equality and diversity is incredibly important. People in this sector need to be able to explain in simple terms what the implication of doing something or not doing something is.” 

David conceived and co-founded the Commercial & Asset Finance Brokers Association of Australia (CAFBA), which has become the country’s peak commercial finance industry organisation and a key advocate and advisor to government and industry on policy and process for commercial and asset finance. The combined annual volume of commercial finance transactions in Australia is around $300 billion annually, and CAFBA represents the commercial brokers who facilitate approx. 65% of that volume. 

As President, David led the formation of the CAFBA Education Council, which delivers specific education content to the sector, including a Diploma and Certificate IV in commercial finance as well as the internationally recognised CLFP post-nominal designation. 

“If people in our industry are better educated around things like accounting, tax, ethics, privacy and anti-money laundering then they're going to provide better outcomes for customers,” said David.  

SKILLS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES 

Until he joined the Future Skills Organisation (FSO) Board, he was also a long-standing Director and past Deputy-Chair of the Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia (COSBOA), the national peak body exclusively representing the interests of small businesses. 

His work with COSBOA means he has a clear understanding of the skills needs and workforce considerations relevant to small businesses across Australia. 

“Every day I’m still customer-facing in my business. And you know, I'm still crawling around under machines looking for serial numbers and things like that. It’s the customer engagement that I really like doing. 

“It's all very well to talk about training and education policy and how it’s going to work, but you've got to understand how the customer is going to interact with whatever it is that you're going to do. If it's not going to provide an outcome, then it's just a waste of time. This is the industry-led perspective I want to bring to the FSO,” he added. 

His business success and leadership of CAFBA saw him awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in the 2023 Australia Day Honours list, in recognition of his ‘service to the financial sector’, including his work advocating Australia’s commercial finance broking industry and finance for small and medium-sized enterprises more generally. 

“I was overseas on a work trip. It was late at night and I was just reading emails and saw one from the Governor General's office and I thought it was a scam,” said David. “I’m very, very proud of it and for the organisations that I'm a part of, but when you do provide an outcome or make some change you don’t do these things on your own, you do it with a team of people around you.”   

TOOLSHED WARRIOR 

Away from business, he likes being a handyman around the house. “I'm a bit of a toolshed warrior. One of my daughters just bought a place which requires a bit of renovation so I’m helping her with that. 

“I also love to travel when I can as a family. When you sit around the dinner table and you reminisce about the best of times, it's always when you were away somewhere together as a family. You reminisce about this place or that place, or where you were at a certain time in your life.” 

3 QUICK-FIRE QUESTIONS

What's the best advice you’ve been given?  

My grandparents came here in 1927 from Sicily. He was a shoemaker running his own business and told me that whatever business you're in, you're in the people business. So look after people and always imagine that you are the customer and consider how would you like to be treated. Great advice that has carried me through.

A simple thing that makes you happy?  

I'm very, very conscious of noticing and being grateful for all the good things in my life, particularly my family.

What book are you reading currently?  

I read a lot of newspapers, particularly opinion pieces and editorials. Peter Strong AM explains issues simply and in terms that everybody can understand.