From Cold Calling to One of Australia’s Leading Brokers

In this episode of Beyond the Numbers, Christian Stevens sits down with Max Harris, Associate Director at Azura Finance - one of Australia’s leading brokerages - and a 7x Top 100 Broker. Max shares how he went from being a part-time uni student cold-calling buyers at open homes to settling over $300M in loans this year, backed by a lean but highly effective team. Whether you’re a new broker chasing your first deal, or an experienced operator looking to scale without burning out, Max breaks down what actually works - hiring offshore vs onshore, building long-term referral relationships, managing client expectations, and preparing for an AI-driven future in lending. This is a practical, honest conversation about growth, pressure, and building something that lasts. 0:00 – Introduction: Meet Max Harris, 7x Top 100 Broker & Azura's Associate Director 5:15 – Azura's Growth Story: From 4 people to 50 staff across two floors in Double Bay 8:02 – The Multi-Mentor Approach: Why one mentor isn't enough for elite performance 12:23 – Team Structure Breakdown: Offshore vs onshore hires and the $50M junior broker mistake 19:03 – The Numbers: $130M → $200M → $300M in 3 years (and the systems behind it) 26:42 – Tech Stack Confession: Why a $300M broker still runs on Google Sheets + AI "James" 30:14 – Future-Proofing Your Business: Why simple PAYG loans will be eaten by AI 38:35 – Trust Lending Crackdown: What the recent policy changes mean for investors 42:22 – Career Advice: Hire earlier, build fewer but deeper referral relationships, slow down proposals Learn more about Flint: https://flintgroup.au/ Connect with Christian Stevens: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/propertyfinance/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cmrstevens/ Connect with Max Harris: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxharrisazurafinancial/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maxharris_____/