The IFP has always stood for the highest standards and ethics, and has been a great source of inspiration for many of us in the industry.
This year’s conference marked the IFP’s 25th year since inception. While my involvement with the Institute does not stretch back that far, I have been a member for many years and for some time I chaired the local branch of the IFP in Yorkshire.
The IFP conference focuses on business in the UK, but it draws inspiration from affiliated financial planning institutes all over the world. This breadth and depth of experience, knowledge and business practice can serve to both educate and inspire.
One of the most enlightening aspects of financial planning I have come across was the course delivered by Dr Maria Nemeth on financial life coaching. I was introduced to Dr Nemeth at the 2010 IFP conference and we are now employing her ideas in GWM.
These are reasons enough to be part of trade organisations like the IFP. However, there are more.
When we look at our industry it started from small beginnings and for numerous years was little more than a ‘cottage industry’. Many of us have been pioneers in the market, developing the way it is today and introducing more commercial and more professional ways of doing business.
This has accelerated in recent years and there is no doubt that the industry is changing far more rapidly than it has done in the past. In part this has been because of external factors. The UK Retail Distribution Review, for example, is acting as a catalyst that is introducing minimum levels of qualifications, and dictating business practices aimed at improving the financial advice experience consumers can expect.
However, as an industry we need to be taking hold of this process and driving the change from within. Our trade bodies are vital to this; by creating a forum for education and improvement and by implementing high levels of entry that make membership a sign of professionalism.
The IFP has this reputation in the UK and FEIFA, the Federation of European Independent Financial Advisers, likewise on the international advice front. GWM has been a pioneering member of FEIFA and I have recently been appointed to the executive committee.
As well as being a forum for discussion and provider of valuable industry and technical information, FEIFA has established a strong voice for the IFA community across Europe, representing the sector both with financial institutions and, where relevant, with governments and regulatory bodies. It also provides consumers with an independent assessment of the regulatory and legal status of its member companies.
And FEIFA has strict standards. It operates a rigorous vetting and due diligence procedure before a member can be confirmed, and not all IFA companies will pass that test.
As such, membership of FEIFA and the IFP can act as kite-marks for trusted, professional advice.
Any service industry should be looking constantly at how it can improve and develop what it is providing to its clients. It should also be operating to the highest possible standards.
I believe the industry must set itself benchmarks to ensure the quality of the financial advisers in the market. In the international financial advice market this should mean ensuring advisers are regulated in the jurisdictions in which they are giving advice, and taking action to stop the carpetbaggers that have for so long undermined the reputation of the industry.
Clients seeking advice should be safe in the knowledge that they are receiving advice from advisers with the proper qualifications and experience to provide them with the best of service for their needs.
But this is not achieved without effort. I believe we have a duty as leading practitioners to get involved in the trade bodies, to become part of the educational process, supporting the adoption of the highest standards of ethical business behaviour and to help build a strong and prosperous industry.
