Professional profile
“Typically, financial planners are white middle-aged men in their 50s and the industry needs to do something about that. With banks and insurance companies pulling out of financial advice, the next generation of advisers is not coming through,” says Hughes.
He adds that more should be done to push paraplanning as a career, arguing “many paraplanners are chartered, pushing advisers in terms of qualifications”.
One of the ways he intends to do this is by expanding Mercer Jelf beyond its UK offices in regional hubs such as London, Bristol, Bath and Reading. Hughes wants to expand Mercer Jelf internationally using Mercer’s presence in more than 40 countries across Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Says Hughes: “If we can give advisers an opportunity to experience different cultures and different countries, and how they deliver financial planning, then it becomes a far more exciting story for them. Hopefully, the Mercer business will be my greatest achievement yet.”
Spotlight on Mercer harmonise
Mercer Harmonise is a digital platform that shows clients, the majority of whom are employed at FTSE 100 companies, data on everything from pensions and insurance to health – and can even help them get a mortgage.
Launched in September 2015, the in-house platform is designed to be a one-stop shop for employees looking for “easy planning and management of personal financial and health goals” in a bid to improve their work/life balance, according to Mercer.
For example, employees can plug Fitbits and other smart devices into the platform to help them manage their health activities.
Crucially, the service can be used to help employees manage their financial affairs from how to pay off university debts to applying for a mortgage, says Grant Hughes, the head of Mercer Jelf Financial Planning.
As time goes on, he expects the tool to develop into a fully fledged robo-advice service. “Mercer Harmonise enables employees to set goals in terms of health or a financial aspect, giving them information in terms of guidance, you can then expand that into advice as well, so we are looking at how we can build that capability within the platform,” says Hughes.
