Outsourced paraplanning. An often mistaken role, seen by some as a mere stepping stone into the financial planning and the financial services industry. A common perception challenge. We believe there is a hidden gem of talent waiting to excel in outsourced paraplanning who are often unaware of its existence. Here lies an opportunity for financial planners and financial advisers to change the narrative and shine a light on the importance of paraplanning.
Discover how promoting paraplanning can benefit your financial practice:
Attracting the Right Talent for the Right Reasons:
By championing and redefining paraplanning, you create a magnet for individuals inclined toward the technical aspects of financial advice. In fact, those naturally attuned to the role’s intricacies can significantly enhance your team. While paraplanners that move over to financial advice can excel in interpersonal skills, bringing in individuals with a keen eye for detail ensures more accurate suitability reports. This, in turn, fortifies your recommendations, safeguarding your firm against complaints and upholding its reputation.
Fostering Long-Term Careers in Paraplanning:
Educating those outside the financial sector about outsourced paraplanning opens the door to individuals viewing it as a viable long-term career. This influx of committed professionals translates to elevated service levels and continuous personal development within the profession. The result is a cohort of highly skilled individuals armed with extensive knowledge, enhancing your firm’s ability to deliver excellence to clients. This, in turn, builds trust and reduces the likelihood of future complaints while increasing the potential for future business.
Elevating Client Experience through Paraplanning Expertise:
Beyond internal benefits, promoting and redefining paraplanning contributes to an enhanced client experience. With specialised individuals dedicated to the technical aspects, firms can deliver more robust, well-informed advice. Basically, this not only builds client trust but also positions the firm as a hub of comprehensive financial expertise.
Navigating Industry Evolution with Paraplanning Prowess:
In a rapidly evolving financial landscape, outsourced paraplanning can act as the compass. Firms like We Complement guide advisers through regulatory changes, market shifts, and technological advancements. Integrating paraplanning as a cornerstone profession ensures adaptability and resilience. This then means that firms are ready for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
Scottish Widows Paraplanner Survey Insights:
Recent statistics from a Scottish Widows Paraplanner survey provide a nuanced perspective.
Despite the assumption that paraplanning serves merely as a stepping stone, only 18% of paraplanners can see themselves moving on to a financial adviser role in the next five years. Instead, an overwhelming 69% plan to progress within their current role or take on leadership positions.
This shift is not merely an internal perception. A robust 70% of paraplanners believe that their contribution is viewed as ‘essential’ by the advisers they work with, dispelling the notion of a purely administrative role (14%). Furthermore, 81% of paraplanners believe that their firms now value paraplanning more highly than in the past.
Subsequently these statistics underscore a changing narrative within the landscape of outsourced paraplanning, supporting the importance of recognising and nurturing paraplanning as a distinguished profession.
Tony’s Insights:
Paraplanning, the role of evidencing suitability and undertaking financial planning analysis, is a key responsibility of all financial advisers. Similarly, remember you are the ones putting your names to the advice and your reputations on the line! Yes it is common for this to be delegated, in-house or outsourced, but in the end every adviser should understand the process and be able to ensure these tasks have been performed correctly. Which is why I believe every financial adviser should undertake at least two years as a financial planning analyst (a much better title than paraplanner in my view) before deciding to move into an advisory role.
Top Tip:
Consider redefining paraplanning roles as a foundation position for all employees involved in your financial planning delivery. The foundation you build today shapes the excellence you deliver tomorrow.
We Complement champions outsourced Paraplanning as a rewarding and professional career path. Get in touch to explore how a company embracing paraplanning as a point of pride can benefit you. Reach out to us online or call 01472 728 030.