The online assembly about starting out in paraplanning proved so popular, we didn’t have time to answer all the questions people raised in the hour. So, experts Caroline Stuart, Tony Bates and Benjamin Beck, kindly got together after the show to answer them.

Before you get stuck in to reading their answers, make sure you’ve watched the show here.

Over to the experts

Question 1: I am a year into a junior paraplanning role, I’ve just finished my R0 exams, but I am quite wary that I am still inexperienced and have a lot of areas to develop in the day job. Would you recommend jumping straight into the AF exams or would it be more important to take some time off studying to focus on building up my skillset at work?

Benjamin: I have not yet embarked on the AF exams so it is difficult to answer. What I would like to say is, if you take a study break it can be difficult to get back into the rhythm. Perhaps consider Practical Investment Planning (PIP) qualification as this qualification seek to develop you further for the day to day job.

Tony: My experience working with clients is that If attitude is the same they would always go for someone less qualified (as long as on course for level 4) with more experience than more qualified with less experience so build up as many skills as possible. Don’t be shy to ask the best person in the business how they do things as most people enjoy talking about themselves ! 😊

Caroline: This is a tough one, as it really depends on the type of work you are doing in your day job and how you feel about exams. The change from the R0 papers to the AF papers can feel like quite a leap for some people, particularly if they are still quite new to the job, but the things you will learn from them will help you in your role. The difference between the R0 papers and AF papers is that the R0s are all about learning the information and the AF papers are all about how you apply that knowledge. You would find it difficult to complete the AF papers without the knowledge you’ve gained from the RO papers still being fairly fresh, so the longer you leave between them, the more you will have to potentially revisit and refresh yourself on.

Also, as Ben noted, once you get out of the ‘habit’ of exams, it can be difficult to get back into them. I know I left a couple of years between finishing my diploma and moving on to the Advanced Diploma and in hindsight, I wish I’d just kept going! The information you learn in them will always be useful, even if you are still fairly new to your role, so if you are able to, my advice would be to maybe have a little break to give your brain a well deserved rest but then get back to it as soon as you can.

Question 2: What does PIP stand for?

Benjamin: Practical Investment Planning (PIP)

Question 3: Should I take a paraplanning qualification or do the main financial services ones?

Benjamin: Not sure if you mean specially the paraplanning qualification within CII or the ROs? I would recommend achieving the Diploma as a lot of paraplanning roles have advertised as Level 4 qualified minimum. (Never hurts to have extra qualifications)

Tony: I can only base it on my experience. I think because the paraplanning qualification is not as well known to firms /hiring managers it does not yet have the level of credibility that it probably should. Job market wise then hiring mangers would prefer the main FS ones.

Caroline: Many paraplanners want to be the same level of qualification as the planners they are working with and lots are more qualified. The paraplanning qualifications are a useful add on but they will largely require the knowledge you would learn with the R0 exams to pass it, as there is a certain amount of assumed knowledge with these.

Once you have done your Diploma, this will give you a good foundation to build on, with a really broad knowledge base. As paraplanning is such a wide field, the requirements of your role will largely depend on the business you are working in, and unfortunately, a qualification can’t cater for individual business processes. A paraplanning qualification will give you a good understanding of the role in general, but on the job experience will also build the knowledge and skills you need. I would stick with the main ones initially and then once you have those under your belt, you can choose whether to go for a paraplanning qualification or the advanced ones, depending on where you want your career to go, of course!

Question 4: Are there any decent job search sites specific to financial services perhaps? More general ones I find tricky as specific searches often return completely irrelevant jobs. I have a spreadsheet with a lot of local (and national) firms on with notes which I’ve used to approach speculatively

Tony: I would seek advice. A good recruitment consultant will advise /not sell so research and ask for advice from a consultant. Sometimes the opportunities are not advertised. People have financial advisors to advise on money, and you should see your career as a long term investment and work with a consultant in the same way.

I would also advise to look at companies that match your values, sign up to their careers page and connect with key people on linked in. You will be amazed the opportunities that come your way doing so.

If you are seeking a new role be sure to change to “open to work”on LinkedIn as this means that resourcing teams and recruitment firms will see that you are but not your employer so you are safe!

Caroline: I’ve only used Tony and Idex for the last 10 years! 😂 Approaching companies speculatively is a great idea as they may not have all the jobs advertised and they may not even know they are looking for someone like you until you contact them!

Thanks to Caroline, Ben and Tony for taking the time to answer these questions.

In November, Susan Pringle was joined by Dr. Tom Mathar of Aegon UK to explore behavioural science. You can watch the replay. We enjoyed the Online Assembly so much that when the team at Aegon shared an article about the effect of working with clients in an online environment, we thought it would make an interesting follow up.

So…once more, over to Dr. Tom..

The online encounter 
Why clients are more comfortable with an online relationship than you may think

Coronavirus forced many of us to move out of our carefully arranged offices into a home environment and made video calls more prevalent. And with that move, advisers and paraplanners are now faced with the challenge of trying to acquire new clients from their own homes.

The physical cues normally used to get messages about themselves and their business across may be lost. Clients, however, will continue to look for these cues that ultimately encourage them to build trust. So, it’s important to carefully think about the messages the background of video calls can convey.

Subliminal messaging works

The norm of reciprocity means clients are more likely to give away something personal (their concerns, requirements, hopes and aspirations) if you share something personal too – either implicitly or explicitly.

In 2020, we asked 2,100 members of the Aegon Feedback Community what should present itself in the background of a video call – most of our respondents said it should be ‘clean’. Although references to achievements and professional background (for example, awards and certificates) are considered acceptable too.

But subconsciously, sharing deeper personal references such as family connections, seems a more powerful way to enter a reciprocal relationship.

Our study also suggests that using references to your personal wealth or social status (for example, exclusive art or interior design) could stop prospective clients from entering a relationship with you[1]. Similarly, blurring the background could also put you at risk of not building an open, trusting relationships with clients. This, however, may differ with the client segments your firm typically serves.

Share and share alike

The TrustedAdvisor’s Trust Equation[2], uses four variables to measure trustworthiness:

  1. Credibility (which has to do with the words used in client interaction);
  2. Reliability (which has to do with actions);
  3. Intimacy (relates to the safety / security we feel when engaging with someone), and
  4. Self-orientation (refers to your focus and, more specifically, if you seem focussed on the client or yourself).

Of all four, intimacy is considered the most powerful component. Intimacy refers to the sense of security that someone gets when they engage with you. They want to know that everything they share with you will be treated with respect and propriety.

In our report Building trust with prospective clients, we look further into the Trust Equation – how only by giving something will you likely get something back, and by sharing your own hopes, fears and aspirations you will invite the same from your clients – and how this can help to develop a deeper understanding of their financial motivations.

How you and your clients adapt

Pollster Opinium[3] found that the majority of advisers (59%) said that ‘working with clients remotely’ is the main challenge they’re currently facing when adopting to Coronavirus disruption.

Before the pandemic, 84% met their clients in a face-to-face encounter ‘often’ or ‘very often’ and only 7% used video calls. Going forward, 70% assume they’ll meet their clients face-to-face ‘often’ or ‘very often’ – and 38% say they’ll meet clients using a video call.

Opinium’s research also found that clients would now prefer to meet their adviser in a video call after the pandemic, rather than return to face-to-face meetings as they become increasingly more at ease with the idea of an online relationship.

And in our own research, crucially, those who think this are the Career-driven families and Upper Echelons customer segments, who have significantly higher assets than average and are more likely to work with an adviser.

Summary

It’s likely that video calls will continue from now on, so it could be worthwhile thinking about which supportive cues are right for your clients and business’ brand.

And it’s worth noting the variables in the Trust Equation have become much tricker to manage with the move from office to online meetings. In a video call it’s a careful balance between conveying the right levels of intimate messages about yourself without seeming as if you’re pushing your own goals onto your clients. Getting the right blend can have a significant impact on client trust and your business.

You can read more about the research and our findings in our two reports:

Increasing client trust during video calls

Building trust with prospective clients

[1] Aegon Feedback Community, 2,100 respondents, 2020

[2] trustedadvisor.com, the Trust Equation, 2020

[3] Understanding the impact of Coronavirus on the investment landscape. Opinium, 2020.

Thank you Dr. Tom and Aegon UK. 👍

Understand the importance of behavioural science within paraplanning.

Learning Objectives

In this session we covered…

When Lindsey Gedge contacted us before a recent event to let us know that she has a hearing impairment, we learnt some valuable lessons on making the Powwow accessible. Lindsey kindly offered to share her thoughts on making events easier for those with hearing impairments. Over to Lindsey 😊

My experience at the Howwow

  1. Make no assumptions – it was instrumental to me that I was asked by the organiser if I would be comfortable working in a group and this made me feel confident in raising my concerns. Talking this through made me realise I could try using my hearing pen in a slightly different way than I have previous experience of.
  2. Make it really easy for people to let you know in advance so you can plan – I was introduced to several people who would be leading the groups. This gave us both the opportunity to voice any queries before the day started and made it feel less intimidating to me asking for extra help.
  3. Never underestimate the desire in groups of people to make sure everybody’s experience of an event is a great one – I need not have worried. I was absolutely blown away by how kind people were. I really felt I was part of my group and I was able to take lots of new knowledge and ideas away with me that ordinarily I would not have been able to do. It was refreshing to have felt included, instead of isolated.
  4. The technology available – the hearing pen was a revelation to everyone! I was able to apply for a grant from the DWP who paid for both the pen and the training. You can find out more here. I wish I’d had one years ago but it means I can now engage and participate with groups of people, whereas previously I wouldn’t have been able to.

Top tips when communicating with a person with hearing impairment

I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you so much to everyone for their kind assistance. It has given me the confidence to use my hearing pen again, especially if it is a Paraplanners Howwow event. I very much look forward to attending next year!

Thanks again for sharing Lindsey. See you at an event soon 😊

Following the ‘This time it’s personal’ Howwow in November, we asked Chris Hindle, Director and Paraplanner at Frazer James and outsourced Paraplanner to share his thoughts. It was Chris’ first Powwow event, and our first time focussing solely on soft skills, so his insight is doubly interesting. Thanks for sharing Chris 🙂

Do paraplanners need soft skills?

That was the question I was asking myself after a colleague suggested I attend an all-day course to develop my soft skills.

An introvert by nature, I was initially resistant to the idea. Why do I need soft skills training, surely this was the domain of advisers?

The thought of a full day workshop on soft skills development made me slightly uncomfortable, which in itself told me that it was probably a good idea to attend!

So I signed up.

My first ‘Powwow’

Having not previously attended a ‘Powwow’, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Would it be leading from the front like most workshops, or would it be something different entirely?

The first thing I noticed is the sense of community. This was an event organised by paraplanners, for paraplanners. We were coming together to learn, fix and share in a non-judgemental way.

A loose agenda kept the day together, but the event was largely driven by the needs of the attendees. We were treated as participants, not delegates.

Why paraplanners need soft skills

Despite initially being resistant to the idea, I came around to believing that soft skills are as much the domain of paraplanners as they are of any other role.

Whilst the role of ‘paraplanner’ differs widely between firms, one commonality is that in all firms paraplanners interact with other people. This holds true for both in-house and outsourced paraplanners.

Being able to communicate with clarity and confidence, is the key to developing and maintaining successful relationships.

The feedback from advisers confirmed this:

What I learnt

Although there was lots to takeaway, there are three things that really stuck with me:

  1. Giving effective feedback.

I’ve been guilty of being very direct with my feedback. For some people this can work well, but it’s not for everyone. It can damage relationships and make people feel undervalued.

In the future, I will ask the recipient how they like to receive feedback. Everyone has a different style, so if we want to get the most from people, we need to communicate in a way that suits them.

  1. Listen, don’t speak.

Sometimes, I prepare my response whilst somebody is still speaking. I’m not actively listening to them; I’m just waiting until it’s my turn. It pains me to write this, but it’s true.

In the future, I will work harder on actively listening to the other person. If something comes into my head, I’ll write it down. This keeps my head clear so that I can focus on what they are saying.

  1. Enjoy the silence.

Silence makes me uncomfortable, so I fill it the only way I know how, by filling the space. This was made painfully clear when I listened to recordings of telephone conversations I have had with clients.

In the future, I’m going to give people the space to think. I will keep in mind that they may not have had the time to think through the information I’ve just provided and need the space to do so.

What next? 

It’s clear that paraplanning has come a long way in a short space of time. It’s also clear that there is still a long way to go, particularly around soft skills training.

Personally, I’m going to be spending 20% of my continuing professional development on developing my soft skills.

I’ll be doing things like:

How about you? Do you think soft skills training is important? What will you be doing to improve your soft skills?

A follow up session to our personal development skills day.

Learning objectives

In this session we covered…

PFS Paraplanner Panel member and Powwow regular (not to mention this year’s host), Caroline Stuart shares some of the whats, hows and wheres of the PFS Paraplanner Panel’s new Paraplanner Pathway.

Hello there or How!

PFS Paraplanner HQ have been working hard on some bits and pieces to try and entice more new folks into the profession and help them on their way once they are. One of the things we have been working on is our Paraplanner Pathway.

It is a brief introduction to paraplanning, what it’s about, how to get started and where to find help.

You may know someone who is thinking of getting into paraplanning or is just joining the Paraplanner profession. Perhaps you know someone who is considering what to do with their career and isn’t sure what to do next? Perhaps that someone is you?

If so, please have a look at our little video, tell your friends and colleagues all about it and anyone else you think might find it useful.

If we all work together, we can let the world know about our brilliant, challenging and rewarding profession and the fantastically supportive, fun and friendly community that it has created.

If you are interested in supporting, sharing your thoughts or just a little nosy. Head over to the PFS Paraplanner Panel’s Facebook page.

PFS Paraplanner HQ, over and out!

Howwows are for those times when we want to focus on ONE topic in particular and, in depth.

For 2017 we’re planning on holding more online Howwows, in addition to four face-to-face ones. In fact, online Howwows are scheduled for every last Wednesday of the month, at lunch time (1-2pm for most normal folk), so you can join in while eating your sandwich.

If you’ve never tuned into a Howwow online or you’re a bit rusty on it all – this handy guide will help you on your merry way.

1. Sign-up to online Howwows

We’ll be listing upcoming Howwows on the Powwow website every month. Alternatively, just pop over to our Powwow channel on Crowdcast, and you’ll find the next Howwow there waiting for you to register.

Plus, we’ll let you know when they go up via Twitter, the Powwow Post, and if you hit follow on the Powwow Crowdcast Channel

2. How to join the Howwow on the day

Keep an eye on your inbox at 12:50pm, on the day of the Howwow. Around about then, you’ll receive an email which includes a link to click to join in.

As a heads up, the webinar isn’t supported by all browsers, so we suggest downloading Chrome or Firefox ahead of the Howwow to avoid any delay in joining, or you could just download the nifty free Crowdcast app (that’s the webinar platform we use) for phones and tablets from iTunes or the Chrome Web Store. From there, all you need to do is sign in.

We’ll do a tiny bit of tech housekeeping at the beginning of each Howwow, that way you’ll know what’s what – it really is painless, we promise. You don’t need anything fancy, just the ability to watch, listen and type.

For those that share office space, you may want to tune in using earphones or headphones.

3. Drop-in when you want

You can tune in when you want, for as long as you want, from wherever you want – we’ve even got folk tuning in from Canada (Hello over there)!

4. How do online Howwows work?

For each Howwow there will be a small panel of paraplanners. They’ll kick off each Howwow by asking what’s on your plate – where you can chat about current day-to-day issues with other paraplanners.

Next up, will be the main topic for tackling in depth. In true Powwow style, we don’t know what these all are yet. That’s because you get to shape what topics to focus on.

Once you tell us what you’d like covered, we’ll do our best to put an A-team panel together for it.

All the way through the Howwow, you’ll be able to post questions, chat with other Howwowers (using a text messaging type thing).

The big idea is for panellists to make sure your questions, ideas and thoughts are shared with the Howwowers.

5. Can’t wait to pose a question?

Not going to make it to the Howwow or sure you’ll forget your question, then make sure you fire it over to [email protected].

6. Can I be on the panel or suggest topics?

The answer is yes to both!

If there’s any topic that you’re keen to share your views on then let us know. And of course, there’s no rule saying you have to be a panellist to suggest a topic. Get in touch by emailing [email protected] or tweeting @ParaPowwow.

7. Missed a Howwow?

We know at times the Howwow stars don’t align, and you just can’t make it. But, we’ve got you covered. You can head back over here – at any time – and find a recorded version lurking.

Plus, if it totally slips you mind, don’t worry we’ll always let you know there’s been one. Just follow us on Twitter, or sign up to Powwow Post, or hit follow on the Powwow Crowdcast channel, or in fact just do all three because, like Aerosmith, you ‘don’t want to miss a thing’.

By Kelly Guttridge

“I’ve only ever worked for one financial services company and was the first person to become ‘paraplanner’. Sometimes it feels a bit like we’ve made it up as we go along, so I’d like to know more about what paraplanners in other companies do and how that compares to my roles and my expectation of the roles.”

This statement was a key part of what led me to attend Powwow South West. I’ve spent countless hours meeting new people, talking about what we do, and finding myself stumped when it comes to answering the question ‘so, what is a paraplanner?’ And I’m sure I’m not alone in googling ‘paraplanner’, only to be left more confused after scrolling through the first few pages of results.

Am I meant to be an administrator? Am I more like a non-client facing adviser or financial planner? Do I need qualifications and, if I do, which ones?

Over the last three years, my role has changed and developed. I started out as something that might have been described as an assistant to the advisers, primarily writing reports based on the advice and details provided by the adviser, but doing very little research. With my own growing experience and knowledge, this has developed into interpreting the broad financial plan, along with the client’s circumstances, and filling in the detail myself, researching specific products and coming up with the most suitable solutions in order to complete the recommendation.

Taking on more of the work has meant a need for more people in my role, so there are now two of us. But like me, my colleague has never worked for another financial services company and came to the role through an internal promotion from her position as an administrator. Together, we have spent a lot of time over the last year trying to define what it is we do, but still come up against the same problem; that we don’t really know whether what we are doing is what we really should be doing as paraplanners.

At Powwow South West it was particularly interesting to meet other paraplanners working in a variety of settings. The majority, like me, are employed in-house by a single financial services company, though one was an outsourced paraplanner working for a range of companies.

Something everyone at the Powwow seemed to agree is that it is the paraplanner’s job to take the soft facts and the broad financial requirements agreed between the adviser and the client, and fill in the details. We research the products and investments, and write to the client with the specific recommendation (usually as the adviser).

Of course, in answering one question, it raised a few others. Luckily, I was already in the right place with good company!

Following on from the question of what a paraplanner actually does is the question of what qualifications we need.

Most of the paraplanners I met at the Powwow are level 4 diploma qualified or working towards it. Many have found it useful to achieve the advanced qualifications and a couple are even working towards becoming chartered. Whether this represents the majority of paraplanners is hard to say, and having qualifications isn’t yet an industry requirement. However, it was clear that studying for and taking exams is useful, especially when we’re doing the technical part of the financial planning.

So, if we’re just as qualified as advisers, does that make paraplanning a kind of training ground for future advisers? Well, yes. For some paraplanners the higher salary of the adviser is what they are aiming for. Paraplanning provides a good base of experience and technical knowledge, as well as the opportunity to take exams without the pressure of qualifications being a requirement for the role of paraplanner. And no. Paraplanning and advising require very different skills. Paraplanners are the technical researchers, the interpreters, and the writers. Advisers, on the other hand, are the face of the financial services industry, putting the emphasis on relationship management.

For me, the most important thing I’ve taken away from Powwow South West is the reassurance that what I’m doing really is paraplanning, even if the way we got there is slightly different to other companies.

Earlier this year something like 80 paraplanners gathered together – at real-life and online ‘Howwows’ organised by Paraplanners Powwow volunteers – to answer the question: ‘Should there be common professional paraplanning standards?’.

It’s the kind of issue that’s tailor-made for the Paraplanners Powwow – for two reasons: First, because Powwowers don’t have to negotiate the policy-making processes of the professional bodies who, inevitably, will have a big stake in the result of the debate.

And, second, because the new single-issue – workshop-style – Howwow format lends itself to kick-starting a debate while keeping its eye on a practical outcome.

And so it proved at three real-life Howwows organised by Dan Atkinson and Richard Allum in London, Claire Goodwin in Leeds, and Claire Scott, James Macaulay, Keith Boyes and Susan Pringle in Edinburgh.

The appetite for common standards

Practically speaking, these initial Howwows were a great way to gauge the appetite for common professional standards among paraplanners and the barriers to their establishment.

And as far as appetite is concerned, there’s no shortage.

At the conclusion of the hour-long online Howwow, 70 per cent of Howwowers were convinced that common standards were a good idea and 82 per cent thought that Level 4 was a minimum standard.

Nearly 60 per cent (59%) thought that continuous peer-based assessment of professional standards – like the mentoring model adopted by UK nursing – was preferable to employer-led assessment of professional competency.

Questions, questions, questions

But the Howwow posed just as many questions as answers.

If mentoring is adopted to raise and monitor standards, who would become mentors and how would they qualify?

Will accreditation be the best way to demonstrate professional standards and, if so, will financial advice practice bosses recognise it?

And what role – if any – should professional bodies play in the establishment of commonly recognised standards?

Pivotal role of professional bodies

What has become very clear from the debate so far is that, for paraplanning to establish common professional standards, the role that professional bodies play will be pivotal.

But because many paraplanners expressed ease with the idea of ’peer-led professionalism’ the role for professional bodies should be more as a facilitator of common standards rather than the dictator of them.

For that kind of approach to work will take a meeting of minds.

That’s why, over the next few weeks, we’d like to try to bring together paraplanning colleagues from the PFS and CISI paraplanners groups, and organisers of the Howwows and Powwowers who have expressed an interest in helping shape professional standards.

We’re really interested to see whether, by getting together either online or in real life, we’re able to begin to sketch out a framework for common paraplanning professional standards.

If you’re a paraplanner who’d be interested in joining in this next stage just get in touch.

And if you’re a paraplanner who’s curious to see how we get on – just watch this space!