No man is an island: Why we need to retain experienced advisers

Great article. Fully agree with you. I have spent around 20 years in the industry and I plan to quit too. I feel really sorry for my clients who depend on me for my ongoing support and guidance. I would love to stay on for their benefit as their future really matters to me. Lets see.

Recently I helped a person to successfully claim a $1.2 million TPD benefit. He is not well educated and did not know that he may be eligible for a claim. His planner had left many years ago and he had no planner to support him until I made a call to wish to wish him for the New Year. The funds helped him to pay off his loan and the wife did not have to work two jobs anymore and the two little kids are well protected.

This is an excellent article and echoes what I have been saying all along.
It's a shame that my industry and its representatives cannot come together and tell ASIC and FASEA to get real and stop using my industry as a kicking stone and money mill for the education system.
Doctors, accountants, solicitors, and judges all have criminals/bad operators, this proves a shiny piece of paper does not make an honest person.

Thank you, Jason, for the most sensible and reasoned commentary on this issue that has made it to print. The REAL battle will be getting FASEA to see reason.

Great comments !!!

The irony is that the new graduate/entrants are going to be required to undertake a professional year under the supervision of an experienced adviser. The best ones won't be around.

Thank you Jason for a very prescient and well reasoned article. Certainly the best I've read regarding experienced advisers and their current 'misunderstanding' with ASIC, FASEA et al.

I was a bit disappointed you didn't discern the financial planners (investment advisers) from the pure risk advisers as there is a completely different discipline there. Both are important to a client's best interests but it seems only the investment planners, by inference, are the only breed ever discussed in these forums.

Thank you for at least raising the 'experience issue' as you have. Let's hope the gurus at ASIC/FASEA read these pages, for the good of everyone, before they make ill-advised decisions based on political expediency - the most harmful type.

The irony of the of the FASEA changes is that whilst we won't become uneducated dinosaurs until 2024, that during the transition period we will apparently be good enough to mentor new entrants whilst they do a professional year. After which our years of experience and professional development will be no longer relevant.

No other profession, be it nursing, teaching, accounting or law has done this to their respective members in the qualification transition period, and in fact there are nurses, teachers and accountants practicing today that don't have a degree let alone a post graduate qualification.

Congratulations on presenting a well reasoned commonsense article.
Its good to read some balanced logic in a environment where knee jerk reactions to the challenges facing the advice industry is the norm.
There is no substitute for decades of experience. No piece of paper from an institution will save clients from advice which is either wrong or not in their best interests.

Jason, I agree. I study and read to keep updated and have absolutely no problem with studying to improve my skills, knowledge and to add value to what I can offer my clients, but I do not want to again repeat what I have already done.
When I started in 1985, I was in the midst of an accounting degree which I ceased in order to do the two-year LUA Financial Planning Course that covered Investment, Savings, Superannuation, Retirement Planning, Insurance, Taxation, Estate Planning and Centrelink and Veteran Affairs extensively.
Then they decided a Diploma was required so I completed DFP 1 to 8 and went on to qualify as a CFP(R) in 1997. I have also completed accreditation to be an SMSF Specialist.
For over 30 years I have guided clients to achieve their financial goals through life, legislative and economic changes. I am a proud winner of a National FPA Value of Advice Award, a member of the US MDRT Top of the Table and passionate about delivering excellent advice and service that simplifies our clients lives and enables them to live without financial worry.
I employee a team of 16, all who I have either assisted to learn financial planning from scratch or to take their skills to a superior level and can provide written testimony from those individuals that workplace experience and training was of greater value than formal learnings.
I also agree that if I am required to restudy fields that this tutoring should not be delivered by someone with more formal qualifications but less knowledge and practical experience.
And if common-sense doesn't prevail then my preference would be to study Economics, Psychology or MBA or go back and complete my Accounting Degree to complement my extensive expertise in Financial Planning rather than study something that I already know inside-and-out again; as that is incredibly wasteful and frustrating.

Thanks Jason for the voice of reason. I will be leaving too and I feel so bad for my clients as they rely on guidance and just a friend who understands. But if you have a choice on what Bach degree to spend your money on why would you enter financial planning when compliance makes the process of turning a dollar three times as hard. Better off being a tradie. We have not been able to raise fees enough to cover the increased time in compliance so profit suffers. A small business cannot afford a professional year student as they dont bring any income in. I can get my real estate license in 12-18 months and enjoy selling again without hundreds of pages of compliance. All I can say is I'm glad I'm a planner so I can do my own planning.
I hope some common sense prevails and the edgy dont thriw is oldies on the scrap heap

Wow! Jason that really is a fascinating article to read. Well researched. vey thought provoking.

I can only say that I finally feel I'm being heard, and add my voice to those who have already responded to this article. Many thanks Jason. Keep getting the message out there for us.

Great article!

Where do I fit into FASEA proposals?

Female single LIcensee, Adviser under my AFSL, Organisational Psychology/HR 12 years qualified and experienced teacher taught at all levels of education incl University. B.Business Management, Psychology, ADFS 1-8 and Dip Ed. 20 years experience in this industry. Hmmm.