Tom Watson, client account manager with Finura is a fellow Benchmark academy student who is currently studying for his diploma with the CII. He plans to move to a trainee paraplanner role when he has finished the diploma.
“My ambition is to become a financial planner,” Watson told FTAdviser.
“Since starting in the industry with work experience, I thought the idea of helping people to achieve their goals, financial or otherwise, a very fulfilling job and related it to my own parents and how a wish of mine is to help them retire, as they are both self-employed.
“I have always found myself to be someone who enjoys getting to know people and relish building relationships, so the client facing aspect of the role I see as being something I could thrive doing.”
'Not a diverse profession'
Watson explained how he has dyspraxia and that he found Benchmark’s academy very supportive in meeting his specific needs.
He noted that the tutors were always available to contact whenever he needed additional help and said having the flexibility to watch the recorded sessions was also an important benefit that allowed him to go at his own pace.
Looking at the profession as a whole, Watson said he has not followed the issues between the PFS and the CII “in depth” but said “the relationship between them is important so it is worrying to see the uncertainty of the future”.
“As a new entrant, it is clear to see how much the industry has changed within the last 20 years and is continuing to change. However, in my opinion the biggest issue is that financial planning is still generally not a diverse profession,” he said.
“I would love to see broader initiatives to get more young people from diverse backgrounds interested in becoming financial planners, this would also raise awareness amongst other young professionals that financial planners can be relatable and help them to plan their future.”
Likewise, fellow Benchmark academy student, Myka Simpson-Rivas said she is worried that the public fall-out between the CII and the PFS will “dissuade people from choosing these professional bodies for their qualifications and membership.”
Simpson-Rivas, who is a paraplanner and trainee adviser with Benchmark said she “truly hopes this is not the case.”
“We need to have our professional membership as something to be held high and respected by our profession and by clients.”
In her view, the changing regulatory environment is one of the biggest challenges facing the profession currently.
“Changes to processes or documentation can take a lot of time away from a firm, advisers, paraplanners and administrators. Currently consumer duty is the biggest talking point,” Simpson-Rivas said.
Simpson-Rivas, who has been been with Benchmark for nearly 12 years progressed from an administrator with the firm to paraplanner team lead and is now a trainee planner having completed the diploma in financial planning through self-study.
