Published October 2014

I'm just back from the FPSB council meeting in Shanghai. It's always useful to meet up with our counterparts from other global territories to discuss the subjects we're all so passionate about – Financial Planning and CFP certification.

As happens so frequently in the IFP community where we members benefit from sharing ideas with each other, this is the same on a global scale at the FPSB meetings. We learn so much from each other and by collaborating on major themes we can drive the profession forward in so many different ways.


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Next week is one of the most exciting weeks of the year for our profession here in the UK as it's Financial Planning Week! This is our big chance to get out and shout about the power of financial planning and encourage the general public to see for themselves what we can do for them. There is only so much that the IFP team in Bristol and Holt PR can do without support from us, the IFP members. If you haven't already thought about getting involved there's still time and I urge you to do so. The more of us that give a little bit of our time and expertise the greater the impact will be. There are lots of ways to do it, most of which are simple – and fun too!

This week it's Financial Planning Week in Canada and it's great to see how the global community is getting behind the importance of financial planning as being fundamental to people's wellbeing. As Steve Gazzard stressed at conference recently, there really is a Financial Planning gap in the UK. Initiatives like Financial Planning Week go along way to putting the emphasis just where we want it – on the Financial Planning process and the long term benefits of having a sound financial plan in place.


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Something else that Steve talked passionately about at conference that really resonated with me was about the value of IFP membership. For so many of us, being part of the IFP community ( and I don't use the word community lightly) has been one of the critical factors that has inspired us and transformed our career. Steve encouraged us to think about other people we know in the profession or indeed who we work with, and to spread the word by talking to them about how they might benefit from becoming a member themselves.

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In particular, there's a strong Paraplanner community already developing in IFP circles. IFP membership isn't about just getting a bit of money off this or that, it's about a whole lot more. It's about connecting with other professionals who, like you, have a shared focus on real financial planning. It's about collaboration, sharing ideas and best practice and finding out from each other and other experts how we can deliver an even better planning service and build even more profitable businesses. Oh yes, I forgot to mention – it's a lot of fun too. So my final words to you are to get involved. If it's Financial Planning Week or spreading the word, get stuck in and you'll not look back!

Rebecca Taylor FIFP CFP