Analysis of financial planning industry job advertisements performed by eJobs Recruitment Specialists has shown that while ad numbers have increased in the Victorian and Queensland markets, positions available for new entrants to the industry remain almost non-existent.
The studies compiled up to January 30, 2006, revealed that in Victoria an average of 150 jobs were advertised per month for financial planning related roles, with 90 per cent of them located in and around Melbourne. In Queensland the average number of jobs ads was 199 per month.
However, the focus of these recruitment activities seem to be to attract experienced financial advisers with no positions in Victoria offering a salary level below $50,000, and advertisements for assistant financial planners accounting for less than 10 per cent of jobs advertised in Queensland. This is despite the fact that many candidates looking for an entry-level position are already DFP qualified.
The conclusion drawn from this development by the recruiting firm is that to break into the financial planning industry it appears candidates must first become a client service officer or a paraplanner.
Although the number of jobs advertised rose in both markets, the number of applicants for the positions on offer fell in Queensland. In particular, the number of experienced candidates applying for each job dropped dramatically and has led the recruitment firm to review its existing client records to fill vacant roles rather than rely on new applicants appearing.
In both markets jobs offering a salary of between $50,000 and $55,000 were most common and were looking to attract advisers with anywhere between one and three years experience.
The analysis also revealed experienced paraplanners are in short supply. eJobs describes the candidate shortage in the Queensland market as “the tightest we’ve ever known”. In both markets ads for paraplanners are being re-advertised over several months and are typically offering a wide salary band, between $40,000 and $70,000 in Victoria, and between $40,000 and $80,000 in Queensland.
