Financial Planning Association(FPA) chief executive Ken Breakspear will step down from the role on October 10, indicating he would not renew his contract and drawing to a close 15 years with the industry association.
FPA board chair Steve Helmich announced the move to association staff in Melbourne this morning and says it was not a complete surprise given the length of time Breakspear has spent with the association and the imminent end of his current contract.
Breakspear says the length of time he had spent with the FPA was a factor in his decision to leave and with his contract up for renewal it was an appropriate time to make the move.
He has not indicated what his next role will be but says he has spent all of his career in commercial and financial services and would look at similar roles.
While Breakspear was at the helm the FPA adopted a National Quality Assessment Program to help principal members with compliance assurance and pushed for amendments to the Alienation of Personal Service Income Bill to overcome the unintended tax consequences for small financial planning businesses.
He was also involved in the creation of the first external complaints resolution scheme for financial planners, established in 1995.
These actions received high praise from Helmich but Breakspear however has deflected much of the acknowledgement for the association’s work in recent years to staff and members.
He says much of the success of the FPA is the result of contributions of members who serve on the FPA’s board, chapters, committees and taskforces.
“I have been lucky enough to oversee the introduction of a number of important, segmented member service initiatives, including the development of the Professional Partner Program,” Breakspear says.
“The outcome is improved professionalism among planners and, consequently, more consumer confidence in the value of financial planning advice.”
Breakspear joined the FPA when it was still known as the Australian Investment Planners Association, which became the Australian Society of Investment and Financial Advisers and merged eleven years ago with the International Association of Financial Planning to form the FPA.
In his fifteen years with the group, Breakspear held the role of head of policy and professional standards before taking on the chief executive job after the departure of Michael McKenna.
The FPA has appointed an executive search firm to find a replacement for Breakspear with Helmich stating the association would consider staff internally as well as external candidates.
