Newly merged advice practice Esencia Wealth says investing in a pipeline of new advisers to protect future growth sits at the “top of our list”.
Esencia Wealth commenced operations in its new Sydney office at the beginning of June 2024. The financial advice business is the result of a four-way merger between Advise Wise, Insight Private Wealth, Sovereign Wealth Partners, and Randle Advisory.
The firm brought together more than 1,000 clients with a combined history of approximately 100 years. It has nine advisers and one staff member completing their professional year (PY).
Matthew Fenning, previously the managing director of Advise Wise, has taken up the position of chief executive at Esencia Wealth. At the time of the merger, he said the firm was committed to creating career pathways for its own staff and new hires.
“Traditionally the advice industry has struggled to develop a transparent career pathway that is commonly found in professional services firms. By establishing this in our business, we can provide those entering anywhere from the ground floor up with an opportunity to progress and become a partner in the business. This is critical for attracting and retaining talent and, importantly, another marker of professionalism in the advice industry,” he described in June.
Speaking with Money Management some two months after Esencia Wealth officially opened its doors, Fenning further detailed how the practice was actively investing in the next generation of advisers through its additional scale.
“Part of scale is that it affords you the opportunity to create pathways and invest in people. Career pathways and retention of advisers in the industry is right at the top of our list for what we need to invest in,” the chief executive remarked.
Esencia Wealth is focused on being “ready for tomorrow”, Fenning said, which means helping the business grow by fostering a pipeline of upcoming advisers.
“One of the decisions you’ve got to make [as a business owner] is: Do I focus more on profit or ensuring the business is as good tomorrow as it is today? Investing in a pipeline of associate and provisional advisers coming through is really important.”
With overall adviser numbers stagnating at 15,480, the CEO urged all advice firms to be investing in career pathways and PY programs to retain new entrants in the industry.
This will be particularly important as superannuation funds continue expanding their advice offerings, alongside other financial institutions and big four accounting firms that are driving higher competition for graduates.
Fenning continued: “Whether we like it or not, we are competing with other firms for people at the early stages of their career. We’re all competing for staff in a relatively tight employment market with some fantastic businesses that have a lot to offer. So we’re going to do our best to make sure that our employee experience and opportunities are on par with those out there.”
In light of a recent report unearthing that three-quarters of advisers looking to depart are aged under 40, the chief executive also discussed why this may be the case and the importance of having structured career timelines for new entrants.
