Financial Planning Association (FPA) chief executive, Dante De Gori has confirmed job losses resulting from the organisation’s pursuit of a new structure.
As revealed by Money Management yesterday, weeks after the departure of the FPA’s chief operating officer, Pene Lovett in February eight people were this week told they were to be made redundant with De Gori this morning issuing a formal statement confirming the job losses and unveiling a “2025 Strategic Roadmap”.
He said the five-year strategic roadmap would start from 1 July and would focus on three core pillars – members, advocacy and consumers
- Members: To lead the profession on the financial planning model of the future
- Advocacy: To be the voice of the profession with a policy vision that ensures a growing and sustainable future for financial planning
- Consumer: To showcase the value of financial advice among all Australians, increasing awareness and use of financial planners
“There are significant opportunities for the FPA to lead on initiatives under each of these three strategic priority areas. Supporting members to grow and thrive, increasing the number of Australians accessing financial advice, and having a leading voice in public policy will be key priorities with significant initiatives to be rolled out over coming weeks and months to support each of these areas,” he said.
Acknowledging that the changes had been driven by the changing face of the industry over recent years and extensive adviser exits, De Gori said the organisation’s members were facing more regulation, higher education standards and increased costs.
“At the same time, there has never been a greater need for Australians to seek financial advice,” he said.
Acknowledging the job losses, De Gori said that it as the five-year strategic plan was finalised it was natural to look at the team structure.
“I am personally grateful for everyone’s contribution to the FPA over the past five years but as our strategy evolves and the environment changes we need to transform to ensure we remain relevant and effective,” he said.
Comments
Dante will be left like a shag on a rock all by his lonesome. The guy just doesn't get it!
What a retard De Gori is.Their new strategy is what their current strategy is only with 8 less staff lol. The current strategy is really what you'd expect their core priorities ought to be as a member based organisation anyway! Sounds like a cover to account for the thousands of members who have left in their droves to me!
Don't use that language.
Agreed. Totally inappropriate reference on every level.
You're right. I shouldn't have said member-based organisation.
I would have thought their new strategy should have already been the strategy!
Awesome! Fire eight staff in the middle of a pandemic while their head of professional standards posts lego parodies online to get likes from senior management and the board. Sums them all up really.
If it wasn't for those lego models I'd have gone mad recently - just enjoy them for what they are.
You would have gone mad? Really? #snowflake
So the FPA is actually going to represent it's members now? Isn't that what they should have been doing all along? Sounds like fee for no service to me? I look forward to a refund of my fees for the past 10 years.
This is timely as I have just received the email about renewing my AFP membership. I'm trying to think if there is any benefit in doing so. I'm not a CFP, so I'm a second class citizen in the eyes of the FPA. Am I correct in thinking the only benefit (unless you think their advocacy efforts and website resources are worth paying) is in regard to TPB membership? I seem to recall that their is some advantage when registering with the TPB is you are a member of the FPA?
There is discussion the Financial (Tax) Adviser designation will be done away with, later in the year, as it ought.
Totally unnecessary for advisers if they are giving general tax advice, but not preparing tax returns.
Tax (financial) Adviser? Unlikely this will go. TPB would have to do a complete overhaul and that's not gonna happen anytime soon.
Happy to give you odds but I think your source is speculating and quite mistaken.
If you're too lazy to spend $500 on a Tax and Australian Commercial law course you could join the following. The Stockbrokers and Financial Advisers Association, FINSIA, SMSF Profession. You're looking at $550.
Discussion by who Steve? I know this was an option put forward in the TPB Review last year, but the government hasn't acted on it. When Dante asked Hume about it in the FPA webinar, she tried to sidestep the issue and say it was Michael Sukkar's responsibility.
Does this mean I'll actually be visited or called by the FPA sometime in the future? In my 20 years of membership I have only ever been called by someone canvassing votes to join this gravy train of an organisation. Do they even know what their members want?
Also Dante, I am still awaiting an explanation from you for your mimicking of a mouth fart by a three year old followed by your profanity of "F*** Me!" at the conclusion of the Jane Hume webinar (Read staged love-in). Are our questions not to your liking?
Yes, I saw that. Dante is clearly out of his depth.
They don't act for you. CBA and the Banks made it compulsory to join the FPA in return for their silence. Those same firms pay for their employees membership fees. In return your got FASEA. The FPA gets one large payment and list of members names from these institutions, plus $60,000 a year on top o members fees. Is that a "Professional Association" ? You've got rocks in your head if you think they represent you.
I am in my mid fifties and had 30 years experience as a Financial Adviser running my own practice.
I have experienced everything first hand this industry has been hit with over that time.
I have had experience on national association board level.
Knock off 100K from Dante's package and give me a crack for five years at fixing the mess.
I intimately understand what the issues are and I am not afraid to tell it like it is and fight like hell against injustice, unfairness, discrimination and inappropriate decisions by Govt.
Anyone interested ?
Count me in. Set up a new association that admits only Financial Planners, Students and retired members and accepts them regardless of their employer and you'd be on a winner. Quite happy for a licensee/firm to pay for the odd conference but that should be their only connection. These bodies have their own agenda and it's not putting the needs of planners and Aussies first.
What irrelevant and useless flogs De Gori and his FPA are. The regulatory horse has long since bolted and he's on his knees, having been comprehensively routed on the battlefield, with death and carnage all around, calling out "Trust us boys - we know what we're doing!". When financial advisers needed advocacy we got acquiescence; when we needed leadership we got fawning abdication; when we needed backbone we got jelly; when we needed strength & resolute determination we got meek cowardice. And the end result - business values driven down, revenues driven down, costs driven up and productivity driven down. And red tape as far as the eye can see. Whilst a whole bunch of Australians who need advice will now never receive it. Ineffective, and totally irrelevant.
Unless the FPA has success in a major overhaul of Intrafund"advice" system, where up to a 1000 advisers can be paid salaries AND BONUSES without having to contend with unnecessary opt in compliance requirements, and the other group of advisers are banned from receiving BONUSES, buried with ridiculous opt in compliance requirements, their membership will continue to bleed to organisations that will level the playing field for this industrial relations inequity.
I will bet my house that the future of the FPA means going to bed with industry super funds and their call centre staff. In return for supporting that legislation, industry super funds will make it compulsory to be a member of the FPA. Win for the FPA, WIn for large super funds operating call centres. A loss for the average planner buried in red tape.
De Gori's 5 year roadmap. Keep taking his ridiculous salary. Keep charging members fees for no service. Try and get as much out of the instos as possible and do anything they ask to keep paying himself a bonus with it. Leave when there are no advisers left and the gravy train runs dry.
I just sent an e-mail to [email protected] , their e-mail. Got an auto response- FPA office closed during the Christmas Holiday and New Year period December 2017 and 2018! gremlins?
If he is earning $502k, surely a he can take a pay cut to keep some staff on.
Please stop Advocating on behalf of planners FPA. Your voice is conflicted. The last I looked the Victorian Medical Association doesn't allow a Drug firm to be a member. Pretty sure also, that if your a Doctor at Ramsey Health Care owned hospital you don't pay cheaper fees than a single practive GP. Yet for some reason if you work at NAB Financial Planning you pay lower fees. Oh wait NAB don't have planners...guess the FPA is screwed.
The headline should have been "FPA announces its new shape – fewer jobs, same fluff, more lego references, more money towards digital SoA projects & podcasts"
Just received my annual membership invoice. What a rort. Fee for no service ring a bell. I want a refund. Not paying this one. Shove the CFP designation. The FPA has not represented me appropriately ever in 20 plus years. Dante is in charge of the financial services version of the titanic. Watch it go down.
Just join the AFA or SMSF Association. That way you can still renew your Financial (Tax) Adviser registration with the TPB, no worries. Enough is enough.
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