Haintz joins Best Advice project

Melbourne-based Haintz Financial Services has joined the Best Advice project, a national cooperative between independent financial planning businesses to pool knowledge and resources and develop a best practice model.

Haintz, which won Money Management’s 2005 Australian Financial Planner of the Year award, joins Melbourne-based Heraud Harrison, Brisbane-based Planners Alliance, Sydney-based Guest McLeod and Arnheim Gillard, Perth-based Gannon Growden Schonell and Keysbrook Financial Services and Tasmania-based Shadforths. Together, these firms represent around $9 billion in funds under advice.

The project, which was launched earlier this year, is designed to reduce the time and money member firms expend on developing best practice manuals, information technology and other costs associated with running a financial planning practice.

Haintz managing director David Haintz said he and his team are looking forward to working more closely with other member firms.

“We’re happy to have the opportunity to … share ideas and practices which can benefit our respective clients.”

Project chief executive officer Tony Fenning said member firms have derived enormous benefit from working together to develop best practices, discussing investment strategies and sharing the cost of information technology.

“Pooling knowledge and resources frees members to get on with actual financial planning,” he said.

“The project’s gained a fair bit of momentum now and we’re looking at developing even closer ties between member firms, which includes looking at the feasibility of becoming a listed national quality advice firm.”