Developing generation next

Skills development has been a major talking point in the financial services industry of late. Clients are getting younger while brokers and advisers are getting older. Added to this is the fact that attracting new skills into the industry is a growing problem.

In an effort to resolve this, Discovery has established the Discovery Financial Advisers Academy. FAnews spoke with Paula Berrow, Head of Discovery Financial Advisers Academy to find out more about the academy and the role it will play in the financial services industry.

Question: What role does the Discovery Financial Adviser Academy play in the financial services industry?
The financial services industry is continually evolving and becoming more regulated. The industry also has an ageing population of financial advisers, with an average age of 50. Only 22% of financial advisers are younger than 40, and 5% are younger than 30.

Through the Discovery Financial Adviser Academy, Discovery is recruiting and developing the next generation of professional financial advisers.

Question: Taking advice to the next level. How do you tackle that?
The two year elite programme aims to recruit graduates and aspiring financial advisers and to develop them into world-class financial advisers. The Discovery Financial Adviser Graduate Programme develops talented, competent financial advisers for the Discovery distribution channel.

The programme equips them with necessary skills to handle the complexity of the intermediary landscape while applying excellent standards in financial-planning advice and related services.

Question: What’s the training all about?
The Discovery Financial Adviser Graduate Programme is a rigorous training programme combined with practical on-the-job learning and mentoring. Each adviser has a personalised development path for the two year duration after which they will receive a formal qualification.

Highly-qualified and dedicated mentors with extensive knowledge and experience in the industry will also guide financial advisers through the programme and support them in every sales aspect. The support advisers receive in client appointments also give clients the peace of mind that advice is of the highest standard and always in their best interest.

The programme runs over a two year period allowing the financial adviser the opportunity to learn and develop along a personalised developmental path. They receive the support of experienced Sales Managers and Financial Advisers as they focus on financial products, planning, investments, taxation and different sales approaches.

Question: Is the industry excited about your initiative?
The number of applications has been overwhelming. Close to 130 selected candidates have been completing the various aspects of the training.

It is encouraging that so many candidates see a future in the financial services sector and that they see themselves in a career as a financial adviser running their own businesses and creating employment for others.

Question: What role does the Academy play in a time where robo-advice is starting to play a bigger role in the advice space?

While robo-advisers provides online wealth management services through automated algorithm based portfolio advice, there is still a greater client base that prefers face-to-face advice from top-class financial advisers.

Question: Looking at the future, why is this initiative critical for Discovery and critical for the development of much needed skills in the financial services industry?

Through Discovery’s unique value proposition and broad range of products this graduate programme will support Discovery’s next generation of financial advisers.

Having a team of financial advisers with unparalleled skills in sales and professional advice services will also support Discovery’s ambition to be the best insurer in the world. The success of the initial recruitment, training and development of financial advisers will be measured for a broader geographic rollout of the programme in future. Remove

With the success that has already been achieved we will be focusing on having a greater geographical rollout of the programme in the future. Through this we are introducing qualified and professional financial advisers in the local market.