Steve Nelson, Insight Director at The Lang Cat, shares his reflections on the evolution of the advice profession and the importance of understanding its inner workings. As the 2024 ‘State of the Advice Nation’ study enters its seventh year, Nelson emphasises the need for greater paraplanner participation to uncover fresh insights and address critical challenges facing the sector.
We’ve been working with the advice profession for years now, and a vital part of understanding what makes it tick is the research we conduct. We spend a lot of time tracking trends and patterns as the sector evolves to meet consumer and regulatory needs. Our State of the Advice Nation study (SOTAN) is now underway and in its seventh year. To capture the widest possible range of views, we’re looking for more participants.
The research is one of the largest advice-focused attitudinal studies in the UK, with more than 400 members of the advice profession taking part. It explores everything from business models and succession plans to views and approaches to changing regulation, the technology used, and what’s anticipated in the year ahead.
The study was called ‘State of the Adviser Nation’ on launch, but we’ve adapted it to reflect broader shifts in our sector. Through our own networks, for example, we’re in constant dialogue with paraplanners and aware of the growing contribution they make to the advice world. And one thing that routinely comes up when talking to paraplanners is the sense of feeling under-represented. So, last year, for the first time, we redesigned (and renamed) the report to include role-specific pathways through the study.
The headlines that really struck me from last year were around the biggest blockers to paraplanners being able to do their jobs effectively on a day-to-day basis. For example, 42% bemoaned a disconnect with advisers on what they should be doing, second only to issues with provider admin (49%). These far outstripped frustrations with technology (7%) and regulation (1%).
Interestingly, in the same report, when advice firm owners were asked what was keeping them awake at night, increased workload topped the list. This is a cause for concern but shines a light on how those in the sector can work better together to make life easier, increase efficiencies and improve service for customers.
It seems there’s a clear need for open and honest conversations between advisers and paraplanners. It’s a no-brainer given advice firm owners are losing sleep because of workload. But this also extends to communication between advice firms and providers about what they need to get the job done.
The best research isn’t where you have your existing thoughts and beliefs validated but instead when something comes along that you weren’t expecting.
We want to poke at some of these themes further in wave seven of the research. And we’re doing just that through an expanded question set. We’re introducing two changes. Firstly, to gain a better understanding of the day-to-day tasks a paraplanner faces and the depth of involvement that they have with certain processes within advice firms. Things like CIP construction and client review preparation. Our hunch is that what a paraplanner means in one firm can be fundamentally different to another. We want to explore that.
Secondly, we’re asking paraplanners what they believe are the top skills they bring to the advice process. But crucially, we’re also asking the same thing of planners and business owners.
SOTAN is all about developing a better understanding of the advice profession and where pockets of disconnect occur. It’s here where we can step in and deliver meaningful insight that will hopefully drive change for the better. Improving things for businesses, the people who work in them, but also for consumers – and most of us belong to that category.
That’s why in 2024, my ask is that if you’re a paraplanner (1) who wants to get your voice heard, (2) wants role-specific insight on your profession, and (3) wants to be part of a study that aims to move sector understanding forward… we want to hear from you.
The data tells us that it’ll take a maximum of 15 to 20 minutes for a paraplanner (both in-house or outsourced model) to complete the study. In return, you’ll get the full report and benchmarking data back. Not an abstract, the full lot. You’ll also get access to our state of the platform nation guide too and entry into a big prize draw with lots of different items on offer.
To get involved use this link: https://www.research.net/r/sotan7para
