HAVING endured more than a year of tumult, AMP Financial Services has gone on the front foot and is aiming for 10 per cent annual growth in the number of financial planners it employs in Western Australia.
WA zone manager Michael Jones said AMP presently employed about 150 financial planners and other proper authority holders, making it the largest dealer group in the State.
The numbers have been static for the past three years but Mr Jones is hoping to change that and has his sights set on experienced planners.
He said the financial planning industry had come through one of its toughest years, as investors shied away from managed funds and superannuation in favour of residential property.
“When you are in the industry you know it is cyclical. The industry has got so much work to do to keep on educating people,” Mr Jones said.
AMP’s financial planners have had to deal with the added problem of corporate instability and a falling share price.
“If the AMP share price is falling, it has an impact definitely. But since the share price has started to lift, they have been a lot happier,” Mr Jones said.
He said AMP had taken a number of steps to support its financial planners, including local marketing campaigns, client surveys, newsletters and temporarily reduced fees.
“We are one of the most generous, if not the most generous dealer group in Australia,” he said.
The group also plans to reward planning practices that are well run, based on criteria such as continuing education and business planning, and penalise practices that do not seek to improve their performance.
“Planners need to lift their education and standards or else move on. Only a small minority haven’t made the leap,” Mr Jones said.
A major focus for AMP was an audit program designed to ensure financial advice was soundly based and met acceptable standards, he said.
It has also introduced a customer charter to obtain more feedback from clients.
