What’s a designation worth?

On Tuesday WP looked at how important the CFP certification is to an advisor’s practice but if one Toronto advisor had his way it could become even more valuable.

In last year’s first ever Wealth Professional Certification Survey, 87 per cent of advisors who took the survey said they held the CFP well ahead of any other designation or certification.
 
There’s no doubt the CFP is an invaluable tool for advisors when it comes to providing advice to clients of all incomes. It’s the must-have designation in financial planning.
 
Christopher Dewdney, a financial security advisor at DWL Financial Services, suggests the CFP should be mandatory for anyone wanting to work in financial services dealing with clients.
 
“I have a few designations and I’m currently doing my CLU but the CFP for me is the foundation. I actually think it should be a requirement to be an advisor,” Dewdney told WP. “If we want to be viewed as true professionals similar to lawyers or accountants, you need to pass the CFP and then work in a firm for a certain period of time.”
 
This year’s survey got underway last week and the response has been brisk. Advisors are already making their voices heard when it comes to what matters most in financial planning. Perhaps the comments from this year’s respondents will echo Dewdney’s sentiments.
 
In last year’s survey we received several comments from advisors that expressed a similar ideal. 
 
“The financial services industry needs mandated professional standards from the government,” said one respondent. “The CFP is the logical choice.”
 
FPSC CEO Cary List certainly wouldn’t have a problem with Dewdney’s opinion when it comes to the CFP.
 
“It’s a biased argument but I think the relevance and the awareness and the importance of financial planning speak for themselves,” List told WP recently. “I don’t think there’s any question that the CFP is far and away the most significant and important designation for advisors to get at this point in Canada.”
 
This year’s certification survey got underway last week. The second annual Wealth Professional Certification issue will be out in late summer or early fall.
 
To take the survey and let your opinion on certification in Canada be heard – click here.
 
 

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