"I was delighted to see that respondents to our survey were so positive and focused around both the recruitment of apprentices and additional advice and administration staff"
The survey of over 300 advisers found that 60% plan to take further qualifications within the next year and 76% intend to recruit at least one apprentice over the next 12–18 months.
32% of those who responded had a succession plan in place and 38% viewed automated advice as an opportunity.
Richard Ardron, joint managing director of NMBA, commented: “Everything that the NMBA provides to our members, from our communications and initiatives to our ever-popular series of events, is designed around our core objective, which is to improve the access to, and quality of, advice. The whitepaper provides really valuable insight into the future growth of our profession and, with it, how we are collectively addressing the advice gap.
“I was delighted to see that respondents to our survey were so positive and focused around both the recruitment of apprentices and additional advice and administration staff, as well as about the prospect of undertaking future qualifications. When it comes to succession planning and utilising technology to benefit an advice firm and its clients, we can clearly see that this is an area that firms are already thinking about and we will look to provide some high-quality guidance in these areas within the next few months.
“I believe that the future of the sector is very positive for both advisers and clients, and I was delighted to see that the majority of respondents to our whitepaper surveys share the same sentiment.”
