Profitable Count strikes deal with CARM
By Ross Kelly
CountFinancial has announced it will offer a new software system to its aligned accountants and advisers, and confirmed it was still on track to post healthy end of financial year profits.
CARM’s Guided Planning System (GPS) is being offered to franchisees of the country’s second largest independent dealer group immediately.
Count said if enough of its 1,000 financial planners and accountants buy the program — produced by consultant Paul Resnik — it would look to integrate GPS into its existing proprietary system, Wealth Planner.
Count also confirmed to delegates at its annual conference last week that profits for the 2004-05 financial year would be close to $16.3 million, up 50 per cent on the previous year.
Count also disclosed it expects profits for 2006 to exceed its targeted 30 per cent profit growth.
On the introduction of GPS, Count chief operating officer Marianne Perkovic praised the software’s ability to help advisers communicate with clients.
“The system assists clients to understand in visual terms how different variables can affect their overall financial plan, which can often be extremely difficult to explain to clients who have a lower level financial planning knowledge,” she said.
CARM is also used by planners of Australia’s largest independent dealer group, Professional Investment Services, and the giant $12 billion dollar industry superannuation fund UniSuper, which signed on with CARM in November 2004.
Managing director of CARM Matthew Lock said: “The CARM approach is generic and non-product specific, which links easily to Count’s commitment to independence.”
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