Kerrie Kelly: Above and beyond the call of duty

The unprecedented influence the Financial Planning Association’s (FPA) chief executive Kerrie Kelly has had over the planning profession in the past 12 months hasn’t just come with the territory.

Sure, with close to 14,000 members, the FPA is by far the largest collective representing the financial planning industry, so anything she does — or doesn’t say — is going to get some airplay.

As any good manager should, Kelly has kept the FPA’s books balanced, she’s reacted to criticism of the industry with succinct statements in press releases, and she has provided planners with guidance on how they should be complying with the Financial Services Reform Act (FSRA).

In addition, Kelly, with her counterparts at the Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA) and the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), has lobbied, often successfully, for the Government to refine FSRA to be more workable for planners.

But in the past 12 months, Kelly has been more than just a good manager. Some would say she has been the most proactive chief executive in the FPA’s history.

The FPA’s code of practice on conflicts of interest, which was released in draft form in April and finalised by members recently, not only helps financial planners to comply with current related legislation, it goes further.

Although finalised details of the code are yet to be released, the unveiling of draft principles in April has already prompted Australia’s biggest dealer groups to review their remuneration of advisers. Dealer splits, buyer of last resort arrangements and equity schemes have already been earmarked for major reform.

To be fair to her predecessors, Kelly has certainly had much to get active about. There was the introduction of FSRA. There were the high profile attacks on the profession triggered by the introduction of choice legislation from the likes of Virgin boss Richard Branson and Industry Funds Service head Garry Weaven. And there was the lingering fallout from the ASIC/ACA shadow shopping campaign.

Then, just when shadow shopping looked as if it was about to move to the back of people’s minds, along came the results of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC’s) super switching campaign, which were also highly critical of financial planners.

As if that wasn’t enough to motivate her, in September a high profile member of ASIC stood up in front of a public gathering and told her audience that she didn’t have a financial planner because “I just don’t trust them”.

So whether Kelly has been the most proactive manager or the most reactive manager of the FPA is debatable.

But, with the overseeing of the association’s Value of Advice campaign, and the looming introduction of a code of practice on perceived conflicts of interest that will go over and above legislative requirements, no one could deny that Kelly has changed the way planners do their jobs and influenced how they are perceived by all Australians — perhaps more than any of her predecessors.