Looking beyond events-driven planning

David Haintz sees himself as one of the younger breed in the Australian financial planning industry — something he says is reflected in the approach Haintz Financial Services brings to servicing its client base.

But while Haintz, at age 37, can claim to be one of the “younger breed”, this tends to belie the 14 years he has spent in the financial planning industry — most of his working life.

Haintz found his way to financial planning from life insurance, beginning his career with National Mutual where he was appointed managing director of one of its largest agencies — and bringing him into contact with financial planners.

That contact led Haintz into the financial planning arena and in November 1998, he obtained his own licence and established Haintz Financial Services in Melbourne.

Today Haintz is a certified financial planner (CFP), a fellow of theFinancial Planning Association(FPA), and an occasional contributor to financial planning publications, includingMoney Management.

Discussing his approach to financial planning, Haintz says he seeks to move beyond an events-driven environment to implement a comprehensive approach.

“Clients can come to you on the basis of something that is events-driven such as receiving an inheritance or preparing for their retirement. But we seek to look beyond that simple, events-driven approach to deliver something more comprehensive,” he says.

“Clients don’t necessarily know where they are going to be in one, two or even five years time, that is why we seek to adopt a comprehensive approach, which serves to give them some direction and certainty,” Haintz says.

“That is the paradigm shift — the difference between an events-driven approach and the delivery of a comprehensive planning strategy that delivers the clients some long-term answers.”

In material supporting his nomination, Haintz says he believes the financial advice industry has focused too much and for too long on the choice of underlying investments and returns.

“I believe most value is added to clients by proper initial and ongoing advice and strategy. Guided by this, I have taken our business on a transition from a focus of choosing investments, to one where we partner our clients on their journey to where they want to be financially.

“We have effectively doubled our fees and significantly enhanced our client services and value-adding processes,” he says.

Haintz believes financial planners should act as ‘coaches’ to their clients, “adding real and ongoing strategic value to their lives, not just to their finances”.

“Clients will be happy to pay fees for our services, knowing they are worth it. Once and for all, we will have consigned the philosophy that a financial planner places clients’ savings into manufacturers’ products for commission and trails into the dustbin where it belongs.”