Trinity finds strength through diversity

Critical mass and a penchant for specialisation has propelled Trinity Financial Services forward as this North Queensland practice sets its sights on the road ahead. Nicole Szollos reports on a financial planning practice which is drawing strength from the sun.

It's hot in Cairns. The sun burns down in its daily attempt to melt metal and sand while plant life remains insatiable and eternally thirsty. And over at Trinity Financial Services, this sizzling town has nurtured a financial planning firm that has spurted ahead in its nine years of existence like the frenzied growth inside a hothouse.

Director Bill O'Sullivan is the figurehead behind the history of Trinity Financial Services. O'Sullivan's first experience in the financial planning industry came in 1989 when he left his job in a property firm to join Capita Financial Group as North Queensland manager. Two years later O'Sullivan departed the group, since taken over by MLC, to become an independent financial planner within an accounting practice. Just 12 months on he became a partner, but not long after the firm was sold and in 1992 Trinity Financial Services was created.

For O'Sullivan the past experience in an accounting firm opened up a key to the industry. It showed him the importance of a financial planner and planning practice having an accounting element. Trinity reflects this view with the employment of one full time chartered management accountant, in charge of running the business and providing training and support to the financial planners.

But O'Sullivan's business vision does not stop there. His plans for Trinity aim to cover every aspect of the financial planning process and all the arising issues, and he has recently begun a specialisation crusade.

"I am a big believer in the one stop shop," he says.

Of the group's 18 staff there are seven financial planners including one specialised risk planner who concentrates on life insurance, plus the management accountant.

Four out of six senior positions are filled by female staff, and over the years O'Sullivan has noted an increase of women in the industry. Trinity also has 10 support staff, including four in the client services division, one person involved with marketing issues, a senior assistant and three office junior/supports.

O'Sullivan's future outlook for his financial planning company is focused on specialisation, with a dedicated push towards this planned over the next 12 months. He says although Trinity has been corporatising for about three to four years, the specialisation process is a relatively recent step.

"We have been looking at moving towards specialisation for about two years but we needed to first reach critical mass, which we have now," he says.

O'Sullivan explains the specialisation process for Trinity models itself on the structure of an accounting or law firm, rather than other financial planning firms. He believes that this is the type of business structure a practice needs for it to ensure a future position in the market.

"The industry is becoming smarter and more professional, and you need to be seen to be professional.

"The result is ending up with six planners with different skills working in different markets. I believe it is a natural progression and the way of future planning," O'Sullivan says.

With its specialisation outlook and critical mass goal, the growth of Trinity over the years since its formation has held at a healthy yearly average rate of about 40 per cent. Over the past two years, this figure has increased to 45 per cent. The group's expansion rate has been aided by a number of small client base acquisitions over the years, but there has also been emphasis on the quantity and quality of internal growth.

Throughout the practice's growth O'Sullivan has strengthened and created his team with deliberation, using a management approach with a heavy focus on training. He believes in the importance of allocating income to training, and increasing the amount accordingly with staff numbers. Trinity's second largest shareholder and senior financial planner Debbie Thomson joined Trinity in 1994, and studied for her DFP status whilst working with O'Sullivan. Other Trinity staff are now following Thomson's steps, and are undertaking both internal training and external courses.

"Four of the support staff are working towards their DFP, they have done at least four subjects and assist the planners with paraplanning," O'Sullivan says.

The importance of education and knowledge for O'Sullivan is also not lost on Trinity's established client base and prospective clients. The practice has about 450 fee paying clients (Trinity switched to a fee based service almost six years ago) who provide the group with the bulk of its referrals, about 90 per cent. An introductory seminar is held once a month led by Thomson and usually draws a crowd of between 20 to 25 people, O'Sullivan says. The group also conducts different investment topic seminars relevant to its existing client base three or four times a year.

The remaining 10 per cent of referrals come from Trinity's strategic relationship with nine accounting firms across the city. O'Sullivan says the firms are mostly contacts from his past work and involvement in the accounting profession. Predominately referrals are from the wealth accumulator clients, who make up 70 per cent of Trinity's client base. The remaining 30 per cent are retirees, and half of these have now retired and moved into the allocated income phase of their financial lives.

"Cairns does not have a big retiree market, it is just the home grown retirees," O'Sullivan says.

The referral process overall is an important one for Trinity. The group charts each new name and follows through with prospective clients, tracking the individual progress. One Trinity financial planner is in charge of new clients introduced to the group and once these become retainer clients they are looked after by one of the five other planners. O'Sullivan himself no longer takes on new clients. One third of his time is spent with existing clients and the rest is taken up with the practice's staff and corporate issues.

With its focus on continued growth and specialisation, it is not surprising that Trinity has a distinct business structure in place.

"We have a business plan for everything we do like income, marketing, referrals and acquisitions," O'Sullivan says.

Strategic meetings are held every few months with all team members, and O'Sullivan says the practice has employed a consultant on several occasions over the past four years. Just recently seven staff members were part of a one and a half day consultant led workshop looking into strategic objectives, improved efficiencies and the next stage of growth.

"Financial planners should be using consultants," O'Sullivan says, "because in this industry you can get too close to the issues."

Aside from the bolt into specialisation Trinity's critical mass position also means it is time to leverage, according to O'Sullivan. He says the group has been looking at expanding into new areas, for example corporate superannuation, for a number of years. And with the access to capital O'Sullivan also hopes to make a further three acquisitions in the next 12 to 18 months.

This is a focused practice. By the year's end Trinity Financial Services will generate close to $2 million. And O'Sullivan believes that the group will be on target to double its income every two years, generating $5 million by 2004.

But he is aware of the hard work necessary for the future, as it bears down with even harder figures.

"In five years time you will need to have $500 million under management, or you won't last in the industry," O'Sullivan says.

"The days of the one man band won't last. They will get swallowed up by the big groups."

Name Trinity Financial Services

Dealer group Own licence since 1992

Ownership 4 shareholders

Location Cairns, QLD

Staff 18

Clients 450

Funds under management $150 million