Westpac FP announces recruitment push

Mark Spiers

Westpac Financial Planning will increase the number of experienced financial planners within the organisation by more than 200 over the next three years at the same time as reducing the number of entry level planning positions and combining its consumer and business advice teams.

The move represents the cornerstone of a new strategy announced today by Westpac’s general manager, advice, Mark Spiers, who said that financial advice was not a one-size-fits all proposition and that the changes were about aligning the group’s advice footprint to ensure the right mix of planners for meeting the needs of customers, particularly those seeking more complex advice solutions.

He said that by 2015 there would be a fundamental change in the advice needs of Australians as the pre-retirement market grew by around 30 per cent and the retirement generation of those aged over 65 swelled to 65 per cent.

“By building a larger pool of experienced financial advisers, Westpac Financial Planning will be well positioned to meet the substantial growth in demand for quality financial advice and work with customers, particularly, those in the pre and post retirement space,” Spiers said.

He said that Westpac Financial Planning would also combine its business and consumer teams to focus more on meeting the personal advice and investment needs of business customers and their employees.