Financial Planning Administrators, this one is for you.
Has anyone else been thinking lately “Why are Administrators leaving their current roles?” Have you noticed just how many Financial Administrators are on LinkedIn with the ‘Open to work’ banner under their profile picture recently?  What’s going on? Why are so many talented Financial Administrators with a great deal of experience and knowledge within Financial Services leaving their current employers?
This is further substantiated by the fact that our team here at Antony George have never been so busy, working with high calibre Financial Administrator’s to matchmake them with their dream employer and next career move.
When chatting with these talented individuals about why they are looking for a new role and what they are looking for, there were 2 consistent and overwhelming reasons that Administrators are so active in the recruitment market at present. Here’s what candidates are telling myself and my colleagues when asked;
Salary;
Over 55% of candidates have recently left or are looking to leave their current employers as they feel their current salary doesn’t reflect their capabilities and skillset, workload and productivity. Most candidates aren’t looking for an unreasonable pay cheque. They aren’t asking for a bonus that pays for a luxury Caribbean Cruise, a Cartier Watch and still have change in their pockets! When we look at what they are actually asking for in terms of salary, they are just asking to be paid the average market rate for a Financial Administrator and be recognised for their level of experience and knowledge base.
I recently spoke to an outstanding Financial Administrator based in the West Midlands with 10+ year’s experience in the industry. This individual took it upon themselves to study and self-fund their Level 4 Diploma qualification in order to further their knowledge of Financial Planning to support their employers which they achieved 2 years ago. As a result, they now have a list of Paraplanning responsibilities within their role.
When they joined their current employer, they started on a salary of £21,000pa. with no bonus offering and little opportunity to progress unless they completed their Level 4 Diploma qualification.
4 years later, 1 diploma under their belt, more experience and knowledge, more responsibilities with many being responsibilities of a Paraplanner, a significant increase in the cost of living and this individual is currently on a salary of £23,500pa!
I hear you ask did she not ask for an increase? Did she not flag this with her employers and question it? And the answer to both is yes, she absolutely did do this, only to be told that once she was diploma qualified she would receive an uplift (despite being qualified now this promise has still not been honoured). There have been several other promises made to review and address their salary but this has never come to fruition.
Understandably, this is one unsatisfied employee! The feeling of being unappreciated, undervalued and ignored has finally taken its toll and they have decided it’s time to move to pastures new. So, despite really enjoying their job, having a great relationship with colleagues and a superb knowledge of the business and clients, this individual has been in touch with us and we have just played matchmaker and introduced them to a fantastic client of ours.
This client (like most of our clients) is big on investing in and promoting positive employee experience / an outstanding workplace culture, who’s salaries are aligned with the market rate and benchmark what they pay against other top companies to work for in the industry. They treat their employees with respect, ensuring that their remuneration package is consistent and competitive and believe in rewarding their employees for their commitment, dedication, hard work and contribution to the business.
As a result, our fabulous candidate has just accepted an offer with our awesome client. They are offering a salary that is in-line with the market average and actually a little above, with a bonus scheme, a development plan that will move them into a Paraplanning role within 12 -18 months (which is aligned with the candidate’s career aspirations), hybrid working, more holiday allowance and better benefits.
It’s easy for us all to say that we aren’t paid enough for what we do but, in some instances, this is scarily true and does seem to be prevalent in this industry at present. We all know that when employees feel undervalued and unappreciated, they will eventually leave a business which means additional recruitment and training costs to the business. And of course, these costs will be significantly higher than a pay increase or bonus incentive for current employees.
Career Progression Opportunities
When we asked individuals why they are looking for a reason to leave, the other 45% stated that there was no scope for progression within their current firms.
Though not all Administrators wish to progress into a Paraplanning / Advisor role long term, many Financial Administrators do have aspirations to take this career path and therefore a firm that offers support with studying for their Diploma, with a willingness to enable individuals to develop and progress into a Paraplanning / Advisor role further down the line is a very attractive proposition for candidates looking for new roles within the industry.
I’m talking to individuals who would be very happy to take on some additional responsibilities within their roles as Administrator to allow them to have exposure to the work a Paraplanner does, supporting with report writing, research etc.
Our talented Administrators have also said they would be very happy to study for the Level 4 Diploma in Financial Planning to give them a greater understanding of Financial Planning but due to the cost and time required to study, they have reached out to their employers to ask if support is available but to no avail! Such a shame as this will not only benefit the individual but also the business.
Obviously there are variations in the size of Financial Planners / Advisory firms and it maybe that the company is unable to facilitate progression due to the size of the company, however, in larger firms, Administrator’s want to know there is a mindset to promote internally when vacancies arise in-house.
So there we have it! Hopefully, that answers the big question “Why are Administrators leaving their current roles?” Administrators are now looking for more and making the move to explore new opportunities to enable them to achieve their goals.
So that’s it from me. A quick glimpse into the kind of conversations we are having here at Antony George and a brief understanding of why we are so busy at the moment which we love. But what we love all the more is helping and supporting individuals find new roles that reward them for their abilities, contribution and knowledge. So if you are looking for a new opportunity that ticks all the boxes, please do get in touch – would love to chat with you!
We are always here to have a confidential conversation.
Don’t forget to check out our other blogs here:Â https://antonygeorge.com/our-blog/
Any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me on LinkedIn.
Email: naomi@antonygeorge.com
Phone number:01268 669 313
Antony George LinkedIn
Naomi Caroll at Antony George Recruitment
