Olivia Maragna, Aspire Retire Financial Services, QLD is the inaugural recipient of the Female Excellence in Advice Award (the Award).
The Award is a joint initiative between the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA), TAL Life Limited (TAL) and Macquarie Graduate School of Management. The announcement was made at the AFA National Conference on the Gold Coast on 25 October.
AFA CEO, Richard Klipin, said that in its first year, the Award, which was established to identify outstanding female advisers in leadership roles, has gone a long way towards promoting gender equity and contributing to what is a broad community debate on the issue.
“The Award seeks to actively encourage more women into the industry so they are better represented within the ranks of financial advisers and better able to help other women secure their financial future,” he said.
Mr Klipin said it was Olivia’s high level of professionalism and absolute commitment to excellence and superior client service that marked her as the worthy recipient of this inaugural Award.
Brett Clark, CEO, TAL Retail Life, said he was delighted by the number and quality of candidates and the industry’s response to the Award.
“TAL is seeking to encourage, mentor and reward female advisers who are excellent in their field and this Award is recognition of their outstanding achievements,” Mr Clark said.
“We are delighted with the quality of female advisers in Australia who have taken the time to participate in this Award. All nominees are strong contributors to the communities and are doing exceptional work for their clients. The finalists are women who are shaping the future of financial advice and are outstanding role models for their industry.”
The six finalists were selected from across Australia following a rigorous two-month judging process. The finalists were:
- Dianne Chalk, NSW
- Michelle Tate-Lovery, VIC
- Michelle Veitch, SA
- Olivia Maragna, QLD – Winner
- Susan Jackson, VIC
- Therese Stanton, NSW