Ricardo van Doormalen

Ricardo van Doormalen, of BLM Accountants and Adviseurs, the Netherlands, was selected as the overall winner of the PlanPlus 2017 Global Financial Planning Awards for the Europe/Australia region. Ricardo is a first-time competitor and will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the Financial Planning Association’s (FPA) annual conference in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.

Ricardo said, “I am thankful that PlanPlus made it possible for me to participate in a competition for such a prestigious award. Competing with the best of the best worldwide has been an honor for me. It is a confirmation that the decisions we made in our way of practicing financial planning were good ones.”

“When I first attended the FPA conference in Boston in 2008, I noticed that the financial planning industry in several other countries was well ahead of what we were doing in The Netherlands at the time”, said Ricardo. “I think the financial planning industry in The Netherlands has matured very quickly since then. Being the first Dutch participant to win the Global Financial Planning Awards underlines this. Once again: thank you PlanPlus for your contribution with this award to the financial planning profession worldwide. I recommend that every Financial Planner participate in this competition!”

John Page, Awards Chair said “This competition just keeps getting better and better. The improvement in the quality and depth of the plans we receive each year is amazing. We are honored by the very high standard of the work submitted by our winners and by their complete dedication to their clients. This is what financial planning is all about”.

Sarah Broady of The Retirement Advice Centre, NSW, Australia is also a first-time competitor, and was chosen as the first runner-up.

“Entering the PlanPlus Global Financial Planning Awards competition has provided another opportunity for The Retirement Advice Centre to share our clients’ retirement experience”, said Sarah. “To yet again be recognized as providing world class planning services, reaffirms that the advice solutions we provide to our clients have been benchmarked as world-class, and confirms that they have better retirements thanks to engaging our services”.

“I see my role as more than a Retirement Adviser, acting as the trusted confidant for our clients’ retirement journeys. The financial plan I submitted for the competition documented the experience of a couple over the past 2.5 years who went from having never engaged a Financial Adviser and wondering whether they could afford to retire, to now retiring and starting to live out their retirement aspirations. As their trusted Advisers, we were central to guiding othem through their financial and emotional decision-making on their retirement journey”.

James Kenny of DolFinwise, QLD, Australia was named as second runner up. James was the Asia Region award winner in 2013. James said “I believe that the PlanPlus Global Financial Planning Awards are crucially important to help demonstrate and reinforce the value that professional advisers can deliver to their clients and the wider community. As the financial planning industry continues to develop into a globally recognised profession, promoting the value of advice will help to break down misconceptions and strengthen public trust”.

“I encourage all Financial Planners that provide high quality, professional advice to their clients to enter the PlanPlus Global Financial Planning Awards competition next year to demonstrate the value that can be achieved by obtaining professional financial advice, and to enhance the reputation of our profession”.

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