Ms O’Neill is the managing director and principal of Godfrey Group, a boutique recruitment firm specialising in the financial services sector. She has a strong background in business management, strategic leadership and client engagement.

Mr Slovinec has been a board member of Future2 Foundation since 2023. He has over two decades of experience in the financial services industry, including seven years on the board of the Association of Financial Advisers, as national treasurer and state director. He is currently a risk specialist with Pride Advice.

These appointments follow the addition of Ben Marshan to the board in late 2024.

Mr Marshan has over 18 years’ experience in financial services, specialising in advocacy and government relations. He is the founder of Marshan Consulting and prior to this was head of policy, standards, strategy and innovation at the Financial Planning Association (now the Financial Advice Association) for eight years.

In addition to these appointments, Julie Berry CFP has been reappointed as chair for a further two years from June. Directors Olivia Maragna and Steve Thomson have also been reappointed, and Giles Gunesekera OAM continues as a director, having joined the board in 2020.

Ms Berry said the new appointments—along with the reappointment of experienced directors—add further depth to the Foundation’s governance and support its continued mission to help those in need.

“Dave’s longstanding commitment to the Future2 Foundation, along with his deep knowledge of the advice profession, makes him an excellent choice for deputy chair. I look forward to working closely with him as the Foundation continues to grow.

“On behalf of the board, I also welcome Olivia, who is a passionate advocate for financial literacy and believes that improving access to financial knowledge is key to empowering individuals and communities across Australia.

“Ben’s indepth understanding of the issues facing financial advisers, and experience in policy and advocacy, will strengthen Future2 Foundation’s role with the financial services industry and its work supporting financial knowledge and understanding.

“These appointments will help position the Future2 Foundation in its mission to support grassroots programs that improve financial wellbeing for Australians in need,” Ms Berry said.

The post Future2 Foundation appoints Dave Slovinec as deputy chair and welcomes Olivia O’Neill and Ben Marshan to the board appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Phil Kewin

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) is pleased to announce the AFA VISION Conference (the AFA Conference), which will run from 14-15 October, 2020.

Keynote and panel sessions from the AFA Conference will be hosted on a main stage in a state-of-the-art television-style Sydney studio and broadcast live to delegates across the country.

AFA CEO Philip Kewin said, “As the major event on the AFA calendar, the AFA Conference is an integral part of our vision for a brighter future. This year represents a rare opportunity to deliver a quality conference in what are uniquely difficult circumstances. We are therefore very pleased to be able to offer an innovative approach to virtual conferencing which we believe brings the delegate experience to life.”

The live component of the AFA Conference will be complemented by more than 25 on-demand industry presentations, all of which will be CPD-accredited. Delegates will also have four-month access to the AFA Conference sessions and associated content, meaning they will be able to tailor their own viewing schedule.

AFA Conference Chair, Dave Slovinec, said this year’s format allows many more people in the advice community to participate in the AFA Conference.

“As a practising adviser I know first-hand the disruption that our community is experiencing,” he said. “But I also know that disruption is paving the way for transformation and bringing with it new opportunities. Those tuning in to this year’s AFA Conference will be able to access the inspiration, the knowledge, and the tools to set their vision and take their businesses to the next level.”

This year’s AFA Conference Master of Ceremonies is Nigel Collin. Mr Collin, who has hosted live conferences and events, as well as worked on screen for over 20 years, said the AFA Conference will be produced in a similar way to a professional TV production.

“The virtual online format of the AFA Conference creates a new and exciting dynamic,” he said. “I’m looking forward to being live on the main stage in Sydney, for two days, introducing industry leaders, key regulators and motivating keynote speakers to the AFA community. It will be entertaining, intimate, and engaging.”

The post AFA announces VISION Conference 14-15 October 2020 appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Launched in 2005, the Award is a highly desirable accolade for new advisers providing quality advice, who demonstrate a commitment to education and who are making a valuable contribution to their industry and to their community.

This year’s entrants demonstrated strong capabilities in all areas, highlighting the depth of the talent pool the advice industry is attracting.

AFA CEO Brad Fox says the Australian advice industry has been successful in making financial advice an attractive profession to new entrants, and in highlighting the real demand and need for good financial advice required by all Australians.

“This year’s entrants are particularly strong,” he says. “We are seeing the work the industry has done over the past five or so years to promote our profession now coming through in terms of professional qualifications, experience and most importantly, a desire to provide clear, transparent and trusted advice.”

ANZ Wealth Head of Sales, Don Sillar says, “The professionalism, education and passion of the candidates this year confirmed these Rising Stars are focused on delivering great advice to their clients.”

The 2016 AFA Rising Star of the Year Award finalists are:

• Peter Hodgson – ANZ Financial Planning
• Cathryn Gross – The Wealth Network
• Brent Story – AMP Financial Planning
• Maritza Kriel – Synchron
• Gregory Adam Bloom – Yellow Brick Road
• Erin Truscott – Financial Wisdom

This year’s judging panel included:

• Brad Fox – CEO of AFA
• Jenny Brown – Founder and CEO of JBS Financial Strategists
• Don Sillar – Head of Sales, ANZ Wealth
• Laura Halbert – Head of Marketing, ANZ Wealth
• Chris Browne – Founder Rising Tide and 2007 Rising Star Winner
• Dave Slovinec – State Director SA/NT – AFA
• Matthew Hawkins – State Director TAS – AFA, Director Scanlon Richardson Financial Group

The Award winner will be announced at the AFA National Conference at the National Convention Centre in Canberra on 7 October 2016.

The post AFA and ANZ Wealth announce Rising Star finalists appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Jenny Brown

I’d love to see you and welcome you to fascinating Canberra, our nation’s capital for the AFA 2016 National Adviser Conference, the jewel in the crown for the AFA – October 5-7, 2016.

As a practising adviser, this Conference is always the highlight of my year and I look forward to it as a chance to hear, watch and learn from the best, as well as to catch up with colleagues and friends.

This year’s conference is about ‘Adaptive Change – taking advice beyond the horizon’ and as advisers we need to accept the challenge to think differently, to evolve and to be better prepared for the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

The AFA has been working tirelessly to be more effective in delivering value for members by improving the positioning and relevance of our association, the results of which will be on show at the conference – whether it has been raising adviser professionalism, stronger relationships and influence with Government, an industry-leading professional education pathway, or the building of a voice to consumers through Your Best Interests – the AFA has laid a strong platform for the future.

As preparations for the 2016 AFA National Adviser Conference approach the final stages, we are absolutely thrilled to be able to bring some amazing keynote speakers to the stage including;

• The Hon John Howard OA AC – Political Leadership
• Dr Ric Charlesworth – High-Performance Leadership
• Dr Adam Fraser – Peak Performance Without the Collateral Damage
• Tony Bongiorno – MDRT Learnings from Around the World
• Dr Jason Mitchell – Academic Leadership
• Brian Freeman – Humanitarian Leadership
• Dr Jason Mitchell, Professor of Psychology Harvard University
• Graham Rich, PortfolioConstruction Forum
• Stephen Halmarick, Chief Economist CFS Global Asset Management
• Joanne Earl, Associate Professor Flinders Business School
• David Reed, Adviser of the Year
• Paul Kearney, Practice of the Year
• Over 30 AFA Members sharing their best practice
• Brad Fox, Scott Moffit, Richard Klipin, Terry Rhodes, Dave Slovinec – Growing the demand for insurance

We have 3 amazing masterclasses from our communities of practice to explore more opportunities;

• Inspire with Margie Warrell
• Genxt with Dr Ric Charlesworth
• Leaders Forum – The AFA community of ideas and sharing

These world class speakers are augmented by a plethora of awesome advisers from our AFA community who are all willing to share the insights, skills and knowledge that they have applied to their own advice practices to ensure they are future proofed and ready to thrive as financial advice is taken beyond the horizon.

The conference committee has listened to members’ feedback and worked hard to build a program that blends exceptional technical knowledge with practical implementation based upon the AFA adviser learning pillars:

• Business Performance
• Adviser Performance
• Advice Strategies
• Professionalism and Learning

Our goal is to provide you with inspiration and load you up with the best ideas, strategies and the tools to implement those ideas to ensure that you can deliver exceptional service for your clients, helping them understand your advice strategies and how you can work with them to build and lead better lives. After all, everything we do is to put our clients and their families into a better situation, to be their trusted adviser.

Also, back by popular demand are our ‘Meet the Professionals’ and ‘Meet the Innovators’ round-table discussions.

With more advisers than ever now choosing to belong to the AFA, we are proud that there is more adviser input to this year’s conference agenda. Hearing from our peers we have always found to be incredibly worthwhile, and remembering that the smartest person in the room may not be the person on stage, it could be the person sitting next to you, or at lunch, or at the dinner function, you will hear a multitude of stories or how advisers solve our client’s problems, how they refine their skills, and we can even learn from their mistakes. Advisers have a unique perspective on the operation of the financial advice profession and all of this knowledge and ongoing learning can be captured and shared for the benefit of all.

So my question to you is, “What is holding you back from taking the next step forward in how you provide advice, how you improve your client experience and client outcomes, and your own profitability?” My bet is the answers can be found at the AFA National Adviser Conference.

But have you booked yet? The answers won’t come to you; you need to come to Conference to get them. In the absence of taking action, nothing will change, so click on to www.afaconference.com.au and register.

Whether you are a new adviser, a practice owner or an employed adviser, this will be a conference to help equip you to serve your client’s needs better, to prepare you for the opportunities ahead and help you take your financial advice beyond the horizon.

We’re looking forward to seeing you in Canberra.

Jenny Brown, Conference Co-Chair

The post Are you ready to take your advice practice beyond the horizon? appeared first on AdviserVoice.

AFA has success in building links legal and accounting professions.

A sell-out Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) Christmas event in South Australia is proof the AFA is building strong collegial links with both the legal and accounting professions.

AFA State Director of South Australia, Dave Slovinec said the AFA issued set numbers of tickets to both the Young Lawyers: The Law Society of South Australia and the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia and both allocations were sold out well ahead of the event which was held last Friday, 29 November in Adelaide.

“We had to move venues this year in order to accommodate a total of 350 professionals,” Mr Slovinec said. “This is a great endorsement of the initiatives the AFA is taking to encourage strong relationships between complementary professions.”

Many AFA members have already established very strong, long-standing relationships with other professionals as a result of the events.

“We believe each profession has expertise that is necessary for a seamless and successful advice process. In order to deliver great advice to more Australians, we believe it is important that as professionals, we all support each other and recognize the valuable role each of us plays,” Mr Slovinec said.

The SA Christmas event was supported by a number of corporate sponsors and all profits from the event will be donated to the South Australian charity Little Heroes Foundation.

The post AFA Builds Strong Links with Legal and Accounting Fraternities appeared first on AdviserVoice.