Randall Stout

The Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA), yesterday announced the national winner of the 2014 FPA CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP^®) of the Year Award: Randall Stout, from HPH Solutions.

Mr Stout was also named the 2014 FPA CFP^® Western Australia State Winner.

The CFP^® of the Year is awarded to the financial planner who best embodies the highest professional standards, as embraced by the FPA.

“We look for a planner who demonstrates true professional leadership and excellence, someone who routinely goes above and beyond best practice to achieve the best outcomes for clients,” he explained.

Mr Rantall went on to say that the awards are particularly important this year given recent debate around professional standards and the quality of financial advice.

“There has been a lot of attention given to rogue planners – as it should be. But equally, the reality is that those individuals are well and truly outweighed by the number of professional, skilled and committed planners working hard to improve financial outcomes for everyday Australians.

“That’s why I am so pleased to be able to reward someone like Randall, who has made such an outstanding contribution to our profession.

The theme of our Professional Congress this year is “Inspiring Greatness”, and I hope that Randall’s achievements will go some way towards inspiring greatness in others,” he said.

One of the judges of the award, Lisa Weissel, CFP^® and Senior Financial Adviser at Evergreen Wealth Professionals, said that that the high calibre of entrants made the awards decision a difficult one.

“We were looking for true excellence in financial planning. For us, that translates as the ability to provide clear, easily-understood advice which clients can follow to reach their financial goals. It sounds simple, but requires the combined ability to genuinely engage and communicate with clients, along with the technical skills required to provide the most appropriate advice,” Ms. Weissel said.

Mr Stout CFP^® is a certified practicing accountant (CPA) who has been a business owner of a number of successful Perth-based financial planning practices and is currently a Director of HPH Financial Planning. He is the Chair of the WA Chapter of the FPA, makes regular contributions to the Money section of the West Australian, and appears regularly on Perth radio 6PR as a money and personal finance expert.

Mr Stout said that” I look at the people who have won this award before me and they are the financial planners I look up to. They are people who consistently give great advice and I am privileged to be placed on the same level as them. We all care about people, we’ve all got empathy. And we are all driven to give the best advice that we can to really help people improve their financial situation.

“I am very proud to be recognised for what I do by the FPA. I see the tireless effort they put in on behalf of their members and I am grateful for that. My clients trust me and know that I care and this award will certainly help because its shows my clients that I am recognised for what I do among my peers.”

In conclusion, Mr Rantall highlighted the FPA’s longstanding commitment to raising standards in the financial planning industry, and the integral part that the awards play in that process.

“By recognising and rewarding planners who live the FPA values and standards and in so doing consistently deliver great outcomes for clients, we’re providing the role models and benchmarks that will inspire and raise standards across the whole profession. This is the best way to show Australians that our profession is both worthy of their trust and offers them the best and most reliable path to financial wellbeing,” Mr Rantall said.

The state winners for the FPA CFP^® award were also presented yesterday.

State Winners:

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FPA Best Practice Awards announced.

The Financial Planning Association (FPA) has recognised some of the profession’s top financial planners in Australia through their Best Practice Awards.

The annual Awards recognise Australia’s best financial planners who deliver exceptional qualified and trusted financial advice using the highest standard of ethics, practice standards and professional conduct in the country.

CEO of the FPA, Mark Rantall, said that the Best Practice Awards also serve as an important symbol of excellence for consumers seeking qualified financial advice.

“These awards recognise the best of the best. FPA members comply with some of the highest financial planning standards on a global stage. These Award winners have not only complied with the FPA Code, but in so doing have offered a considerable contribution to the profession through community involvement, mentoring and support to their local FPA Chapter.

“Our profession has been through a period of tremendous change in recent years and has made significant strides in advancing the global standing of the profession. These planners have, in spite of any interruption to business, persisted for their clients’ best interests. The three winners, selected from a short list, truly embody the values of our professional community in their everyday work with clients and are exemplars of the financial planning profession,” said Rantall.

The 2013 winners of the FPA’s Best Practice Awards are:

• James Kenny, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® has been awarded both the Queensland as well as the National FPA CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® Professional Best Practice Award. James is a mentor to undergraduate students and young financial planners, helping to ensure the future of financial advice in Australia and fostering professionalism in the next generation of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® professionals.
• Mark Milner, Financial Planner AFP^®, has been awarded both the Queensland and the National FPA Financial Planner AFP^® Best Practice Award.  Mark’s dedication to providing the highest calibre of advice to his clients is manifest in his ongoing studies toward becoming a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^®, which he is set to achieve in 2014.
• Jeremy Gillman-Wells, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^®, has been awarded both the Australian Capital Territory and National Future2 Community Service Best Practice Award.  Jeremy volunteers his time as a pro bono CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® and his work with the NSW Cancer Council speaks to the transformational power of quality financial advice.

Mr. Rantall said, “I offer my personal congratulations to James, Mark and Jeremy on their significant achievements in financial planning and commend their work. I would also like to thank them for the extraordinary service they give not only their clients but our professional community as well. Through the quality advice they provide, James, Mark and Jeremy are making a difference in the lives of many, many Australians and in the future of the financial planning profession.”

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