Chris Smallwood

FINANCIAL ADVISER: As a technology-based IFA the firm's technology department has developed hardware and software for its business model. How has 2Plan gone about this and why do you believe a national model is the way forward?

CHRIS SMALLWOOD: First, we believe the national model is right for the UK. Different processes, different technologies and different systems can cause confusion in the whole process. A regulated model does not offer the same support that we do. We as a national, we are a branded company, where we offer one advice process and ask all our advisers to follow our process as a method of working.

FA: Since its launch in April, 2Plan has had 25 IFAs join with an aim to hit a target of 100 by the end of its first full year in business. It seems that targets are still to be met - why is this and will there be an aggressive drive to recruit?

CS: We have had 25 advisers come through our induction course and 21 have been appointed. The quality of adviser we have chosen is excellent, and I am very pleased with the first four to five months of organisation. From experience, I am looking for a certain type of individual which is harder to come by. But it is not just about numbers. If we are going to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in developing technology, then there is not great use for just recruiting 50 advisers into the firm. You need to run that technology over a larger number of advisers, to gain real efficiencies and profitability we can gain from technologies. Our strategy is to recruit by recruitment directors, to have 10 in the UK. We have a five-year business plan, where we want to recruit 1000 advisers, it does not matter if that ends up as 900 or 1100, it is our aim to grow a large distribution force in the UK over the next five years and our target by 30 June 2008, is to get 100 IFAs.

FA: With this drive to recruit, why may IFAs be sceptical to join a firm such as yours?

CS: In more recent years - taking into consideration advisers and networks - I have seen a movement from advisers leaving networks to join the directly regulated sector. I suspect this will change with the introduction of the retail distribution review over the coming years, and I believe there will be more pressure put on the regulated sector. The FSA is saying they are not going to recruit higher numbers of supervisors to supervise the regulated sector. But if these advisers are operating under the radar, who is checking their business? I believe the FSA has not got the resources to be able to get around everyone. If that starts to bite, advisers will look for a new home, which offers them real value and a differentiated office, like us.