Speaking up to be heard

Clearly many who have a voice realise that they need to have a say over their future, and it is encouraging that those with clout are not shirking their responsibilities.

The latest of these is Sesame, whose immediate duty is to its members, but in its role as the largest IFA firm in the country - according to Financial Adviser's list of Top 100 IFAs last year - is adopting unofficially a role as spokesman for the industry.

Clearly the Association of IFAs has been doing a good job behind the scenes, but direct backing from the biggest IFA company should carry weight, to convince the FSA that the IFA community is willing to engage with the RDR, rather than wait for something to be imposed on them that they do not like.

Ivan Martin, Sesame's executive chairman, recently attended a meeting with the FSA team to discuss the issue, and his head of learning, Paul Dawson, is quoted in this week's paper as saying that the next step is to see how the changes being suggested get implemented. This is a considerable step down the path from quite significant concern among some quarters of a year ago when the RDR was first coming out.

From some antipathy initially, many IFAs have accepted the reality that the FSA wants to change the way IFAs work, and it is best to be a part of that change rather than try to ignore it.

It is important now, more than ever, to think through the various implications of what the most recent paper means, in the run-up to the autumn. The most important part is: what would it really mean for IFAs to upgrade to a diploma level, especially for those that have been practising for years on the basic FPC exams? In particular considering the practical side of it. While some may still question the need for the requirement to be diploma level, many more will be asking about the time and costs involved in getting there. If it is not feasible, then many IFAs will, as Mr Dawson suggests, simply leave and consumers will be worse off than where we started.

Running on empty?

Many of the steadier hands had been warning people of talking up the 'R' word by pointing to the jobs market. While the credit crunch spread its tentacles from outside the financial sector - which has endured heavy losses - many voices were saying that we really should not be anywhere near the problems of the early 1990s because the jobs market was still strong and people were fairly confident. Now it looks as if that confidence is faltering, as people no longer want to move house, and the jobs market is starting to slow. Figures from the CIPD suggest that the recruitment market is not as buoyant as this time last year, and some people are concerned about their futures. It is times like this when advisers need to think positively and consider how to adapt in a different climate.