To improve the advice profession, more importance should be placed on inclusion rather than diversity so that everyone can work together seamlessly, according to Jeanne Mpondo, principal adviser at EM & MJ Wealth Management.
Mpondo, whose firm is an associate partner of St James's Place, said that “diversity is everywhere, it’s a wide spectrum” and, therefore, improving the industry is not simply a question of diversity, but instead it is a “question of inclusion”.
“We are all different, the way I see things is not the way you see things, so it is up to companies to find a modus operandi to make us work together efficiently,” she said.
“That’s why inclusion is key for me because some people sometimes feel left aside.”
Mpondo spoke to FT Adviser about how the profession could be improved by prioritising integrating different points of view and different ways of thinking about the world.
She argued this would improve the entire decision making process.
Mpondo also said that attracting younger people into financial services was important, and that financial education was a key factor in encouraging the younger generation into the industry.
She explained: “When you go to primary school, they never talk about money. When you go to high school, they don't talk about money. When you go to university and you have a major in finance you start talking about money when it's probably too late.”
Therefore, things like financial education seminars are, according to Mpondo, “attracting lots of new talent”.
Barrier to entry
Mpondo said the transition into full time work, and being at the bottom of the hierarchy, as something which may put younger people off of entering the industry.
She explained: “When you start on your first job, you're the newbie - the rookie, so you're always tested as your employer wants to see your limits.
“At first it can be a hostile environment because it's not for everyone. There are demands and the drive to wake up in the morning at 6:30 and finish at 7pm is not for everyone, so it tests your ability to be resilient.”
However, Mpondo did not describe the transition into the industry in exclusively negative terms stating that, while it is initially “cold”, through team building and working on deals with people new entrants also “build friendships”.
A change in career
Mpondo had initially worked in data driven roles but was unsatisfied by the isolated nature of the job.
“I realised that I wanted to have human interaction as I really like to have this feeling of helping people and seeing the impact of what I’m doing.
“When you’re data crunching all day long and are just providing reports to people on the other side of the world, you don’t really see the impact.”
This desire for human interaction was found in financial advice, with Mpondo stating there were “more palatable, tangible rewards”.
“When I provide guidance to somebody, I can see from their face or from their body language that they are receptive to what I’m saying.
“When we close a deal and the person has visible peace of mind, that makes me really happy.”
Importance of ethos
Mpondo said that a company's ethos is one of the most important things to here when looking for jobs.
She recounted: “I remember when I started thinking about being a financial adviser, I had a choice between SJP and another company.
“I picked SJP because when they presented the journey to be a financial adviser, I saw that it was really clear - it had a clear timeline in different phases.
“I wanted to be able to pilot my journey to reach my goal, and SJP managed to offer us this transparency about the journey with an end goal.”
Looking to the future
Mpondo also discussed potential issues for the future of the industry, identifying in particular the hot topic of artificial intelligence.
She admitted that she has had previous conversations about AI and the potential risk it poses to the industry but is skeptical about the degree of threat.
“Even though we'll be able to evaluate the markets you think it'd be the end of the analyst.
“However, when it comes to advisers, I came to the conclusion that people like human connection, and you never can use a robot for that."
tom.dunstan@ft.com
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