ISO 22222 Personal Financial Planner Standard Certification
BS ISO 22222:2005 Personal Financial Planning requirements for personal financial planners has been created with the objective of achieving and promoting consumer confidence by providing an internationally agreed benchmark for a high global standard of personal financial advice.
This standard specifies requirements and provides a framework that applies to the ethical behaviour, competencies and experience of a professional personal financial planner regardless of their employment status. The core six steps of the personal financial planning process are:
- Establishing and defining the client and personal financial planner relationship
- Gathering client data and determining goals and expectations
- Analysing and evaluating the client's financial status
- Developing and presenting the financial plan
- Implementing the financial planning recommendations
- Monitoring the financial plan and the financial planning relationship
To support the high level benchmark of best practice sits the requirements of:
- Ethical behaviour and financial planning
- Information security, client confidentiality and data protection
- Risk management
- Continual improvement
By adhering to the requirements of ISO 22222, personal financial planners are able to demonstrate commitment and dedication to continual improvement and ensure that client satisfaction is at the core of the business culture.
Benefits
The key benefits of achieving certification are:
- It gives planners an exemption to the Chartered Insurance Institutes (CII) AF5 – Financial Planning Process Module
- Inclusion onto the Which? consumer referral database
- It demonstrates a commitment of adherence to a high level of professionalism
- By displaying the sign of an international standard it communicates credibility and confidence to your prospective and existing clients, suppliers, stakeholders and employees
- It promotes opportunities to become a ‘preferred supplier’, giving you the edge over your competitors, thus improving sales and marketing opportunities
- It improves performance by improving communication and morale company-wide
- It promotes the use of simplified and effective documentation
- It promotes a best practice standard of service
- It promotes awareness of quality and professionalism, internally and externally resulting in better public/professional awareness and image
- It reduces risk, thus providing a potential reduction in insurance costs
- Helps to exceed current regulatory requirements, thus satisfying the governing bodies
In addition to the benefits awarded to the financial planners, the consumer also benefits from dealing with financial planners that have achieved the ISO award; we believe these are as follows:
- A value-added service
- Improved transparency of services provided
- Improved confidence and trust in their financial planners
- Comfort in knowing that due to third-party accreditation by a professional certification body the services provided shall continue to be reviewed, improved and benchmarked
- Easy access to evidence of qualifications, experience, competency and regulatory adherence