What A Paraplanning Manager Does And How To Get Ahead In Your Paraplanner Career.

🤔 Are Paraplanning Managers Holding Back Trainee Financial Planners?

Not at Foster Denovo, where growth, ambition, and clear career aspirations take center stage. In the latest Financial Planner Life Podcast, I spoke with Louise Headifen, Paraplanning Manager at Foster Denovo, about how she’s breaking the mold and championing career progression for her team of 15. Whether it’s becoming a financial adviser, developing a specialist career in paraplanning, or exploring other paths, Louise and Foster Denovo’s career framework have it covered.

🎙 Key Takeaway:
"If you tell me in the interview you want to become a financial adviser, I’ll do everything I can to make it happen. Progression is about honesty, ambition, and having the right support system." - Louise Headifen

We dive into:
✅ Why Louise hires for skills over job titles to build strong, cohesive teams.
✅ Clear pathways for paraplanners to grow, from junior roles to subject matter experts in areas like protection and estate planning.
✅ How Foster Denovo actively supports paraplanners who aspire to transition into financial advice roles.
✅ The power of a growth mindset and how collaboration fuels success.

Whether you’re a paraplanner looking for your next opportunity, a financial adviser exploring new horizons, or someone considering a career in financial planning, this episode offers actionable insights and inspiration.

👉 Tune in now and discover how Louise’s leadership and Foster Denovo’s framework are empowering financial planning professionals to thrive at every stage of their careers.

💬 What’s your career aspiration in financial planning? Let’s discuss in the comments!

Financial Planner Life is sponsored by Redmill Advance

Whether you're starting out, already qualified, or building a training academy, Redmill Advance delivers expert-led learning, exam support and CPD from Level 4 to Chartered.

✅ Trusted by top UK firms

👉 www.redmilladvance.com/fpl

Be sure to follow Financial Planner Life on YouTube for extra content about  career development within Financial Planning. 

Reach out to sam@financialplannerlife.com in regards to sponsorship, partnerships, videography or podcast production. 

Want to appear on the Financial Planner Life podcast? Drop Sam a message.

Transcript

Power Planning Manager Career Development

Speaker 1 0:00

And today's guest on the Financial Planner Live podcast is Louise Hedderfen from Foster De Novo . She is a power planning manager looking after 15 in her team and she talks about her career development . She talks about what she looks for when it comes to skills over job title when she grows her power planning team .

Speaker 2 0:21

I work very hard , so I do expect the same standards from the team . If you say to me in the interview and I really do like honesty you want to become an advisor , I will do everything I possibly can to facilitate that .

Speaker 1 0:34

We talk about power planner to financial planner and why , here at Foster De Novo , they don't hold you back when it comes to career development within the business .

Speaker 2 0:43

It was an incredibly steep learning curve , especially when I didn't really do anything with pension transfers and things .

Speaker 1 0:51

so You're going to love this episode if you're a career power planner or you're a power planner looking for your next opportunity . Louise , thanks so much for joining me today in London at Foster de Novo to talk about your career within financial planning , specifically power planning , because you're a power planning manager , right , I am ? Yes , Well , fantastic . Well , like I say , thank you for taking the time out to share your career journey . I'll say what ? Let's kick things off . Introduction who are you ? What do you do ? How long have you been here ? What's going on in your world ?

Speaker 2 1:30

Well , let's start with a simple place . I started here in July 2020 , during the first lockdown , as a paraplanner and from there , I guess , just built on my knowledge , what I did , what I could do , inspiring relationships with other paraplanners and advisors . I was made up to team leader and from there again , obviously , fosters and Overy saw something in me and they thought , hello , we'll stick a manager in that job title and I have loved every minute of it so far . It's been hugely challenging , it's been hard work , but it's been really enjoyable and , as I said , I've loved every minute of it .

Speaker 1 2:21

Very typically Foster De Novo to push somebody forward in their career . It's definitely a career of of growth . Here at Foster de Novo , everyone I speak to seems to be stepping up or moving forward or developing their skill sets as the business grows , with their investment and their huge ambitions of being , you know , a leader within financial planning . It's definitely that that environment , if somebody wants to push forward , were you a manager beforehand . Then did you do any kind of management at all ?

Speaker 2 2:47

no , um , I've had responsibility for things , um , like getting involved in project work . So there's one firm I was with where we um looked at our client documentation and we discovered that we had umpteen amounts of different bits of paper for different types of business . So I put that into a almost it was an excel spreadsheet and I did some vba coding and you could tap in what you needed and it would bring up all of the um documents . So it cut down a lot of time and I knew eventually that would be just . You know , some clever chap in IT would make that disappear and just become part of the fabric of the back office thing , sorry , the back office system . So I've always done things like that . I've always done a mission creep on my uh , my job description , um , because you know I've , I like challenges , I like changing things , I like creativity and um , you know . So that's why I can't just stop with what my job description says ah , so before you joined Foster Day , naver , what ?

Speaker 1 4:00

where were you ? What are you doing then ?

Speaker 2 4:02

I was predominantly um working for the DFM . So I started in the city of London . So I worked with some of the big investment houses , um and um . Through no fault of my own or his , we um . I had a relationship with me . We split up and I just decided to take some time out . So I did a university degree medieval history and then I got into a firm in Tonbridge Wells um . So they were um , a DFM , but they also did the financial advice and I was on the financial advice side of things and that's where I started to move into um , I suppose the world of the IFA , and I left there in 2016 and um . At the time I was living up in the north and that's where I actually did fall into the IFA world properly and that's when I became a paraplanner on a 100% basis . So it was an incredibly steep learning curve , especially when I've never I didn't really do anything with pension transfers and things , but you know here I am .

Speaker 1 5:09

This is it ? Well , fantastic . So that transition from DFM into power planning ? Yeah , and once you found power planning , did you think , well , this is it , this is where I want to be .

Speaker 2 5:19

No , that would be a lie . Okay , I enjoyed it . I like the finding the solution , um , but it wasn't the be all of what I wanted to do . I wanted to mentor people , I wanted to bring people on and , um , I think , with the work that I did with colleagues and things , obviously fd saw in me that I had that potential and that's what we've built on , and at the moment , I kind of mother the team , okay , right , and their welfare is my paramount concern , okay . So , how many people are you managing ? I manage 15 .

Speaker 1 6:02

15 power planners .

Speaker 2 6:03

So there's two team leaders and there's nine power planners and we've got three starting . I've got one um that we're going to be recruiting for in scotland okay so , um . So it's a fast growing um . I've got trainees um potentially elsewhere in the business who want to come in so the power planning team isn't slowing down , then really no gosh , no .

Speaker 1 6:25

Lots of acquisitions going on , growth going on here at Foster De .

Speaker 2 6:27

Nevo . It's incredible the work that's coming in . It's also incredible the quality of the work that's coming out as well , the standards haven't dropped , but yeah , it's a really busy , focused team and the morale is incredibly high Brilliant .

Speaker 1 6:46

Let's talk about you as a manager . Then you found your calling in management . It sounded like it was something that you wanted to do and , again , brilliant that Foster De Nevo has seen that within you and encouraged you to move into that position . What would you say your management style is ?

Speaker 2 6:59

Open and responsive , I would say I'm also . I like I'm quite a fun manager . I work very hard , so I do expect the same standards from the team . But you know I'm famous for putting GIFs on Teams messages . I mean , the other day somebody asked if they could have an addendum checked and I went no , it's a Thursday , you know . So there's a lot , you know , just joking about . But I also encourage people to ask questions . So even if I know the answer to a question , I will put it on the Teams chat just to encourage people who are new , shy , um not so confident with asking in an open forum . So you know , and I'm not scared to get things wrong either .

Career Development in Power Planning Team

Speaker 1 7:53

So within power planning you often think about . I used to see job adverts . It says I'm looking for a power planner and then the job title would be the same job title every single time . The same job description every single time and over same job description every single time . And over the years I've come to recognise there could be multiple job roles within power planning and they're using the same job title every single time . So within your power planning team , are there sort of multiple jobs ? Are there different layers to it ? Do you hire at different layers ? If so , can you kind of break down what career development looks like , what the different role types are within your power planning team ?

Speaker 2 8:29

well , if I start at the beginning , because that's where a journey starts , yeah , and we've got our trainee power planners . So , um , inevitably they have have actually come from within foster de novo , um , and they've worked on the admin side of things . So , from their perspective , they have a little bit of knowledge of financial services and it's our role as the team to engender their knowledge , bring them up to be able to write reports on their own . Obviously , at the level that they are at , they're fairly simple from what I would be able to write . The next step up to that is a junior power planner . So they're kind of halfway a third , two thirds of the way through their qualification to be diploma level four qualified and they're getting involved in a little bit more , a lot , lot more technical . They may even and this has happened on the team that they'll have a direct relationship with some advisors .

Speaker 2 9:31

From then , once you're qualified or it depends on your experience you become a power planner . Now , this is where you can start thinking I'm just going to be a career power planner , I'm happy where I am , or you're going to start thinking about your specialisms , perhaps even start your charters . So , and then , once again , this is all to do with experience , not necessarily your qualification , but our senior power planners . They are subject matter experts . So you've got that in our team , we've got protection . We've got that in our team , we've got protection . We've got the state planning . Um , we have one guy , james .

Speaker 2 10:08

He's absolutely phenomenal when it comes to the technicalities of anything um , but as jack up in the northeast she's our state planning guru . Lucy in um in london is protection . I have Jeremy who deals with really technical way of writing something for a client . He's also I mean , he obviously knows his stuff as well . So and Nilesh , who was an accountant in a former life and so he is absolutely amazing when it comes to knowing how to deal deal with tax . So with that in the team it's people . Just because you're a trainee doesn't mean you can't um , give it um input up .

Speaker 1 11:00

You certainly get it coming down because we want everybody's knowledge to be high we want it to be a center of excellence which is turning into fantastic , so everyone learning from each other yes yeah , you can even the roles overlapping slightly , which is what you kind of want .

Speaker 1 11:17

Isn't it a clear line of sight to the next um , the next stage in your career , so someone could come in as an administration administrator and work their way up through the power planning team , and it doesn't stop there . So let's say , for example , like you know , there's a lot of power planners there's like 9,000 in the UK , right , and we've obviously got an advice gap In my head . There's quite a lot of people in those power planner roles that are female as well , right , I think 80% of them are female actually . So there's clearly a great opportunity there to get more women into financial advice roles , into financial planning roles . So there seems to be a clear area there , a technically sound . They know what they're doing , they've done the reports and fact finds and all of that . Why not move them into financial planner roles Now , as a power planner manager ?

Speaker 2 12:03

I encourage it you encourage it ?

Speaker 1 12:05

yes , well , that's good to hear , because a lot sometimes . Power planners can often be told that they're going to be progressed into financial planners when they want to be , but often because there's such a shortage of them , they're kept in those roles longer than they should no , I mean , from my point of view , is um , whether you're um coming from an internal position or recruiting external .

Speaker 2 12:27

If you say to me in the interview and I really do like honesty you want to become an advisor , I will do everything I possibly can to facilitate that . I mean , obviously , the opportunity's got to be there first and foremost , and we do have the academy to train as an advisor . But it's getting on to the academy , isn't it ? It's like everything , but I will help . I will position you when I know that there's things going on . I can't say what things are , but I can position you into positions where you're in front of um advisors who absolutely want to bring people on themselves , you know . So the obviously like everything . You want to progress your career . You have to progress your career , but I can do everything I possibly can to to help you fantastic .

Speaker 1 13:19

So within that , within that power planning team , you've got the career development in power planning , but entwined within that is the opportunity to move into financial planning is what you're saying and , as a company , they encourage that it's not something you hold people back on .

Speaker 1 13:31

And in fact , let's go back to that interview stage , right , because you've just done some interviews recently . So someone's in the meeting and they're saying they're a power planner and they're coming into the business at Foster foster . They know , though , as a power planner , but in the back of their mind they've got aspirations to become a financial planner . You would say , well , tell me that . Yeah , tell me that , because I'm not . It's not going to stop you from getting the job of course it's not .

Speaker 2 13:51

It's um . I mean , how um with with the recruitment . I've looked at it . I've looked at that as an individual coming into a team , because that's what you are , you're a person . So um it's . I know I've got career power planners . I know I've got somebody who wants to go into a compliance function . I know somebody who wants to become um , one of our business quality experts . I've got somebody who wants to become an advisor . So if I don't know what people's aspirations are , one , I'm not a good manager . And secondly , how do I help them ? How do I speak to other managers and go , oh , have you spoken to xyz ? Because I think they'd be quite good in that role ?

Speaker 1 14:33

you mentioned to me about hiring based on skills and not job title . What do you mean ?

Speaker 2 14:40

well , a cv tells me what you've done , doesn't tell me who you are and when . Um , with this rapid growth that we're undertaking , it is so important to maintain the culture and the stability of the team as well as the company as a whole . So , um , I have a colleague whose company as well was going into big expansion and they concentrated on getting people in and it's become quite an unhappy environment to work in , shall we say . Whilst , here I've recruited somebody who's got two , three years of planning experience . He's in his early 20s Now .

Speaker 2 15:28

With my next recruit , I was in the back of my mind saying I have to get somebody with a bit more experience to counterbalance that . And the lady who's starting up in the northeast absolutely lovely and she fits in wonderfully with the crew up in Newcastle . But also , importantly , you know , she fits in with the team . So it's like a game of chess you move one piece and that affects the balance on the board . And it's really heartening when you see the existing team and they go yeah , that was a really good hire , that one , that was really good , and we really like working with them . You know , and touch wood , I haven't had , I haven't had any issues .

Speaker 1 16:18

yet it's all about complimenting , isn't it ? Complimenting each other , and that and that's the key thing is recognizing what those skills that individual has that might well be lacking in that team and also within yourself as well .

Speaker 2 16:26

Well , this is it . I mean and people might find this shocking but I actually do recruit to replace myself .

Speaker 1 16:32

That's a great idea .

Speaker 2 16:33

Because I , you know , I mean obviously I'm only 21 .

Speaker 1 16:38

I've got ages to go yet .

Speaker 2 16:42

But you know , there is a retirement plan and you have to be sensible , you have to look forward . I'm working for a company that's moving forward . I want to move forward too . I have a team that I want to bring with me .

Speaker 1 16:57

I always made the mistake of hiring people that I felt were like me , like almost like . I was trying to find people like me , and often that was a nightmare , whereas I should have been trying to hire people who were better in areas that I was weak . Um , and now I look for that . You know , I don't need another person next to me who's super creative . I need someone next to me who's super organized and can execute my creativity . You know , because I struggle with operational stuff , I struggle with processes . You know , I live in the , I live in the creative mindset .

Speaker 2 17:25

You know , that's where I am and this is why I'm I'm a career power planner manager , because there is a completely different skill set to being an advisor and we both do exactly the same job at the end of the day , which is to give the best advice that we can for the client . Everything is in their best interest . Me and the advisors I work with . We come at the same issue from different angles .

Speaker 1 17:55

Have you spent a lot of your time in meetings with financial planners . Is it something you encourage the team to do ?

Speaker 2 18:02

I have and I do . I mean we haven't been taken up on it recently because of the workload in the team , but it's certainly something that if you needed me to go through a voyant or do a bit more of an admin thing for clients , then I would . That's why he would bring me in um .

Empathy in Financial Planning Team

Speaker 2 18:25

You know , sometimes you're you're sat in front of a client who will not speak , just give you the basic and if you've got somebody else in there , that it kind of helps to change that dynamic . You know , because then you're starting to look at two people and then um , out of two of you they're going to have a rapport with one of you . You know so and it .

Speaker 2 18:46

But it depends on who you , who the client is , who you're sat in front of . You know you don't want to be going to every single one , but um , I mean um . In the previous place I used to um , we , the , the , the advisor I worked with , we had a lot of the older clients , so from the newly retired grey haired teenagers to the unfortunately the end of days , and obviously in that age group people pass away and you'd find whether it's male or female , you know , by just female in the in the room that that they would open up and be able to talk about things yeah , no , absolutely .

Speaker 1 19:25

I think that's why we need more women in those meetings with clients , because it's a whole different dynamic . Yeah , I'm doing a podcast at the moment . We're producing one for the pfs . Yeah , um , women in wealth , I think you're going to call it um . It's four women sitting around talking about their careers within financial planning and their perspectives . So I was sort of sat there thinking , oh , I'm looking forward to this . I've interviewed women on my podcast before , but I've never sat and listened to four women talking about it . You know , it's me asking them questions , um , and as soon as I sat back and listened to four women talking about their careers within financial planning and their perspectives and how they bounced , off each other .

Speaker 1 19:59

It's completely different . I was like , oh my god , it's like I've been let into some kind of secret club . You know a different perspective . That was what it was and that's what it is .

Speaker 1 20:06

Yes , and I think that's what's needed is more women in leadership roles , talking about what it's like working in the financial planning profession , how they progress through the difficulties and issues that they might have come up against , how they overcame them , the challenges um the perception that they might have had throughout their careers . Um , I think we're talking about menopause and all sorts of stuff .

Speaker 2 20:29

You know it was a .

Speaker 1 20:31

It was a great interesting insight into the career of those that work within the profession . But also they were talking a lot about the clients yeah , how the clients respond to female financial planners , male and female . So look out for that one because it's going to be a fantastic podcast and I hope they continue on with that I mean what's um ?

Speaker 2 20:49

I mean like my , my dad . Mom and dad are in their late 70s , so my dad's very receptive to um male or female advisor . But you'll find some men a bit older than that really aren't comfortable at all . But when you're in a situation where they're recently widowed , it's amazing how they'll open up to a woman rather than the male advisor . And there's nothing wrong with what the male advisor is doing whatsoever , but it's . It's just that .

Speaker 1 21:20

It's just the way the human brain works with the yeah , I can understand that with the male and female it's it's more empathic in that situation and I think I think it would be easier for a guy who's just lost his wife to open up to a woman without a shadow of a doubt . Opening up to another man would be quite difficult , I think you would seek a woman more so than a man see a woman .

Speaker 2 21:39

I mean , I've done this myself , I've taken the hand in a in a meeting , just so they can control themselves , you know , and a male advisor perhaps wouldn't have even . Oh my goodness no never have thought that and it's . I am not , I I mean I'm . I do believe in equality and I've . Everybody's got their skill sets , everybody's got a positive and a negative , and you know , I know this is off topic now .

Speaker 1 22:05

No , it's fine , it's completely on topic . It's completely on topic . I think you know you're absolutely spot on , because I'm just thinking in my head would I have a woman's hand if she was ?

Speaker 2 22:15

upset .

Speaker 1 22:16

It's strange isn't it .

Speaker 2 22:23

It's like you just probably wouldn't so actually a female could hold a woman's hand and a male and a male's hand .

Speaker 1 22:27

So actually , I think the dynamic of male and female is always brilliant to have as a exactly a double act when you're in any kind of meeting , because it's again it's perspective , isn't it ? It's the exactly yeah , and like exactly the same as well . I think women are quite good at identifying areas where there might be vulnerabilities as well , which is hugely important in any kind of meetings you know , is there financial vulnerabilities . Those are key things as well that are really , really important now in the financial planning meetings .

Speaker 2 22:51

Well , in our team meetings we have um two proper ones a week , which is about the workflow and and um how people are dealing with their cases and things , and we have a daft one on a Friday morning afternoon , whenever and I watch everybody closely when they're talking and I will send a message to Martin or David and go can you just drop in and see that they're okay , because sometimes I think if I drop in , it's like , oh my God , the manager's calling why you know , but um , I , I , you , and it's funny , people think that they can hide themselves away on a tv screen , but actually , um , it's , it's just as difficult as in real life .

Speaker 1 23:33

I pick up on things like that . Really , I'm quite empathic . I'm kind of like I can , I sense it , like I almost feel it and I can predict things . I think some people have got it like I almost feel it and I can predict things . I think some people have got it and some people haven't . But I think also , as well , as a business owner or manager , you've also got to learn to understand what you can and what you can't do , and then also how to direct people to um sort of to the help that they might need as well .

Speaker 2 23:55

You know you can't fix everybody's problems no , you can't , but what you can do is give them the space in order to fix themselves . You know there's people come into work and in fact , a lot of people come in to forget what's going on in their private lives . But sometimes you do get the overspill and if you're aware of it and we do have a very open and honest team it's amazing what your work colleagues will pick up the slack on this one . I'll take that report . Don't worry about that .

Speaker 1 24:27

You know , and it's , it's quite powerful yeah , when I was , um , when I ran a recruitment company recruitment is notorious , was always notorious for work , work hard , don't talk about your emotions , type thing . So anyway , I went through a bit troubled time in my life . Um , I do a lot of work with talk club , which the men's mental fitness charity , so we implemented talk clubs into our business and also then I thought , well , what else can I do ? Because all I wanted to do when someone's coming in and they were having a tough time , or you know , whether we work or personal whatever , I just wanted to go .

Speaker 1 24:55

I could acknowledge exactly how you're feeling because I've been there . I don't want you to feel like I'm not acknowledging it and that what you're feeling is real right now and it is going to affect your work . But I want to create a solution . I want to help you and it's key for me was to be able to very quickly signpost them , take down any barriers that would stop them getting the help that they actually needed , so things like having free counselling sessions . So I'd quickly just put them into a counseling session , put it in front of them .

Speaker 1 25:22

It was their choice to do it , yeah , but for me I felt a I was doing the right thing . I was giving them access to help that maybe they wouldn't do , because the costs and you never know , there's problems with money and all of that money , coaches , all that kind of stuff . So it's like what can I give them that will empower them to better themselves ? I used to do pting every monday , so to . So I put the solutions in place , signposts to them that I knew that I was doing my job right , and so when it came to those one-to-one meetings and everything , I could always go back and say look , I , we , as a business , we put this in place for you we understand the situation you're in , but what are you doing to help yourself and empower yourself to move past this difficulty in your life ?

Speaker 1 25:58

or and also create that kind of openness within the business that , if someone has a problem , come forward and talk about it , because you know , don't think you can't open up , because we're here to listen and we want you to be happy eight , nine , ten hours of your life , your day in work .

Speaker 2 26:15

You know it's , it's an important , it's an important part and we're I mean , mean , as you know , we've been work colleagues . You mean we know each other not as intimately as um friends and things , but we actually do see um when you're under your most pressurized and um sometimes you're most vulnerable , you know 100 and you're wearing those masks all the time , aren't you ?

Speaker 1 26:35

you know that can take

Navigating Career Growth in Financial Planning

Speaker 1 26:36

its toll . Well , listen , thanks so much for joining us here on the financial planner life podcast and talking about your journey here at foster de novo uh , your um career in power planning , and hopefully it's given an insight into people as well as to the team that you're building here . Yes , the opportunity is here for growth . I think that's the key thing . If someone's going to come into your power planning team . You can start an administration you can become a career power planner , but there are also multiple areas that you can move .

Speaker 1 26:59

An administration you can become a career power planner , but there are also multiple areas that you can move within financial planning , uh , specifically within foster de novo , and if you want to become a financial planner , you're not going to hold someone back absolutely not going to encourage them great thank you so much for your time today brilliant . Thank you very much , cheers .