In addition, our technical employee academy, which nurtures tomorrow’s professionals today, develops apprentices from schools through certificate, diploma and chartered over a five-year professional development programme. Relevant and appropriate professional development is at the heart of the team.
As a profession, we have made significant progress raising standards in the quality of professional development, the way that many in the profession have gone beyond the benchmark qualifications reaching chartered and beyond with relevant MSc and MBA programmes in Manchester and Gloucestershire, for example.
The recently launched University of Gloucestershire Finance in Society Research Institute has been created to connect students’ academic research with policymakers, government and organisations to deliver better client outcomes.
Rather than putting completed research on the shelf, it is key that through the institute research is utilised on behalf of the wider profession.
In summary, the future of professional development is exciting and hopefully far more rewarding going forward as new technologies deliver greater inclusivity combined with a wider passion for learning, all resulting in great client outcomes.
The challenge for regulators and professional bodies will be to keep pace with the increasing demand for more relevant standards and assessment methods that support all of tomorrow’s stakeholders – our clients, advisers, employees and the wider community.
Edward Grant is director of technical connection at St James’s Place
