More than eight in 10 aspiring CFP young professionals will consider whether a firm emphasizes pro bono planning when deciding where to work, according to a new survey by the Foundation for Financial Planning and Enhanced Planning.
The survey focused on individuals under 35 who were planning to obtain CFP certification and found that 43% of respondents said they would be “very likely” to work at a firm with encouraging pro bono policies, while 40% said they would “likely.” to do so.
In an interview with WealthManagement.comFFP CEO Jon Dauphiné asserted that more firms will consider increasing pro bono policies when making their appeal to the next wave of young planners.
“We think that the more firms realize that in the fight for talent they can gain competitive advantage by offering supportive policies, we think more and more firms will grow,” said Dauphiné.
This new survey originates from an extensive analysis by FFP released in September 2023, which asked more than 1,600 CFP professionals about pro bono work in the industry. According to the results, 53% of CFP planners reported that they would do more planning work if their firm encouraged it, but among CFP professionals under 35, that figure jumped to 71%.
These divergent percentages made Dauphiné and FFP curious about what younger, soon-to-be planners thought about the necessity of pro bono work. With the help of Enhanced Planning, FFP sought 314 individuals, 91% of whom intend to achieve a CFP designation. Respondents ranged from students to recent graduates and career changers.
Survey respondents were more diverse than the broader group of all CFP professionals, with a 50%-47% split between women and men (compared to 24%-76% among all CFP professionals) and only 57 % responded that they were white (compared to 81.9% of all CFP professionals). Dauphiné said research shows younger generations want to connect their work (even at a for-profit company) to a greater purpose across industries.
“When they think about being able to provide financial advice and planning, they want to be able to do it across a different economic spectrum,” he said. “And so pro bono work is a way for them to help underserved communities that have very little margin for error.”
Respondents also requested more pro bono opportunities during their education; only 9% said they offered pro bono guidance as part of their program at their educational institution, while 88% of respondents wished their academic programs offered more content and support for students interested in financial planning. Overall, 76% said they planned to do pro bono service after obtaining their CFP certification, with 23% remaining undecided.
Survey respondents also compared the legal and financial services fields, with 84% agreeing that advisory firms should emulate law firms, which makes providing pro bono services a central part of their sales pitch.
According to Dauphiné, every major law firm should be in the “pro bono game” because new associates want to appreciate a firm's sincerity on the subject. While he acknowledges the legal profession as the beginning of the century in the field of financial planning, he hopes that the latter can close the gap in the way it promotes pro bono and makes information on it accessible to aspiring employees.
Dauphiné also emphasized that law students have a resource that lists all law firms in the country with all the data available on that firm's pro bono work, helping incoming associates determine which firms to walk.
While FFP established RIA Impact Partnersin which firms like Edelman Financial Engines and Buckingham Strategic Wealth pledge to increase volunteer opportunities for advisers, Dauphiné said the foundation hopes to create a database of planners similar to that enjoyed by young lawyers.
“This will be something we do over time,” he said. “But I think it will be really helpful, because otherwise it's just up to the individual applicant to ask the employer partially.”