Alphabet Soup: Financial Advisor Designations
If you follow WorthyNest® and other financial blogs, you have a much better understanding of personal finance than the typical American adult. But sometimes, that isn’t enough. Generalities can only take you so far. You may want more detailed information on how to reach your family’s financial goals, and you need it tailored to your specific situation.
“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” – Proverbs 15:22
I equate hiring a financial advisor with hiring a personal trainer. You may be able to join a gym or exercise regularly on your own. However, that may not get you to your goal. You’re making an additional monetary investment to get results! If you find yourself in a similar situation when it comes to financial goals, hiring a holistic financial planner could be your saving grace.
Not all advisors are created equal. Some of us invest deeply in professional designations and continuing education to bring the most value and expertise to the clients we serve. For example, I hold the CFP®, CPA/PFS, and CEPA designations. Consult this Wealthtender guide for a broader list of financial certifications and their related descriptions. My professional designations are detailed below.
Certified Financial Planner™
The CFP® certification is a voluntary certification granted in the US by Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (“CFP Board”); no federal or state law or regulation requires financial planners to hold CFP® certification. It is recognized in the United States and several other countries for its (1) high standard of professional education; (2) stringent code of conduct and standards of practice; and (3) ethical requirements that govern professional engagements with clients.
To attain the right to use the CFP® marks, an individual must satisfactorily fulfill the following four requirements:
Education – Complete an advanced college-level course of study addressing the financial planning subject areas that CFP Board’s studies have determined as necessary for the competent and professional delivery of financial planning services and attain a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited United States college or university. CFP Board’s financial planning subject areas include insurance planning and risk management, employee benefits planning, investment planning, income tax planning, retirement planning, and estate planning.
Examination – Pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Examination. The examination, administered in 10 hours over a two-day period, includes case studies and client scenarios designed to test one’s ability to correctly diagnose financial planning issues and apply one’s knowledge of financial planning to real world circumstances.
Experience – Complete at least three years of full-time financial planning-related experience (or the equivalent, measured as 2,000 hours per year).
Ethics – Agree to be bound by CFP Board’s Standards of Professional Conduct, a set of documents outlining the ethical and practice standards for CFP® professionals.
Individuals who become certified must complete the ongoing education and ethics requirements to maintain the right to continue to use the CFP® marks.
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
CPAs are licensed and regulated by their state boards of accountancy. I am licensed by the Florida and Missouri Boards of Accountancy. While state laws and regulations vary, the education, experience and testing requirements for licensure as a CPA generally include minimum college education (typically 150 credit hours with at least a baccalaureate degree and a concentration in accounting), minimum experience levels (most states require at least one year of experience providing services that involve the use of accounting, attest, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax or consulting skills, all of which must be achieved under the supervision of or verification by a CPA), and successful passage of the Uniform CPA Examination.
In order to maintain a CPA license, states generally require the completion of 40 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) each year (or 80 hours over a two-year period or 120 hours over a three-year period). Additionally, all American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) members are required to follow a rigorous Code of Professional Conduct which requires that they act with integrity, objectivity, due care, competence, fully disclose any conflicts of interest, obtain client consent if a conflict exists, maintain client confidentiality, disclose to the client any commission or referral fees, and serve the public interest when providing financial services.
PFS is the add-on Personal Financial Specialist designation awarded to a CPA in good standing with the AICPA. In fact, I was fortunate to earn the 2018 AICPA Standing Ovation award for excellence in personal financial planning.
Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA)
The Certified Exit Planning Advisor program was specifically designed for business advisors who work closely with owners of privately held companies. The organizing principle of the program is Master Planning, the alignment of the three legs of the stool (business, personal, financial), which is executed through the implementation of a process called the Value Acceleration Methodology™.
Using an executive MBA-style format, the program includes a combination of lectures, group discussions, case studies and individual exercises to introduce participants to these concepts and to reinforce skills. The program is taught by the Exit Planning Institute’s faculty of advisors, who are all sought after subject matter experts and authors. The CEPA program is the most widely accepted and endorsed professional exit planning program in the world.
At WorthyNest®, we guide parents through important financial decisions using a values-based approach. Contact us to explore a one-on-one relationship.