Why you’re doing 24 roles in your practice
and how the Professional Year and better role clarity can fix it.
by Julie Matheson, CFP® Finwise™ Leadership
In many financial planning practices, the principal is effectively doing ‘24 roles in the business’.
They're the adviser, the marketer, the operations manager, the HR manager, half of the admin department, and everything in between.
When we speak with Financial Planning Principals, a common theme emerges:
"We've been looking at bringing on a Professional Year (PY) student for ages now…, but I just don't have time . I can't even look after my own calendar, let alone bring on a PY student."
Why principals run out of time for a Professional Year
The "no time" problem isn't because the business doesn't run well. It's because the principal and senior advisers are operating like helpers (and Alphas), doing everything themselves.
They're on the tools, in front of clients, fixing every issue personally. That feels responsible, but it quickly kills capacity, growth, and the ability to leverage new talent.
This mindset is also why many practices don't feel they can take on a PY adviser.
They think, "I'm already flat out. How could I add supervising and training someone on top of that?" And they are probably right.
What Professional Year supervision actually requires
PY supervision is complex and time-consuming to do properly. A PY supervisor is meant to develop the PY entrant into a competent, client-ready professional, and to collect and maintain evidence that supervision, training, and ethical development actually occurred.
Most practices understand the responsibility for development, but they ignore the evidence piece until it becomes a compliance or professional headache. When you stack that on top of a full client load, running a practice, and staying on top of compliance, it's no wonder supervision gets pushed into the "too hard" basket.
The first step before taking on a PY Entrant (Adviser)
For Financial Planning Principals wanting to add a PY adviser, the first step is to recognise three things. They already run a full book and juggle multiple roles.
Trying to DIY PY supervision on top of that is usually unrealistic (and risky).
Outsourcing or structuring support around the PY program isn't a cost. It's a necessary decision if they want growth without burning out.
The role clarity problem (and how DISC helps solve it)
Another key problem is role clarity.
Many Financial Planning Principals hire new team members but can't clearly articulate what gap that person is meant to fill.
Without:
Clear role definitions
A solid business plan
A sense of career pathways inside the practice
…the team ends up busy, but not necessarily effective. People are hired into vague roles (including the PY), and the principal still feels like they're doing most of the work.
Tools like personality profiling (e.g. DISC) and structured role mapping help a Financial Planning Principal understand their own strengths and blind spots, where they genuinely need leverage, and which roles and people will actually free them up rather than adding more noise and payroll.
Building capacity before you burn out 🔥
All of this comes back to the same issue. Without a clear plan, role clarity, and a smart approach to PY supervision, the principal stays stuck doing 24 roles. Always too busy to build the capacity they desperately need.
Let’s structure your Professional Year hire properly?
If you're a Financial Planning Principal looking at bringing on a Professional Year adviser, or already supervising one and feeling the weight of it, a PY Mentoring Call walks through how to structure the year so it works for the PY, your practice, and your own time.
I’d be happy to chat and show you our PY Roadmap process if it will help.
Book a call here:
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and is not intended as professional advice. Information is current at the date of publication and may be subject to change without notice.