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List of Top 4 Careers in Financial Planner
A financial planner is a professional responsible for helping individuals and businesses manage their finances, achieve financial goals, and plan for the future. Key responsibilities of a certified financial planner career include assessing clients' financial situations, providing investment advice, developing personalized financial plans, and offering guidance on topics like retirement, taxes, and estate planning.
Financial planners analyze market trends, recommend investment strategies, and help clients navigate complex financial decisions. Effective communication and interpersonal skills are essential for building trust with clients. A successful financial planner stays informed about industry regulations and market developments, providing clients with informed and strategic financial guidance tailored to their unique needs and objectives.
Overview of Financial Planner Career
- A financial planner helps individuals or companies make informed money management decisions. A financial planner assesses the financial position of the concerned person, understands their requirements and goals, and then based on that, makes recommendations about how to fulfil those requirements in the best possible manner.
- Different financial planning might have different backgrounds. Some might provide different types of general services, some might concentrate on a particular client type, and others might focus on particular areas like tax law, etc.
- Financial planners spend their days attending meetings with their prospective clients and implementing the solutions of these new clients, along with reviewing the plans of the existing clients.
- A successful financial planner career path requires a high degree of skill set, which includes the ability and confidence to communicate with a large number of people, the ability to simplify complex ideas, aptitude for sales and marketing, comfortableness with numbers along with the ability to analyze them, ability to building strong relationships with the clients, etc.
- Hence financial planner plays one of the most essential roles in managing their client’s funds in the right direction.
Career #1 - Budget Analyst
A budget analyst is a person employed by private and public institutions to organize their finances by preparing different budget reports and then monitor the spending of these institutions.
| Budget Analyst - Job Description |
|---|
| Responsibilities | Develop the budget by working with project and program managers and reviewing the budget proposals of managers. Recommend the others for the funding requests and help the heads of the organization in analyzing the proposed plans and monitoring the spending of the organization, and informing the status of the project or program managers. |
| Designation | Budget Analyst |
| Actual Role | They prepare the budget and monitor the spending to ensure that it is within budget limits. Estimation of the organization’s financial needs for the future. |
| Job Statistics | As per the Bureau of labor statistics available at www.bls.gov in 2016, the numbers of jobs were 58,400 in this category Bureau of Labor Statistics available at www.bls.gov in 2016, the number of jobs was 58,400 in this category, which is expected to grow 7% from 2016 to 2026. |
| Top Companies | Ivy Exec, the MIL Corporation, Department of Army, Deloitte. |
| Salary | The median pay per year in 2018 for a budget analyst was $ 76,220 per year and $36.65 per hour as per the Bureau of labor statistics of US Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US, available at www.bls.gov. |
| Demand & Supply | There is a good demand for budget analysts, which will also continue in the future. It is an analytical job requiring analytical, communication, number, and writing skills. During the budget cutback period, demand for budget analysts remains high. |
| Education Requirement | A bachelor's degree, CFA, MBA, or master's degree in accounting, finance, or related areas from a reputed college. |
| Recommended Courses | CFA/MBA/Master in accounting, finance, or related areas. |
| Positives | High average earnings, multiple options of jobs available in different areas, and the stability of a job. |
| Negatives | Long working hours for meeting the targets lead to a high stress level. Traveling will be required to get first-hand details for a budget. |
Career #2 - Insurance Underwriters
The insurance Underwriter is the one who decides whether the insurance is to be provided or not and if yes, then under what terms it should be given. They determine the insurance coverage amounts and premiums.
| Insurance Underwriters - Job Description |
|---|
| Responsibilities | They are responsible for analyzing the information provided on the insurance applications, determining the risk present for ensuring the clients, evaluating and providing a recommendation based on underwriting software, field representative, and medical personnel for gathering the information, determining the appropriate insurance coverage amounts and the premiums. |
| Designation | Insurance Underwriters |
| Actual Role | He will analyze the client’s information and history based on different parameters and decide whether it would be suitable to provide insurance or not and terms and conditions concerning the same. |
| Job Statistics | As per the Bureau of Labor statistics available at www.bls.gov in 2016, the number of jobs was 104,100 in this category, which is expected to decline by 5% from 2016 to 2026. |
| Top Companies | Global Benefits Group, Ivy Exec, Friedman Associates Insurance, Prudential. |
| Salary | The median pay per year in 2018 for an Insurance Underwriter was $ 69,380 per year and $33.36 per hour, as per the Bureau of Labor Statistics available at www.bls.gov. |
| Demand & Supply | The demand is expected to decline in the future years. The reason for the same is automated underwriting software, which allows people to process applications faster. However, they will still be required to monitor the automated process and work in complex fields like marine insurance, etc. |
| Education Requirement | A bachelor's or master's degree in accounting, finance, or administration-related areas from a reputed college. |
| Recommended Courses | MBA/associate in personal insurance/associate in commercial underwriting/chartered property and casualty underwriter certification. |
| Positives | High average earnings, several specialization options, variety of work in day-to-day working. |
| Negatives | Declining the job growth rate, pressure to avoid too much of the risk. |
Career #3 - Financial Analyst
A Financial Analyst guides the persons who are required to make the decisions concerning the investment.
| Financial Analyst - Job Description |
|---|
| Responsibilities | They are responsible for analyzing the current and historical financial data, examining the company's financial position by analyzing its financial statements, studying the business and economic trends and providing recommendations based on the same, identifying investment trends, and giving a recommendation for investments. |
| Designation | Financial Analyst |
| Actual Role | Evaluating the investment opportunities for new and existing organizations, managing the finances, identifying investment trends, and delivering new services and products to the clients as per their requirements. |
| Job Statistics | As per the bureau of labor statistics available at www.bls.gov, in 2016, the numbers of jobs were 296,100 in this category which is expected to grow by 11% from 2016 to 2026. |
| Top Companies | Tradeweb Inc, ManTech International, the MIL Corporation. |
| Salary | The median pay per year in 2018 for an insurance underwriter was $ 85,660 per year and $41.18 per hour as per the bureau of labor statistics of us, available at www.bls.gov. |
| Demand & Supply | The demand is expected to grow faster in the future years, more than an average of all the occupations, due to an increasing range of financial products. |
| Education Requirement | A bachelor's or master's degree in accounting, finance, or administration-related areas from a reputed college. |
| Recommended Courses | CFA/CPA/MBA |
| Positives | Growth of jobs at a faster pace, high average earnings, working with highly important data. |
| Negatives | The stress of work, attention to even minute detail is required, and long working hours with a high level of responsibilities. |
Career #4 - Agent for Securities, Commodities and Other Financial Services
The agent for securities, commodities, and other financial services is the one who connects the sellers and buyers in the financial market.
| Agent for Securities - Job Description |
|---|
| Responsibilities | They are responsible for buying and selling securities like stocks and commodities like oil. They monitor the financial market and the performance of securities and commodities. They provide financial planning services by providing information to the clients about the performance of securities where they can invest in getting good returns. |
| Designation | Securities, commodities, and other financial services agents. |
| Actual Role | Monitoring the financial market and performance of securities and commodities and providing a recommendation to the clients about the performance of securities where they can invest in good returns. Also, they analyze the company's finances to provide recommendations for public offerings and acquisitions, etc. |
| Job Statistics | As per the bureau of labor statistics available at www.bls.gov in 2016, the numbers of jobs were 375,700 in this category which is expected to grow by 6% from 2016 to 2026. |
| Top Companies | Ivy Exec, GQR global markets, Union Bank of California. |
| Salary | The median pay per year in 2018 for an insurance underwriter was $ 64,120 per year and $30.83 per hour as per the bureau of labor statistics available at www.bls.gov. |
| Demand & Supply | The demand is expected to grow 6% from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average of all occupations. Services of analyzing the company's finances for providing recommendations for public offerings and acquisitions will be in demand for a continuous period. |
| Education Requirement | A Bachelor's Degree/MBA |
| Recommended Courses | CFA/MBA |
| Positives | Growth of jobs at a faster pace, high average earnings, and different types of analysis of the security and commodity market. |
| Negatives | The intense competition of job as there is high pay; proper attention to even minute detail is required to judge the performance. |
How To Start?
Starting a career as a financial planner requires a combination of education, certifications, practical experience, and effective networking. Success in this field involves a commitment to ongoing learning and the ability to adapt to evolving financial landscapes. Let us understand a basic framework to start off a certified financial planner career through the explanation below.
- Obtain a bachelor's degree in finance, business, economics, or a related field to build a strong foundation in financial concepts.
- Pursue industry-recognized certifications such as Certified Financial Planner (CFP) or Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) to enhance credibility and expertise.
- Seek entry-level positions in financial services, banking, or related industries to gain practical experience and exposure to various financial scenarios.
- Acquire proficiency in financial planning software, investment analysis tools, and industry-specific technologies.
- Attend industry events, join professional organizations, and network with experienced financial planners to expand connections and stay informed about industry trends.
- Obtain required licenses such as Series 7 and Series 66 to offer financial advice and sell investment products legally.
- Consider specializing in a particular area, such as retirement planning or estate planning, to differentiate yourself and cater to specific client needs.
- Create a professional online presence through a personal website or social media platforms to showcase expertise and attract potential clients.
- Begin building a client base through referrals, networking, and leveraging professional relationships.
- Stay updated on industry regulations, market trends, and continuous education to maintain professional certifications and provide clients with the latest financial insights.
Recommended Articles
This has been a guide to Financial Planner Career. Here we provide the top 4 financial planner career lists, including Budget Analyst, Insurance Underwriters, Financial Analyst, etc. You may also have a look at these career articles below -
