To Boost Pro Bono Service, Advice Industry Must Set the Tone at the Top

The Council is made up of key corporate leaders in financial advice — who collectively employ thousands of advisors and interact with thousands more — who have made advancing pro bono a common purpose and who for the first time have joined together publicly to bolster this critical public service.

Putting Pro Bono in Place

For the first time, these companies are calling on the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards to recommend that those it certifies provide a minimum of 25 voluntary hours of pro bono each year. This is similar to an American Bar Association recommendation for lawyers in 1983 that helped propel the growth of pro bono in that field. FFP joins our Council members in requesting that CFP Board send this vital cue to the profession.

The timing is optimal as CFP Board is leading a planning process to envision the next 10 years of the profession's development, while seeking input from a range of key stakeholders.

In addition, the CFP Board has been consistently supportive of FFP, regularly promoting the Foundation's pro bono programs to CFP professionals and contributing monetary and in-kind resources towards our pro bono mission. I anticipate continuing the conversation with CFP Board leadership and know that its leaders will consider our recommendation in their strategic planning process.

As a complement to their recommendation to CFP Board, FFP's Corporate Council members also have committed to evaluate their own policies, practices, communications and relationships to remove barriers and encourage pro bono service.

This institutional commitment can foster company-wide changes and new industry norms that will grow pro bono service, unleashing the talents of many more advisors who can assist at-risk families navigate their financial challenges, triage financial crises and get on a path toward long-term economic security.

As American families continue to grapple with the financial fallout of COVID-19, more leading financial services firms — planning providers, clearing and custody, asset managers, fintech, and others — are joining FFP's Council and embracing our pro bono mission. Their collective voices and actions will be essential to turbocharging the pro bono movement in financial advice.

Many years ago, key law firm leaders stepped up to embrace pro bono not just as something their individual employees felt was important, but as a service that could lift the entire profession. Today, we commend all Corporate Council leaders for playing this role and for urging others to join them.

Jon Dauphiné, Esq., is CEO of the Foundation for Financial Planning.