AFA opens 2019 award nominations

The other titles up for grabs are the AFA Rising Star, The AFA Female Excellence in Advice and the AFA Excellence in Education awards.

Winners will be announced on 29 August 2019, at the Gala Dinner held during the AFA National Adviser Conference in Adelaide. 

The awards aim to recognise innovation, diversity and excellence in advice, along with applauding the best new talent and commending those who are committed to pursuing higher professional standards by furthering their education.

"We are looking for people within our profession who will be the foundation block of the stronger, more rigorous profession that we are all committed to building," Philip Kewin, chief executive of AFA, said.

"Winners will be those people who demonstrate that they are setting an uncompromising standard of excellence that has earned them the trust and confidence of the community."

The awards are sponsored by Zurich, TAL, OnePath and Asteron Life.

Zurich has backed the Adviser of the Year and AFA Practice of the Year accolades for 17 years.

Commenting on the AFA and TAL Female Excellence in Advice Award, TAL general manager, retail distribution, Niall McConville, said, “We are delighted to be long-term supporters of this award since 2011.

“We believe the award continues to be an important influence in generating awareness around the need for more diversity within the profession itself while also addressing the under-representation of women seeking financial advice.”

Natalie Jarvis, head of strategic accounts and sales strategy at OnePath, commented, "This is OnePath/ANZ’s 15th year of proudly partnering with the AFA to recognise emerging talent in the financial advice industry.

“In this time of unprecedented industry change it’s important that we continue to recognise talented professionals joining the industry and support them in their personal and professional development via the AFA Rising Star award."

Speaking on the AFA Excellence in Education Award, Daniel Waller, head of wealth and life intermediaries at Asteron Life, said now more than ever, the advice community is recognising the transformative power of education in the sector.

“With a growing focus on better client outcomes and stronger professionalism, I think we’ll continue to see education being integral to enhancing our industry’s reputation and improving the quality of advice,” he said.