Many financial advisers consider discussing retirement plans with clients to be one of our profession’s greatest pleasures.
It can produce moments that are heartening, rewarding and even genuinely emotional. Katie Brinsden, Managing Director of Truly Independent, shares her insights on succession, and why advisers encourage it.
Take the wonderful instant when a client begins to see that a comfortable retirement is achievable. The sense of joy which pervades the room when the possibility of early retirement is floated is even more exquisite.
But what about an adviser’s own retirement? There is no mean irony in the fact that our industry is full of people who devote relatively little thought to how they might end their own working days – and, perhaps even more importantly, to what could happen when they do.
Data continues to bear out this uncomfortable truth. For instance, a study published earlier this year reported that almost half of a sample of advisers questioned about their succession plans had none in place [1].
The negative impacts of such a lack of readiness are seldom confined to advisers themselves. The repercussions are often also felt by clients, who find themselves left in limbo when an era comes to an abrupt end.
This is why advisers nearing retirement must practise what they preach. They have to bring to their own lives the same degree of foresight they strive to encourage in the individuals who rely on and trust them. The fundamental goal should be to pass on a successful business in a way that delivers continuity and inspires confidence.
Needless to say, this is no easy task. Yet an adviser can take a number of practical steps that might go a long way towards ensuring an efficient, smooth transition that has the reassuring feel of a non-event.
For example, at Truly Independent we use a framework known as PREPARE – Plan, Reckon, Establish, Present, Agree, Retreat, Exit – to facilitate the transfer of an adviser’s business. In effect, it operates on the basis of one adviser retiring and another buying the practice.
My intention here is not to showcase PREPARE as the greatest thing since sliced bread. But I do think it is worth rattling through the bare bones of the idea, if only to give a brief insight into how our industry might better approach the eternal puzzle of succession and so avoid the very same pitfalls from which we routinely try to save others.
- Step 1: Plan your retirement
Retirement should feature in every adviser’s list of long-term priorities from the outset. Ideally, some form of plan will be in place from day one, ready to be revisited and revised on a regular basis.
Preparations should become increasingly definitive as the target date grows closer. By way of illustration, an adviser who hopes to step down at 65 should arrive at 60 with little or nothing still left to chance.
- Step 2: Reckon your business
There should come a juncture at which an adviser genuinely resolves to sell up. This is the time for careful evaluation – the time when a price must be put on everything that has been built up over the years.
It is imperative at this stage to avoid placing excessive emphasis on present and recurring value. The future opportunities that could stem from existing relationships and prospective referrals or introductions must be factored in as well.
- Step 3: Establish potential buyers
By this phase, if the planning has been up to scratch, an adviser should have drummed up a good level of interest. This, in turn, should lay the foundations for an attractive deal.
Succession is usually best arranged privately. An agency might be used to oversee a sale, but it may not secure a top price – particularly if it also represents the buyer.
- Step 4: Present your prospectus
Successful networking can make for a small world, which is why a seller often turns out to be already acquainted with a prospective buyer. Nonetheless, it is prudent to appeal to as many interested parties – acquaintances or otherwise – as possible.
Crucially, no-one is likely to take the plunge in the absence of a precise idea of what is on offer. It is therefore essential to have a comprehensive prospectus that incorporates accounts, projections, a clear timetable for the way forward and other key considerations.
- Step 5: Agree terms
A verbal agreement usually signals the semi-official commencement of a process that is likely to take around two years to complete. The exact timeframe will depend largely on an adviser’s schedule for full retirement.
A written agreement will also be required. It must include a breakdown of what is being sold, the purchase price and period, guarantees and so on. Signing has to take place in the presence of a third party.
- Step 6: Retreat from your business
With the finishing line very much in sight, it is time for an adviser to gently withdraw from the stage. The handover of business and clients alike should be neither too swift nor too drawn-out.
This is where the notion of a seamless non-event really comes into play. There should be no discernible interruption in activity. Above all, clients should barely be aware of what has occurred.
- Step 7: Exit the industry
Exiting is not just a question of lowering the shutters for the last time. It is vital not to leave behind any unpleasant surprises.
The regulator must be informed. So must clients, who might otherwise still feel cast adrift. Finally, there may also be significant merit in making sure all bills – both incoming and outgoing – have been settled!
[1] See, for example, FT Adviser: “Financial advisers lack certainty around succession plans: study”, January 28 2026 – https://www.ftadviser.com/content/4929ac63-a35e-4105-90fa-e68049ed183a.
