The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) has presented Kristine Pham of Lipman Burgon and Partners with the Gwen Fletcher Memorial Award for semester one of 2023.
Named after the late ‘First Lady of Financial Planning’, the award recognises the highest performing student in the CFP Certification Unit (CFP C) for each semester, with demonstrable dedication to providing high-quality financial advice.
Ms Pham is a financial adviser at Lipman Burgon and Partners, based in Sydney. She joined the firm in 2021 and has seven years experience in financial planning. She completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce at the University of New South Wales, and holds a Diploma of Financial Planning at the Monarch Institute.
She said the CFP Certification Program was a very rewarding experience.
“I’m glad I persisted in completing the CFP program because it definitely required a lot of work and rigour to complete,” Ms Pham said.
“It’s quite easy to become distracted by the noise when it comes to advising on certain topics with clients. The CFP program encourages you to step back and see the bigger picture, which goes a long way when advising in the real world.
“Having programs available to new advisers such as the CFP program will bring financial planning to the next level and help them to live up to their potential. More great advisers means we can live up to truly becoming a profession.”
FAAA chief executive officer Sarah Abood congratulated Ms Pham for the award.
“Kristine is a shining example of what the financial planning profession can achieve for clients when it’s at its best. Gwen was dedicated to the highest levels of professionalism in financial planning, and I have all the confidence in Kristine’s ability to live up to that legacy.
“The CFP Certification Program will continue to be an important part of the FAAA’s work to advancing the financial planning profession and equip planners with the skills and confidence needed to provide the best quality financial advice to Australians when they need it most.”
The CFP designation is the largest and best-recognised financial planning designation globally, with more than 213,000 CFP professionals worldwide, an increase of nearly five per cent from last year. It is a symbol of excellence for financial planners around the world who are actively committed through higher education and accountability to adhering to world-class professional and ethical standards. The CFP designation offers financial planning professionals a way to differentiate themselves in the profession.
For more information on the CFP Certification Program, visit https://faaaoldsite.wpengine.com/financial-planning-education/cfp-certification/