Author Annie Lillico Lewis

Expert Reviewer Paul Kearney, CPA, CFP®

Kearney Group is thrilled to announce the firm has been named 2015 Practice of the Year by the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA).

The award was announced at the closing ceremonies for the AFA’s national adviser conference in Cairns, on Tuesday night, before a crowd of 700 advisers and practices from across Australia.

“We’re very humbled,” says Kearney Group CEO, Paul Kearney. “The AFA Awards process is extremely rigorous and it has been an incredible experience. We’ve learned so much about our clients, our advisers and the way we do business.”

Most competitive and sought after awards in the profession.

The AFA Awards are some of the most competitive and sought after in the profession.

The multistage process involves an initial application from which a shortlist of finalists is selected.

From there, a detailed, anonymous client survey and practice benchmarking is conducted. The next stage involves a phone interview, a formal site visit and a case study.

Lastly, a full day Finalist Showcase was held in early September. Shortlisted practices gathered in Sydney to make the final bid for the award before an expert judging panel.

Kearney Group’s “amazing advice experience”.

Kearney Group delivers an “amazing advice experience” says the AFA.

“The business is driven by the desire to lead industry change through developing innovative technology, and strives to build first-class relationships with clients that empower client decision-making.”

Paul Kearney agrees and acknowledges much of the firm’s success is due to its long standing focus on innovation and continuous reinvestment into the business.

“We don’t want to stay the same,” explains Paul. “If we want to lead this profession, we need to have an unwavering focus on investment and innovation.”

“Ours is a relationship service – the numbers only matter because the people behind them do. So our job is to find ways to build a better client experience and deliver advice that truly improves people’s lives. We have to constantly examine what we do, why we’re doing it and how we can do it better,” says Paul. “Awards like these only strengthen this resolve.”

Key differentiators for Award winner.

Innovation and continuous improvement is no easy task though. Paul notes there are a number of exciting projects afoot at Kearney Group.

One such project he mentions is the recent launch of Oi Software. Oi is the firm’s newest venture and first foray into commercialising the web tools and business systems the Group has been developing for internal and client use in recent years.

“In a practice like ours, awards are truly a team effort,” says Paul. “Great advice requires everyone rowing in the same direction across our five divisions. Without collaboration, without big ideas and great technology and systems, it just wouldn’t be possible.”

Beyond the Group’s technology, the firm’s client survey results, its collaborative multi-disciplinary advice model, and its focus on adviser education were also cited as key differentiators and driving forces behind the firm’s Practice of the Year win.

And what keeps Kearney Group and its team of advisers motivated? Paul says it’s pretty simple. “We believe providing great advice empowers people to make a lifetime of great financial decisions… That’s enough to get me out of bed each morning.”

For more information:

For more information on this Release, please contact:

Annie Lillico Lewis
Brand Manager, Kearney Group
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