The ever-expanding role of the modern adviser

It is fair to say, the role of the financial adviser has grown significantly over the last decade or so, particularly since the implementation of the RDR. However, new IFA DNA research¹, our annual study of the opportunities and challenges facing advice firms today, suggests the position continues to evolve through the steady accumulation of new responsibilities.

Technical skills are still very much a core element of the role but the most successful advisers are expanding beyond this expertise into coaching, behavioural support, family engagement and longevity planning. Today’s adviser is, for example, having to contend with clients who arrive having run things through an AI tool. As such, practitioners are increasingly having to reinforce the value of advice. They’re also communicating between annual reviews and with families across generations.

The firm conclusion from this year’s IFA DNA study is that, with more and more emphasis being placed on softer skills, advice is becoming increasingly ‘human’ rather than transactional. Indeed, as one participant put it, the role is as much therapy as financial advice – it’s therapy with financial in brackets.

The expanding role of the modern financial adviser is perhaps best summarised by the ten layers shown below, which may well reflect many of the different directions your conversations with clients are taking today.

Ten more layers to the job

• The Confidence Builder - "Everybody who leaves our office should walk away feeling better than when they came in."
• The Behavioural Coach - “We’re trying to measure the impact we have on a client’s life."
• The Life-Stage Planner - “We’re finally designing advice around life stages rather than products."
• The Health Realist - “Health is probably the one thing everybody takes for granted until it goes wrong."
• The Care Navigator - “It’s as much therapy as financial advice — therapy, with financial in brackets."
• The Longevity Planner - “We teach longevity planning to financial advisers. Ask people to imagine their future self. Add life to years (not just years to life)."
• The Capacity Multiplier - “Do we look after more clients, or do we do more for existing clients?"
• The Profession Builder - “We’ve enrolled somebody into our adviser academy who’s in their 60s."
• The AI Interpreter - “Clients arrive informed but still want someone to confirm they’re doing the right thing."
• The Accountability Partner - “It’s doing the little things over and over for the next 20 years because if you didn’t get nudged and had no one to hold you accountable…"

The importance of the softer aspects of the role is reflected in what survey respondents believe will be the most important skills for financial planners in three years’ time. The most commonly-mentioned attributes were interpersonal and communications skills, cited by 51% of participants. Technical expertise, while still scoring highly, is now seen as less of a priority with 35% naming this skill as an important attribute (down from 51% in 2024). Interestingly, supporting clients’ financial wellbeing now ranks equally with technical expertise.

The evolving role of today’s adviser – where human connection features much more prominently than perhaps it once did – will likely lead to more job satisfaction for advice practitioners. This is evidenced by the fact that advisers say creating and deepening long-term client relationships (54%) is what they enjoy most about the role. Educating and empowering clients around their finances (49%) also features prominently. 

Traditionally, the job of the adviser was seen as building financial plans, optimising tax efficiency for clients, and recommending a suitable range of products and investments. Today, it is quite clear that the role has expanded significantly, with practitioners acting as coaches or counsellors in areas such as financial wellbeing, behaviour and confidence. They are also helping clients navigate family relationships and in areas such as later-life planning and health uncertainty.

There are lots of other great insights on the ever-changing landscape for advice businesses in the IFA DNA 2026 report. It examines areas such as plans for the future, the demand for advice, and adviser recruitment. What’s more, this year’s research programme features a special IFA DNA study into AI adoption within the advice sector – a huge talking point within the industry at present as firms increasingly look to incorporate this new technology within their businesses.

View the IFA DNA suite of reports

Source:

¹ Fidelity Adviser Solutions commissioned NextWealth to produce this study based on a representative sample of financial advisers from research conducted in May and June 2026: A digital survey of 200 UK financial advisers and in-depth qualitative interviews with 10 financial advisers. The participants were chosen to represent a full range of age and experience from firms large and small.