Amy Brotka of West Seneca, N.Y., worked in banking investment for 20 years, then her job disappeared in 2012 because the bank was dissolved.
This gave her a chance to step back and rethink her career. She decided she wanted to be a certified financial planner and open her own RIA. She is on the way to achieving that goal, in part, because of the Milton Stern Scholars Fund Scholarship that she was awarded through the Center for Financial Planning.
In fact, the CCertified Financial Planner Board of Standard is hoping that there are many more just like Brotka ready to jump at the chance to be an advisor.
At 49, Brotka is an example of the kinds of people—women, minorities, young people—that the CFP Board and its affiliate, the Center for Financial Planning, say they are trying to draw into the financial profession.
“I don’t know why more women are not financial advisors—they are wired correctly to do the job and it fits with their values,” says Brotka.
Brotka, who has a personal consulting and financial planning firm, ValuVize, and hopes to sit for the CFP exam in November to earn her CFP designation, plans to mentor young women and encourage them to become financial advisors and CFPs.
“I’d like to see the CFP designation become as well known as the CPA designation,” Brotka says.
Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, executive director of the Center for Financial Planning, agrees with that assessment. “If a person wants an accountant, he or she looks for a CPA. If you want a financial advisor, you should look for a CFP,” she says.
The center and CFP Board are not only trying to raise the awareness of the CFP mark among the public; they also have launched a number of programs and administer two scholarships to bring in more women, young people and minorities into the profession.
According to a 2016 Cerulli Associates study, 41 percent of advisors are 55 or older, while only 26 percent are younger than 45 years old. The percentage of women CFPs has held steady at about 23 percent for years, and the percentage of people of color is even lower than that. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 6 percent of advisors are African American and only 7 percent are Latino.