While the students will not be making any recommendations based on this information, Jones said they will be learning how to read the information and what they can learn from it.
“The aspiring planners are learning how to read various client documents and where the information goes in the software,” she said. “They also learn what it all means to the client situation, how to improve the outcome [and] how the advisor might present it.”
The three founders lend their personal background and experience to the program. Brown handles the students and background checks, while Chesney focuses on the general business setup and vetting new advisors, Jones said. Adding that she handles training the students, technology, and does case reviews with students while everyone has a hand in marketing.
To help the students with inputting the data, Planning Zoo provides training for the software most planners use, including eMoney. The firm will begin teaching workers how to use MoneyGuidePro in November. The firm is also working on a deal to teach Right Capital in the future.
The entire program is done virtually with students receiving the work over the internet. This allows advisors and would-be planners to use the firm’s services from anywhere in the country.
The firm is currently considering 50 new candidates for the upcoming semester starting in January and is potentially going to be working with 25 advisors once it is able to train the students in all three software programs, Chesney said.
“The focus is getting more students ready to hire,” she said. “Anything to push that mission, we are open to it.”
Correction: A previous version of the story incorrectly the city where Allegiance Financial Advisors is based.