Sarah Lord, president of the PFS, kicked off the first ever Ambassadors in Action conference alongside Peter Blanc, president of the CII, by highlighting how both the personal finance and insurance profession recognise the importance of attracting and retaining talent to ensure there are more qualified individuals able to raise public trust in protection and the power of financial planning.
Volunteers who lead the Chartered Insurance Institute’s (CII) 56 local institutes (LIs), 26 PFS regional committees and five membership societies met in May at the Ambassadors in Action conference in Birmingham, to reflect on their shared purpose and good practice in supporting members.
Ms Lord opened the event by reflecting on the value of volunteering to develop professionals’ knowledge, give back to the community through initiatives such as My Personal Finance Skills and help others acquire the skills needed to achieve rewarding careers.
Ms Lord said: “We learn so much by coming together, sharing good practice and reflecting on how our synergies across the two distinct professions can benefit society.
“Our hundreds of volunteers, who contribute their time and expertise, are vital to keeping the Personal Finance Society and CII modern, relevant and diverse.
“Volunteers are vital to ensuring that the Personal Finance Society and Chartered Insurance Institute are practitioner-led and I applaud their efforts.”
At the conference, volunteers heard how the CII’s wider membership used the ‘Shaping the future together’ consultation to call for a common strategy, clear purpose and objectives for LIs, regional committees and societies.
Also at the conference, Jonathan Clark, interim CEO of the CII, thanked volunteers for leaning on their reserves last year rather than taking additional grant payments.
This action helped the professional body to achieve a consolidated operating surplus of £3.3m in 2021, compared with a £4m operating deficit in 2020.
