IFP Conference, Day 3

Well, it was a great night last night, with excellent food and wine provided by Celtic Manor and great entertainment from the Chepstow Male Voice Choir, Siren (wacky electronic violins) and the Casino Company. When we were designing the conference we put networking as a key benefit of the conference and it was gratifying to note that networking was still in full swing in the bar at 3 am after the Gala Dinner.

In spite of that, Day 3 was well attended and the starting panel session on the future of financial service with Mark Tibergien (USA), Julie Littlechild (Canada), Paul Resnik (Australia) and Brett Davison (UK) was probably one of the most valuable sessions of the conference, although I have to admit that it asked more questions than it provided answers.

The final two sessions that I chaired were both aimed at planners dealing with firms and businesses. Those stalwarts from Technical Connection, John Woolley and Tony Wickenden, sought to tell us about seven financial planning strategies for smaller private business in these challenging economic environments, a great topic which attracted a large audience. It was therefore sad that their lack of preparation and timing meant that they only covered half of their strategies in any detail. This was not only sad, but also disrespectful to the large number of delegates who had evidently made a huge effort after a long, late night to be there to find out what these exceptionally knowledgeable speakers had to say.

However, the next session, although with a smaller audience, was as important if not more so. John Tucker, a director of the International Centre for Families in Business talked about the emotional and psychological side of dealing with family businesses and although a number of delegates afterwards indicated that they would not want to go down that route, there is no doubt that this presents a fascinating opportunity for planners and certainly for Planning for Life; with our move towards a focus on entrepreneurial business it certainly hit the button.

Tim Harford, the “undercover economist”, provided the final keynote closing session. Although Tim was not as inspirational as Michelle Mone last year, he was entertaining and thought provoking and I can now add his knowledge of the economics of happiness to my armoury when dealing with clients on the subject of freedom and happiness.

From there it was the long journey back home, but it was a relief to see that Air South West have found a new rubber band for their plane. Service is back to normal, Air Arran have been stood down and crew member Kathy is back in the aisle.