Financial Planner

Financial Planner qualifications to look for

Financial Planners advise your company on investments, cash flow and debt management practices. Their job is to stay current with different types of financial transactions and products to make sure they present the most profitable solutions to their clients.

Candidates for this role usually hold an Accounting or Finance degree and a professional licence (e.g. Series 7 and 66). Look for additional certifications like CFP and a solid work history. 

Your top candidate will invest time in professional development to show they are engaged in their field. 

Keep an eye out for candidates who have:

• Strong analytical skills
• The ability to make objective decisions
• Critical and analytical thinking skills
• An inquisitive nature 
• Confidence
  

Top tip: Hire candidates willing to grow by making sure their personal career goals align with your company's mission.

Problem-solving interview questions

• What are the biggest economic risks you feel our industry faces?
• What investments would you recommend to increase our revenues within the next five years?
• How do you ensure a manager understands the risks of an investment?
• What does positive cash flow say about profitability?
• We are planning to expand our business. What are your main responsibilities in this project?
  

Role-specific interview questions

• What does your current client portfolio look like?
• How often do you evaluate the financial results for a company?
• How do you organize and present data for next year's financial forecast? 
• How do you check your work for accuracy? 
• What financial analysis software are you familiar with?
• When reviewing a department’s budget, what metrics do you use?
• You need to design investment models. What is your process?
  

Behavioral interview questions

• Have you ever undervalued potential risks from an investment? What happened and what did you learn from that experience?
• How do you stay current with finance industry developments and regulations? What resources do you follow?
• When has your advice to senior managers resulted in higher revenues?
• What’s the most difficult problem you’ve faced with a client? How did you manage it?
• How would you explain complex financial concepts in simple terms to your non-financial team?