The renewal email nobody was expecting
An adviser's statement of professional standing is due to renew. The accredited body needs their CPD record. The adviser has attended webinars and read articles all year, but the log is a half-finished spreadsheet on their laptop and certificates are scattered through their inbox. They spend an evening reconstructing it.
The firm, meanwhile, has no clear picture of where each adviser stands. The owner finds out about a gap when the adviser mentions it, sometimes very close to the deadline.
Why CPD records are always behind
Recording CPD is a small task that is easy to postpone. Advisers do the learning but not the logging. Each keeps their records differently, and the firm has no reason to look until something is due.
- CPD logged at the end of the year, from memory.
- Evidence in personal inboxes and downloads folders.
- Renewal dates known only to each adviser.
- The firm's own competence reviews tracked separately.
- Paraplanners and administrators with their own qualifications not tracked at all.
Staff changes add to it. When an adviser joins from another firm, their history arrives as a mix of certificates and old logs, if it arrives at all. When someone leaves, their records often leave with them, and the firm has little to show for the training it supported.
What it costs
| Gap | Consequence |
|---|---|
| CPD not logged during the year | Evening spent reconstructing it |
| Evidence missing | Activity hard to show |
| Renewal date missed | Adviser may be unable to advise until resolved |
| Firm unaware of status | Surprises close to deadlines |
An adviser unable to advise, even briefly, affects their clients and the firm's income. Most of the risk comes from records being scattered rather than from learning not being done.
The record we build
- Each staff member has a profile holding qualifications, renewal dates and the requirements your firm sets for their role.
- CPD is logged in a quick form, including from a phone, with a place to attach the certificate or note.
- Emails from common training providers can be forwarded to an address that logs the activity and attaches the evidence, for the adviser to confirm.
- Reminders go out ahead of renewal dates, and when an adviser's logged CPD looks short against the requirement your firm set.
- Your firm's own competence reviews and supervision meetings are scheduled and recorded in the same place.
- A firm-wide view shows each person's status, upcoming renewals and any gaps, and records can be exported when needed.
We do not decide what counts as CPD or whether it is enough. The rules come from your firm and the relevant professional bodies.
After the record is live
Advisers log learning as they do it, in seconds. Renewal time is a matter of exporting a record that already exists. The firm knows each person's status and gets warning of problems months ahead. And competence reviews sit alongside the CPD, which gives a fuller picture.
New joiners are set up with their requirements and dates from day one. Support staff, whose qualifications are often forgotten, are tracked alongside advisers. And the owner can answer the question "is everyone up to date?" from one screen rather than a round of emails.
Supervision gets easier too. When the person overseeing an adviser can see their learning and competence reviews together, the conversation in a one to one can be about development rather than about finding the paperwork.
Does this describe your firm?
- CPD logs are kept by each adviser in their own format.
- Renewal time involves reconstructing the year.
- The firm does not track renewal dates centrally.
- Competence reviews are recorded separately, if at all.
- Support staff qualifications are not tracked.