Re-licensed FSSC hunts for IFA ambassadors

Bureaucracy and a failure to 'get' business limits giving

I agree that having advisers go into schools would be a worthwhile enterprise and it's one that I would be willing to undertake personally. We do our share of pro bono work and I am receptive to things like this. I do however have two problems. The first is the habit the FSA has of ever demanding more from us in terms of form-filling, pointless reporting, wholesale changes to practices that would work perfectly well with minor adjustments and ever larger fees, FOS and FSCS contributions. The more is demanded, the more cash Canary Wharf's answer to the Sheriff of Nottingham unilaterally extracts from our purse, the less there is left to give and the less one feels inclined to give. The other problem is that schools do not appear to be 'get' what business is all about. My daughter's school - which I myself attended in the 1970s - asked last year if any local businesses would take work experience trainees. We said we would and moreover we would try and provide a 'complete' work experience. We would interview candidates, put them through all the tests we normally use and give the successful candidate proper training and meaningful work for which, at the end of the placement, they would be paid the National Minimum Wage. They would also be given a copy of an accurate reference they could show to any potential employer. Now I am biased I guess but actually I think this was a pretty fair and useful offer for any kid wanting to get into financial services or any other proper job for that matter; interview experience, meaningful work and a reference at the end of it, all of it paid because I don't believe in exploiting anyone by having them work for nothing. (A lesson the FSA might want to take note of as sometimes it seems to think we should!) I later discovered that our offer was mentioned once in an assembly with no supporting details as to the benefits and consequently nobody applied. My daughter for her part has just completed two weeks work experience in a primary school. Apparently teachers can relate to kids who want to be teachers themselves and encourage the uptake of such work-experience places. Equally apparently however they do not seem to 'get' business. Were I to go into schools to talk to potential future financial services employees I would say: Concentrate 100% on English and Maths. Learn mental arithmetic. Learn to spell. Learn to write grammatical letters. Learn your alphabet so you can file in order. Learn to punctuate. (A lot of kids we interview seem to think punctuation is either something you get in your bike tyre or a form of traditional Chinese medicine.) Most of all learn to be cheerful so you can come to work with a smile on your face and do it regularly; don't be an absentee.

Posted by: Neil F Liversidge

Why should we?

Why should we encourage young people to join a dieing industry. As the FSA has killed off the IFA business and passed it on to the banks, let the FSSC get the banks to do their dirty work. Although many school kids and parents are wiery of large banks and other big financial institutions.

Posted by: Leo