Awards designed to recognise and reward

Having said that, it was still nice to be presented with an award, and benefit from the future marketing opportunities that followed. It seems however that nowadays the majority of awards are either voted for by IFA's or selected by an independent panel of judges, usually made up from well known industry specialists and in some cases financial journalists which just goes to add more gravitas and meaning to actually being nominated and actually receiving the award.

This year's 7th Professional Adviser Awards, to be held at the Park Lane Hilton in London on 10 February, will be no different. The awards themselves are designed to recognise and reward the companies that are providing the best products, services and support to IFAs. Over the years this event has become somewhat of a flagship event within the IFA fraternity as unlike many other awards, they are voted for entirely by IFAs. The ceremony is one that always attracts high numbers of submissions in addition to guests on the evening itself.

The shortlisted categories range from Best UK Equity Growth Group to Best New Fund Launch. From Best Fund Manager over one year to Best Fund Management Group. From Best Paraplanner to Best Investment Adviser and, I am glad to say, there is also an award for Best Structured Product Provider which we have been lucky to win in the previous two years and are delighted to have been shortlisted again this year. There are 30 awards in total including the prestigious IFA personality of the year, which is voted for on the evening itself.

Voting has now closed for the awards so hopefully you have managed to vote and recognise the companies that have stood out over the last year and either impressed you with a particularly ingenious product or simply delivered a consistently high level of service. Naturally I hope that Investec Structured Products feature in either or both of these categories but, either way, I'll be there on the night so I very much hope to see you there and share a glass or two of something fizzy!