As headlines question whether St. James’s Place (SJP) is facing a succession crisis, the financial planning profession finds itself at a crossroads. Behind the numbers — the £847 million adviser debt pile, the slowdown in practice sales, and the growing exodus of partners — lies a deeper warning about what happens when a profession loses sight of purpose.
1. When succession is built on debt, not design
SJP’s internal “succession marketplace” was meant to guarantee continuity — younger advisers buying out older ones to keep client relationships within the fold. But when each purchase is funded through high-interest loans, and valuations assume indefinite growth, the model depends on tomorrow’s cash flow to pay for yesterday’s promises.
That’s not succession planning — that’s succession speculation.
Holistic Wealth Planners can learn a vital lesson here: build your practice for legacy, not leverage. True succession is designed into the business from day one — through shared values, mentorship, and transparent structures — not bolted on at the end with a bank loan.
2. When money exceeds ministry, meaning collapses
In the GAME Plan framework, we teach that money (Means) must serve ministry (Goals and Actions), not the other way around. SJP’s model inverted this — money became the measure of success, and “trusted relationships” became a slogan to justify the flow of assets.
The result is an “exhaustive cycle”: advisers chasing AUM targets, client trust eroding, and the firm’s moral capital running dry.
Holistic Wealth Planners reverse that pattern. We plan life before we plan money. We ask: What is your ministry? What means do you need to fulfil it? From that foundation, succession becomes a spiritual continuation of purpose — not an exit strategy, but a handover of meaning.
3. When trust is engineered from above, it eventually breaks
SJP’s current turbulence reveals another truth: trust cannot be manufactured; it must be structurally earned.
No amount of brand marketing or internal compliance can replace the integrity that grows when advisers are free from product bias and client relationships are based on transparency and co-creation.
The Academy’s model of non-intermediating planning demonstrates how structural trust is built:
- No hidden commissions.
- No asset-based bias.
- No dependency on corporate debt or shareholder return.
Only purpose, professionalism, and people helping people.
4. When the old model falters, a new archetype emerges
As SJP advisers question their futures, a new archetype of planner is emerging — the Holistic Wealth Planner.
These are professionals who:
- Operate autonomously, without product intermediation.
- Empower clients through education and co-planning.
- Measure wealth across all capitals — financial, human, emotional, and spiritual.
- Use technology (AI, Notion, HapNav, Kokoro) to create transparent, values-aligned plans.
In short, they are building the profession after the profession — an Aquarian-age model of empowerment and stewardship.
5. The invitation: build your legacy, your way
If the SJP story teaches us anything, it’s that succession is not about selling your business — it’s about transferring your purpose.
The Academy of Life Planning exists to help you do exactly that.
Through our GAME Plan framework, peer community, and Inner Circle mentorship, we support you to design a business that can outlast you — one that sustains clients, empowers successors, and multiplies impact.
The old order is crumbling under its own weight. The next generation of planners will not inherit its debt — they will inherit its lessons.
Now is the time to build something that endures.
✳️ Call to Action
If you’re an adviser reconsidering your place in the profession, join our next Ask Us Anything session or upgrade to Academy Mentorship.
Discover how to evolve from a product-led adviser into a purpose-led Holistic Wealth Planner — and design your legacy with integrity, not leverage.
🌟 The Elite Planner Accelerator Programme
Break free from the corporate treadmill and design a business that changes lives—including your own. In just 12 weeks, the Elite Planner Accelerator Programme equips you to launch your own purpose-led, product-free planning practice using the Academy’s revolutionary GAME Plan framework. You’ll receive six fast-track coaching sessions, a year of expert mentorship, and your own fully branded tech stack—including eCommerce site, CRM, and access to HapNav planning tools. Join AoLP’s global tribe of ethical professionals leading the shift from extraction to empowerment. No FCA regulation. No products to sell. Just transparent, values-based planning that serves real people. Your first client can pay for the programme—your purpose will pay for itself.
📆 Start today | 💬 Book a discovery call: steve.conley@aolp.co.uk | 🌐 www.aolp.info
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