February, which is solely focussed on Consumer Duty reporting. This is taking place in May and costs just £99+VAT to attend. Please do not hesitate to get in touch to discuss the support we can offer in this area. We have already helped hundreds of firms with their preparations, and are highly experienced in doing so. Interestingly the more we talk to firms about the implementation the more questions get raised on responsibilities especially around business culture – an area the FCA is hugely keen to highlight but one that is not easily measurable. The “ingredients” as they see them are: Purpose of the company: What is the company trying to achieve? staying in business and making money is a given, it would be great to see more firms aligning their purpose to delivering the 4 outcomes under the Duty. Leadership: It’s about the leaders of the business setting the tone from the top, the SMFs in a business will very soon have to step up to the plate when they start to complete their Duty report, and they will need help and support from all their staff. Governance: Making sure the firm’s systems and controls are up to date, effective and continually being tested. People Management: About getting the staff involved, testing things, having them speak up and speak out freely, to challenge the ways things are done, and strive to create a culture of continuous improvement. CPD Academy and Test Zone As ever, we are continually adding to and updating our CPD Academy to ensure it delivers value for you. We have also added a number of new tests to our Test Zone over the past year, which now offers 17 tests and is forming a greater part of regulatory support for our firms. If you haven’t visited either in a while it may be worth doing so or registering for a first time. It is an easy way to learn on what is happening in Mortgage and Protection world, as well as being a convenient hub to record your CPD. Furthermore, our events are proving as popular as ever both face to face and online. We continue to focus on specific areas of demand, such as customer vulnerability. Click here to see what’s coming up near you and online as we enter Q2. As mentioned earlier we have had a strong start to the year from a protection perspective, and are consistently looking to add new products and services that will enhance the proposition you can offer to clients. We will add new Providers to our panel this year, so keep your eyes peeled for those opportunities and of course for the messages on existing Provider product and underwriting improvements. Providers are still looking to innovate within their own product areas, and we are seeing them broaden their own portfolios. Whilst we do see some merger activity in the Life arena (we should know more about the proposed AVIVA/AIG integration by June), others are looking for niches and product innovation to support awareness in the protection space. We are also in “claim stats” season for 2023, and don’t forget to collate them to show to clients. Provider Claims records have increased considerably in the past few years and the industry is doing much to dispel myths that Providers don’t pay out. So, I hope you have had a vibrant first 3 months of the year and thank you for your continued support of Paradigm Protect. If there is anything we can do to help, please get in touch. 06 SPRING PROTECT NEWSLETTER
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