Talent crunch lifts base salaries for advisers

The shortage of financial advisers is seeing firms increasingly raise base salaries by as much as $50,000, according to a report by Kaizen Recruitment.

- Riddhima Talwani

The recruitment firm's latest wealth management salary guide found it comes as superannuation funds are expanding their advice teams on the back of increased consumer awareness, regulatory changes, and the shortage of qualified advisers.

Kaizen senior recruitment consultant Riley Thompson said that the increase in salaries ultimately comes back to the demand-supply imbalance as the number of advisers continues to shrink while Australians' need for financial advice remains strong.

"The current talent pool is notably thin especially for advisers with portable books and strong client servicing or paraplanning backgrounds," the report read.

"The talent shortage is driving super funds to expand teams to ensure service levels and meet growing member needs."