Factors Influencing the Motivation to Pursue a Career in Financial Planning*

This study presents a conceptual model to examine the factors influencing career choice in financial planning. Informed by career choice theory, the study uses questionnaires and interviews of financial advisers and financial planning students in Australia to find that social learning through life experiences, along with the enjoyment of working with numbers and aspiration to help others are important factors influencing the choice to pursue a career in financial planning. In addition, respondents scored highest on the agreeableness scale of the ‘Big Five’ personality test.

Contrary to popular media reports, results show that people choose financial planning as a career primarily because they want to help people. Findings also highlight the uniqueness of financial planning as a career that fulfils both agentic and communal goals which allows advisers to use their interest in numbers to help people. The study makes a valuable practical contribution to the development of financial planning by providing insights that may prove useful in recruiting the next generation of financial advisers. Our findings also have important implications for educators, regulators, and the profession more broadly. Further, it makes a theoretical contribution by providing a conceptual framework to aid in understanding the factors relevant to career choice, particularly in an emerging discipline such as financial planning where information on career choice is limited.