.png)
Advisers are now navigating a critical stage in the evolution of financial advice delivery. With the second round of FAP regulatory returns underway, the industry is uncovering just how central reporting and governance have become - not just for compliance, but for driving sustainable business performance and growth.
Strong governance has moved beyond being a regulatory expectation - it's now a strategic asset. Advice businesses are facing the real-world demands of delivering transparent, timely, and actionable insights. Those that embed governance at the heart of their operations are better positioned to adapt, scale, and lead.
While meeting the Financial Markets Authority’s (FMA) expectations is a baseline requirement, true governance excellence goes further. It brings structure to a business, makes adviser performance visible, and gives clients confidence in the advice they receive. In short, good governance equals good business.
Embracing governance is really embracing good business practice. A well run business is better placed to help more Kiwi families in a professional way, whilst also making the business itself more valuable and sustainable.
Many advisers found last year’s inaugural regulatory return cycle more challenging than expected. The obligations - covering adviser competencies, business size and complexity, product offerings, and more - proved difficult for businesses without proper systems in place.
Time after time we see instances of advisers being caught out by poor record keeping and the resulting poor reporting. Having this sort of information at your fingertips, in your system should be the bare minimum expectation for business owners, not solely for the FMA, but for themselves as they strive to run a business as a business. Stress the significance of robust governance, stating it should be a natural byproduct of running a good business, not an annual scramble.
Too often, advisers found themselves scrambling to consolidate fragmented records, retroactively justify their advice processes, or even clarify roles and responsibilities within their firm. It was a wake-up call for the sector: compliance reporting cannot be an afterthought.
This is where The Adviser Platform (TAP) has become a central force. Designed to simplify operational complexity, TAP’s platform gives advisers access to real-time reporting tools, automated compliance workflows, and governance dashboards that make FMA-aligned reporting practically seamless.
Our system has been designed to do one job - help advisers run a FAP business across all advice sectors, with the system central to the business’s daily operations, as opposed to a dumping ground for documents.
For TAP members, this past year wasn’t about surviving the reporting cycle - it was about demonstrating leadership. With structured oversight built into daily operations, these advisers were able to report confidently and proactively manage compliance risks without compromising client service.
Far from being a bureaucratic burden, good governance is now a key differentiator for forward-thinking firms. Practices that embed reporting into their operations find it easier to attract professional staff, negotiate better with product providers, and ultimately enhance the value of their business.
Governance shows you care about running your business. It identifies opportunities for improvement, reflection and finding efficiencies. A company with the right systems and support in place can deliver good quality advice to more people more often - rather than getting stuck behind a desk manually trying to juggle things that can and should be done at the click of a button
Moreover, consistent data collection and well-maintained systems create a strategic asset: insights. These insights help advisers fine-tune their service models, spot areas for professional development, and even tailor advice delivery to client needs more effectively.
As we move into the next regulatory cycle, the industry will likely see increased scrutiny - not just on the numbers submitted, but on the systems that generate them. The FMA has made it clear: governance is not just about what you report, but how you arrived at that report.
TAP continues to advocate for advisers to adopt a proactive mindset. Whether through centralised client records, templated workflows, or audit-ready reporting features, TAP is helping transform governance from a reactive task into a business strength.
All businesses are ultimately data businesses. Its the depth and breadth of that data that drives both underlying value and opportunities. Advisers need to constantly ask themselves “is my current set up going to help, or hinder me in reaching my 5 year goal?” for many, the answer is not a confident YES. Advisers work with clients to focus on embracing change, be it new products, services or providers. Its prudent they also take their own advice and consider asking themselves some tough questions about the infrastructure that helps them to support others.
As the industry moves forward, those who embed governance into their DNA - rather than treat it as a compliance checklist—will be the ones who thrive. With TAP by their side, advisers have the tools not just to report, but to lead.
.jpg)
