Advice Standards Manager in Leeds

The Advice Framework and Governance Manager role is a pivotal role within the Business Quality function, responsible for architecting and maintaining the frameworks that ensure operational adherence to regulatory standards. The position focuses on strengthening first-line oversight, ensuring that day-to-day activity aligns with FCA expectations, internal policies, and the Consumer Duty. By acting as a technical bridge between operations and the Second Line (Risk & Compliance), this role ensures that controls are not only compliant but commercially proportionate and safe. You will drive regulatory excellence by maintaining robust advice frameworks, aligning quality assessment methodologies, and embedding a culture of continuous improvement. The role ensures that the firm’s oversight is granular, consistent, and capable of identifying systemic risks before they impact consumer outcomes. This is a hybrid role, 3 days a week in the Leeds office.

The benefits:

• Salary - Up to £80,000
• Bonus scheme - on target bonus - 15%
• Pension scheme - contribute up to 5% of your salary and Openwork will match you and put in an extra 5%
• Critical illness cover
• Death in service - 4x salary
• 27 days holiday + bank holidays, with the opportunity to buy up to an additional 10 days
• A range of other flexible benefits to include private medical insurance, dental insurance and much more.

Key Accountabilities

• Advice Standards Ownership & Governance
• Advice process clarity: Ensure the advice journey remains fit for purpose and proportionate.
• Own and maintain the Advice Standards: Keep the practical 1LoD artefacts (Policies, Advice Framework, assessment checklists, “good vs poor” examples, evidence rules, reviewer prompts) up to date under documented change control.
• Review cycles: Operate annual reviews and controlled.
• Calibration & Application Consistency
• Calibration framework: Lead a monthly calibration forum (including blind sampling) to minimise variance between reviewers and set clear rulings where judgement is required.
• Issue-to-fix loop: Convert QA/thematic findings into concise reviewer guidance and updates to the Advice Control Set.
• Change translation: Turn change (policy, systems, proposition) into first line controls, prompts and short guidance, ready for BAU use.
• Readiness & embedding: Complete pre-go live readiness checks and confirm “controls live and working” post deployment.
• Horizon & proportion: Monitor emerging changes alongside 2LoD and ensure first line responses remain proportionate and commercially sensible.
• Capability & Competence Enablement
• Training requirements & effectiveness: Specify training needs arising from calibration and QA insight; T&C/Trainer delivers training while this role checks effectiveness via targeted post training spot checks.
• Evidencing understanding: Use casework or short assessments to evidence improved application where training has been delivered.
• Strategic MI & Board Level Reporting
• Control adoption & variance MI: Build concise 1LoD MI on adoption rates, calibration variance and remediation velocity.
• Executive inputs: Provide clear, actionable inputs for governance packs (e.g., themes, risks, mitigations, and impact on outcomes), escalating material issues with recommended actions.

What will you need to succeed?

• Minimum Level 4 Diploma in Financial Planning (or equivalent) – Required.
• Significant experience in compliance, business quality, or oversight within a wealth management or financial advice environment.
• Technical SME: Deep understanding of the advice process, business standards, and supervisory frameworks.
• Regulatory Depth: Mastery of the FCA framework (COBS, MCOBs, ICOBS, SUP, SYSC, TC, PRIN, and Consumer Duty).
• Analytical Prowess: Ability to transform complex data into strategic MI for senior stakeholder consumption.
• Communication: Exceptional written and verbal skills, with the ability to influence at all levels.
• Problem Solving: A calm, objective approach to identifying risks and recommending pragmatic solutions.
• Organisational Planning: Strong ability to manage multiple projects and review cycles simultaneously.

Why us?

2Plan Wealth Management was launched in July 2007 and we have continuously built on our strengths to become one of the leading wealth management firms in the UK. Our head office administration, technology and regulatory teams provide exceptional support to all our financial advisers around the country, enabling them to deliver the best possible service to clients. The client experience is paramount and all our advisers pride themselves on providing up-to-date advice and building long lasting, professional client relationships. We want all our clients to view 2plan wealth management as their trusted go-to adviser for their financial matters.