Welcome to another instalment of our Staff Spotlight series, where we introduce you to various members of the RetireInvest team to help you get to know them a bit better.
This time, we spoke to one of our original Financial Advisers, Paul Boutle, who has been with us since the very beginning. He started out in the financial services industry as a cashier at TSB “way back” in 1982 (his words, not ours). Now, he works with hundreds of RetireInvest clients to help them achieve their varied financial goals.
Paul describes RetireInvest as “a company that has advisers with a breadth of experience and knowledge in financial services, who are all keen to do the right thing for their clients.”
What Paul enjoys about his role
Paul’s favourite part of being a financial adviser is the clients he meets along the way. “I enjoy finding out what their objectives are and helping them on their journey, whatever their goals may be,” he explains.
“It’s particularly rewarding when I get to read the positive reviews that clients have left for me on review platforms like VouchedFor – it shows me that I’m doing the right things and producing good outcomes for my clients.”
A memorable success story
For Paul, his biggest successes come from helping clients through tough situations and ensuring they have the financial stability to cope with whatever life may throw at them.
“I think my favourite client success story is when I was able to help the children of a client who sadly passed away,” Paul says. “I was able to move his pension into their names, giving them financial security and protecting their futures.”
Paul’s biggest challenge
According to Paul, the biggest challenge he faces is ensuring he can explain his decisions and recommendations at a level that his clients understand and feel comfortable with. “Knowing the right approach for your client and wanting to help them is step one,” he explains. “The more challenging step two is rationalising and justifying those decisions in a way that fits my clients’ financial knowledge and experience. It’s so important that clients understand what they are doing with their money and feel confident that it’s the right approach for them.”
Did you know…
…that Paul nearly didn’t become a financial adviser at all? “After sixth form, I planned to join the army for officer training, but sadly, other things got in the way.” He adds, “With hindsight, it was probably the right thing… I’m far too prepared to challenge instructions if I don’t think they make sense!”
Paul says that if he had a superpower, it would be the gift of foresight – “so I would know what was coming up and would be able to help my clients get the best outcomes” – and he’d describe himself as Mr Adventure, as he’s always wanting to go to new places and try new things. “Although my wife would probably call me Mr Grumpy!” Paul laughs.