Paraplanner CV example

A good paraplanner knows how to cut through waffle and keep things relevant. Your CV should be no different.

This guide walks you through everything you need to write a CV which shows more than product knowledge – it will reflect your analytical strengths and your vital ability to translate complexity into plain English.

Think of your CV like a financial suitability report – if it’s not structured well, no one’s reading past page one. A good structure helps highlight your technical expertise and experience at a glance, so recruiters can quickly see that you tick every regulatory box. Don’t let avoidable mistakes overshadow your suitability for the role: keep in mind the following tips.

Here’s the layout to follow:

• Name and contact details – Start with your name and personal details – make it simple for recruiters to reach you. Including a photo is a personal choice.
• Profile – Use this section to summarise your experience, strengths, and what makes you a standout candidate.
• Core skills – Outline your primary competencies to give recruiters a snapshot of your strengths.
• Work experience – Walk through your professional experience, beginning with your latest position and moving backwards.
• Education – Outline your education and certifications, focusing on those most relevant to the role.
• Additional info – This section is optional, but it’s a good place for hobbies and interests that complement your CV.
  

To keep things professional, use bold headings to separate sections and bullet points to break up dense text. Choose a clean, business-appropriate font and don’t let your CV run past two pages length. Keep alignment consistent, leave enough space between sections, and don’t overcomplicate the layout – clarity, as always, is king. Your CV’s format is the first thing anyone notices – before they even read a word – so make sure it’s clean.

Your CV profile is your value statement – a short, sharp summary that shows you understand the financial landscape and can deliver technical support with precision and care. It should reflect both your regulatory understanding and your ability to support advisers in delivering first-class client advice.

This section should clearly convey your role in the advice process, your experience across pensions, investments, or protection products, and your confidence in managing reports.

To craft a profile that stands out, include:

• Where you worked – IFA firms, wealth management companies, investment consultancies
• Your top qualifications – Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning, RO exams, CII or LIBF routes
• Essential skills – Cashflow modelling, suitability reporting, research and analysis, compliance
• Types of clients or products handled – High-net-worth, SMEs, pensions, protection, ISAs
• Tech and systems knowledge – FE Analytics, Voyant, Intelligent Office, or Xplan
  

This section provides a quick verbal snapshot of your technical strengths. List your core CV skills with bullet points.

Mention anything a recruiter will be looking for when they open up an application: tangible, hard skills which you’ll be expected to use day-to-day. It can be a good idea to look at the job advert for an idea of the terms and skills they’re hoping to see.

This is where you show how you’ve helped advisers do their job better, faster, and more compliantly. Go through your work experience in reverse chronological order, beginning with your most recent. For each job, start with a short overview of the firm and your position, followed by bullet points outlining your core responsibilities and achievements. 

Be specific: mention the types of products you handled, the tools or software used, and your contribution to adviser output or compliance outcomes. If you’ve progressed from admin or client services into paraplanning, include those earlier roles – they show your grounding in financial processes and attention to detail.

• Outline – Briefly describe the company, your role, and the advisory setup – how many advisers you supported, and whether it was an in-house or outsourced team.
• Responsibilities – Use action words like “prepared” and “researched.” For example: “prepared full suitability reports across pensions and investment portfolios” or “researched and analysed fund performance using FE Analytics.” Include tools, reporting duties, and regulatory frameworks where relevant.
• Achievements – Quantify your impact where you can – time saved for advisers, error reduction, positive compliance reviews, or promotion from admin roles. Even small wins matter if they show initiative or accuracy.

Your education section highlights your academic background and professional qualifications – especially anything related to finance, economics, or regulation. Begin with your most recent or relevant qualifications, listed in reverse order.You might include degrees in finance or economics, as well as industry certifications like the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning or individual RO units. Short courses in compliance, data protection, or financial software tools are worth including too. If you’re still working towards full diploma status, mention your progress.