Ah, the first 90 days in your financial services role… That thrilling, slightly terrifying window where you’re not quite the new kid anymore – but not quite on the Christmas card list either. It’s like moving into a new house: you want to make it feel like home, but you don’t want to accidentally knock through a load-bearing wall while trying to find the kettle.
In financial services, this period is crucial. Especially when stepping into a Wealth Planner or Financial Planner role – roles that demand technical credibility and emotional intelligence from day one. These early months lay the foundation for how you’re perceived, how much trust you build, and how quickly you become integral to your new team.
So, how do you go from “great hire” to “how did we ever cope without them?”
Let’s break it down…
Before you reinvent the wheel, make sure you can drive the car.
The temptation to impress quickly can be strong, but in wealth management, the greatest respect is often earned by doing the small things well and consistently. Whether it’s compiling reports, preparing for client review meetings, or making sure everything aligns with compliance regulations, don’t underestimate how much “doing the job properly” makes you stand out.
✅ What to do: Learn the processes inside out. Master the systems. Ask how things have been done before you start suggesting how they should be done. Nail the essentials – clean, accurate fact-finds, suitability reports, and client comms that require zero editing.
💡 Pro move: If your onboarding didn’t include shadowing someone for a day, ask for it. You’ll pick up more than you expect, from tone of voice to shortcuts in tech.
Every financial services firm has its own rhythm. Some are slick, corporate and clockwork. Others are casual, founder-led and full of acronyms you’ve never heard before.
🎯 Your job? Observe, adapt, and sync up. Be a human sponge before you’re a change agent. Look out for how people communicate. Are ideas floated in the Monday meeting or quietly handled over coffee? Are teams siloed or integrated? Who actually holds influence, and is it always the person with the title?
💡 Mini challenge: Write down three unspoken rules you’ve picked up by week three. Bonus points if you avoid stepping on any of them.
You don’t need to become everyone’s best mate. You do need to become a trusted, likeable, dependable colleague.
Start with names. Offer help. Ask questions. Especially show appreciation for the often overlooked team members – paraplanners, administrators, compliance support – they’ll likely save your skin before the quarter’s out.
In a people-first business like financial planning, relationship capital is as valuable as technical expertise. The quality of your internal relationships will shape your external impact.
💡 Relationship reminder: Ask your colleagues how they prefer to work. It’s a simple question that shows emotional intelligence, and reduces friction before it starts.
The best way to demonstrate your value early on? Respond to feedback fast, and visibly.
You’ll get pointers from peers, line managers, even the odd client. Some will be framed nicely. Others might sting a little. Either way, treat them all as a gift.
🔍 Your move: Thank the person, ask for clarification if needed, then adjust. Mention it later (“Thanks for that note last week, it helped a lot”) and you’ll show maturity that outpaces your tenure.
💡 Gold dust line: “Would you mind giving me feedback on how I handled that?” This is especially effective when asked of someone more senior. It builds credibility fast.
Pointing out what’s broken isn’t difficult. Suggesting fixes? That’s where you show you’re not just another critic.
🧩 Maybe onboarding feels clunky. Maybe client segmentation is unclear. Before you raise it, pause and think: how could this work better? Even if your solution isn’t the one that gets adopted, the fact that you brought one earns you points.
💡 Bonus approach: Frame it positively – “I noticed this and was wondering if we’ve tried [XYZ] before?” That opens up dialogue instead of criticism.
It’s easy to assume everyone’s working from the same playbook, but expectations can differ wildly across managers, teams and cultures.
📋 The magic phrase: “What does good look like to you in this role, in the first 3 months?” It gets people thinking beyond buzzwords and helps you align on clear outcomes.
💡 Extra edge: Follow up with a written summary of what you’ve agreed. It shows accountability, and helps avoid later misunderstandings.
A small victory early on can set a powerful tone. Perhaps you simplify a process. Maybe you help onboard a tricky client. Or maybe you just write the best client email anyone’s seen that week.
🎯 Look for areas where your fresh eyes spot inefficiencies or missed details, and tactfully suggest improvements.
💡 Quick win example: Standardise something. An email template. A checklist. A way of capturing meeting notes. Simple, scalable, impactful.
This one’s simple. Stay out of it.
🚫 Every office has a grapevine. Financial services is no different. But gossip undermines trust, especially in a business built on discretion and ethics.
💡 What to do instead: Be the person who listens well but never passes judgement. It builds your brand as someone people can trust.
Between compliance deadlines, CPD requirements, client follow-ups and internal meetings, it’s easy to drop balls early on. Don’t be that person.
📅 Use task managers, smart calendars, even old-school to-do lists. Organisation doesn’t just help you keep up, it shows people you’re in control, even when you’re still learning the ropes.
💡 Insider move: Have a weekly 10-minute reset – clear your inbox, update your task list, prepare for Monday. Small habit, huge payoff.
Knowing your role is step one. Understanding how your role supports the broader business? That’s how you elevate yourself.
🧠 Ask questions about the firm’s strategic goals. How do client retention, referral rates, and recurring revenue shape success? Where does your contribution as a Financial Planner or Wealth Planner fit in?
💡 Try this: At your one-month check-in, ask your line manager, “Where do you see the biggest opportunities for us this year?” It signals commercial awareness and ambition.
Remember, you don’t need to be perfect. You do need to be responsive.
The best people in financial services never stop learning. They reflect. They recalibrate. They stay curious, sharp, and resilient.
So breathe. Smile. Be yourself…but your most professional, self-aware self. Soon enough, someone will say:
“Remember before you joined?”
The room will fall silent, followed by nervous laughter and a grateful shake of the head…
That’s when you’ll know: mission accomplished!
Have a chat to our team, to find out about great career opportunities and how they can help you get the one that you really want! Find out more here.
Some other articles that you really might find handy before starting in your new role:
Why use a Wealth Management Recruitment Company for Roles in Financial Services?
No matter if you choose to be a Wealth Manager, or a Financial Planner in financial services, clients’ needs come first. If you are driven by the desire to support your clients with their wealth management needs, by truly getting to know them and listening to really understand their needs, then whichever role type you choose, you will do great things.
A great Financial Planner enables every client’s personal financial decision to feel like a step closer to their dreams. Being very ethical and honest is paramount when dealing with someone else’s money. A great Adviser that puts their client first, front and centre, always being cognisant of their clients’ needs
We expect to see WealthTech play an even greater role in shaping the future of financial advice as technology evolves. Competitive companies that seek to thrive will seamlessly mix the role of AI and WealthTech with the advice given by human advisers to create a dynamic financial advice service for their clients.
