British Standard for our Operational Framework

Introduction

The concept of boosst was designed with the benefit of blank-page thinking. This meant that we could make every decision with a focus on; “What will generate the best outcome for clients?”

We realised very early in that process that we were building something special – however only external validation of that idea could turn it in to a fact. We decided that the key Accreditations and Certifications that we wanted boosst to achieve to prove this were the CISI’s Accredited Financial Planning FirmTM as well as three individual British & International Standards for our Planners, Business Processes and Compliance Framework.

Whilst Accredited status provides consumer confidence, the complimentary British Standards give us great confidence internally – as our personnel and business processes have been externally stress tested to rigorous criteria. In our opinion, this combination of Accreditations and Certifications represent the ‘Gold Standard’ in UK Financial Planning today.

BS 8577

“Framework for the provision of financial advice and planning services”

This is the key British Standard which specifies best practice for embedding an effective operational management system in to a world-beating Financial Planning business.

The core strength this British Standard gives our business enables us to spend more time with clients and less time worrying about our operational processes.

Building boosst from a blank page gave us the perfect opportunity to construct a business which is flexible yet robust, whilst remaining client focused. BS 8577 gave us the best structure to approach this opportunity.

Achieving BS 8577 required us to build a framework of internal processes and workflows which keep our team focused on great client outcomes from the very beginning of a clients journey with us. All of our processes are integrated directly into our financial planning software.

The scope of the standard spans our entire business, enabling our team to perform at their highest operational level and achieve their true potential.

Achieving BS 8577 demands:

• Objectives and policies for all key aspects of our business, from IT Infrastructure to Recruitment
• Processes to recruit, train and develop talented individuals
• Evidencing that our business is robust, from data security to holiday cover between team members
• Precise compliance processes to run an efficient and compliant business
• Fluidity to enable our team to work super efficiently embracing the latest technology
• Processes to support outsourced consultants, to work as efficiently as in-house team members
• A rigid structure for document storage and record keeping

BS 8577 is annually re-assessed to ensure that boosst consistently achieves the British Standard of excellence.

“Achieving excellence is no easy feat! I don’t mean academic excellence… I mean total and complete all-round professional excellence in everything that you do. 

In a sector saturated by academic and technical achievements any firm or individual that strives for and achieves one (never mind 3!) British and International Standards deserves the upmost respect and recognition from their peers and their clients. boosst as a team have pushed the boundaries in every element of their business, professional and personal development.  

It has been our pleasure to work alongside you all in order to support your exciting and rewarding journey! You should all be very, very proud of yourselves!”

Michelle Hoskin, Founder and Director Standards International