Professional development is the mantra of the 2011 Financial Planning Association (FPA) 2011 Annual National Conference, which begins at the Brisbane Conference and Exhibition Centre today.

The conference, which includes a series of high-profile masterclasses, under the banner “Together we’re raising the bar”, runs until Friday.

Among the highlights are a masterclass by financial services legal specialist, Dr June Smith, on “Implementing the FPA Code of Professional Practice into your business”; while Grant Holley and Tim Nethercote of Holley Nethercote Commercial Lawyers, Matt Fogarty of OnePath, and Alastair White of pHuel will put delegates through their paces in a Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) fitness masterclass.

The 2011 FPA Conference agenda will also tackle both FoFA and the changing superannuation system in high-profile presentations, including a headline appearance by Bill Shorten, Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, and a motivational presentation by Olympic Gold Medallist Kieren Perkins.

The FPA Portfolio Construction Masterclass, presented by PortfolioConstruction Forum, is back by popular demand and will feature a gathering of the heads of the major fund research houses in Australia in a panel session: Lonsec, Mercer, Morningstar, Standard and Poor’s, van Eyk and Zenith.

The conference will also cover a diverse range of other business, practice management and technical issues including an update on the latest financial planning research by FPA chief professional officer, Deen Sanders, and a philanthropy session headed by the Chris Cuffe.

FPA chief executive, Mark Rantall, says this year’s event has been designed to continue to lift FPA members’ professional standards.

“We have themed this year’s conference ‘Together we’re raising the bar’ because we recognise it will take a collective effort to transform the financial planning industry into a universally respected profession,” Rantall says.

“The conference offers FPA members an important opportunity to discuss and debate the many aspects of what it means to be a professional financial planner in the post-GFC era as well as working through practical means to achieve this in a post-FoFA world.”

“It’s certainly been a watershed year for FPA members with FoFA and other reforms challenging how we operate. But 2011 has also been a significant one for the FPA, our members and the Australian public as we transitioned into a purely professional member body.”

The “Implementing the FPA Code of Professional Practice into your business” masterclass aims to tackle professionalism in the age of legislative reform and will focus on the FPA’s new edition of the Code of Professional Practice, which was launched in June 2011.

The code outlines the professional obligations for all members of the FPA in order to provide best practice financial planning advice for clients.

Smith, CEO of the code compliance monitoring committee, will offer members the opportunity to ask questions, discuss scenarios and seek clarification of pertinent issues.

“It is incumbent upon any professional service provider to continually observe issues of ethics and professional behavior,” Smith says.

“Given the current reform environment, this is particularly timely for all engaged in the provision of financial advice in Australia.”