The Secret Weapon High-Performing Australian Advice Firms Use to Onboard Clients Faster

Recent research from Dimensional’s 2025 Global Advisor Study, as reported by Money Management, reveals that Australian advice firms are excelling at client onboarding, bringing new clients through the process in an average of 9.9 weeks compared to 10.3 weeks globally.

While that might seem like a marginal difference, those few weeks represent something much more significant – the ability to generate revenue faster, provide superior client experiences, and ultimately build more successful practices. However, what the research doesn’t reveal is that many advisers are still struggling with one critical bottleneck that’s preventing them from achieving even more impressive onboarding times.

The SoA Bottleneck That’s Holding Advisers Back

Many advisers are increasingly expressing concern about their Statement of Advice (SoA) turnaround times. The industry is experiencing 6-7 week delays, with some practices facing significant backlogs of SoAs waiting to be completed and presented to clients. This bottleneck has become the silent killer of efficient client onboarding.

Consider the scenario: an adviser has successfully converted a prospect (which Australian firms do exceptionally well, according to the research), gathered all client information, and is ready to present recommendations. However, they then encounter a significant obstacle – the SoA preparation phase extends for weeks, sometimes months, while the new client waits in limbo.

This delay doesn’t just impact revenue generation timelines – it fundamentally undermines the client experience that advisers work so hard to create. As recent Morningstar research highlighted, failing to complete tasks within a week is a major source of client frustration with their financial adviser.

Why Australian Firms Excel at Client Selection but Struggle with Execution

The Dimensional research reveals that high-performing Australian advice firms are “incredibly focused” on their client demographic. They’ve mastered the art of being selective about who they work with, refusing to take on clients who don’t suit their firm. This disciplined approach to client selection is serving them well.

Catherine Williams from Dimensional notes that Australian firms “have got incredibly purposeful of who they work with, they don’t take on clients who aren’t a good fit, and they ask their clients for referrals.” This focus on quality over quantity is exactly right.

But there’s a disconnect: while firms have become more selective and strategic about client acquisition, many haven’t applied the same level of strategic thinking to their advice preparation processes. Many practices are still relying on traditional, in-house approaches to SoA preparation that simply can’t keep pace with improved client conversion rates.

The Hidden Cost of In-House SoA Preparation

When advisers attempt to handle all SoA preparation in-house, they often encounter several challenges:

Resource Constraints: Most Australian advice firms employ an average of 10 full-time staff members, compared to 15 globally. This smaller team structure means every team member is wearing multiple hats, and SoA preparation often becomes a lower priority task that gets pushed aside for more urgent client servicing activities.

Inconsistent Quality: Without dedicated processes and templates, SoA quality can vary significantly depending on who’s preparing the document and their current workload. This inconsistency can impact client confidence and create compliance risks.

Adviser Distraction: When advisers spend significant time on document preparation, they’re not focusing on what they do best – building relationships, providing advice, and growing their practice. The opportunity cost is significant.

Feast or Famine Cycles: In-house teams often struggle with workload management. When new clients come on board in clusters (which often happens with referral-driven practices), the SoA preparation process becomes overwhelmed, creating substantial delays.

The Process-Driven Paraplanning Solution

Working with a process-driven paraplanning team addresses each of these challenges systematically. Here’s how:

Dedicated Expertise: Outsourced paraplanners specialise in SoA preparation. They’re not juggling client phone calls, compliance tasks, or administrative duties. Their sole focus is on delivering high-quality advice documents efficiently.

Scalable Resources: Unlike in-house teams, outsourced paraplanning services can scale up or down based on current workload. Whether a practice has one SoA or ten, the turnaround time remains consistent.

Established Processes: Professional paraplanning teams have refined their processes over thousands of SoAs. They have templates, checklists, and quality assurance procedures that ensure consistent output every time.

Technology Integration: Many outsourced paraplanning teams invest heavily in technology and systems that in-house teams might not have access to. This includes advanced planning software, document automation tools, and collaboration platforms that streamline the advice preparation process.

The Competitive Advantage of Faster Turnaround

When practices can deliver SoAs within 2-3 weeks instead of 6-7 weeks, several benefits emerge:

Revenue Acceleration: Firms can start charging fees and generating revenue from new clients much faster. Over the course of a year, this can represent a significant boost to cash flow.

Enhanced Client Experience: Clients feel valued and cared for when they receive prompt service. This positive first impression sets the tone for the entire ongoing relationship.

Increased Capacity: When SoA preparation isn’t a bottleneck, practices can take on more new clients without overwhelming their team. This directly supports practice growth.

Competitive Differentiation: In a market where many advisers are struggling with long turnaround times, the ability to deliver prompt, quality advice becomes a significant point of difference.

Quality Meets Speed: The Best of Both Worlds

Some advisers worry that faster turnaround times might compromise quality. This concern is understandable but unfounded when working with experienced, process-driven paraplanning teams.

Professional paraplanners understand that quality and speed aren’t mutually exclusive – they’re the result of excellent processes, clear communication, and specialised expertise. A well-structured paraplanning team will have multiple quality checkpoints throughout their process, ensuring that speed doesn’t come at the expense of accuracy or compliance.

Making the Strategic Shift

The research shows that high-performing Australian advice firms are already ahead of their global peers in many areas. They’re selective about clients, focused on profitability, and achieving faster onboarding times. However, there’s still room for improvement, particularly in the SoA preparation phase.

Consider this scenario: if a practice is currently experiencing 6-7 week SoA turnaround times, and could reduce that to 2-3 weeks by working with an outsourced paraplanning team, they would be onboarding clients in approximately 6-7 weeks total – significantly better than the current Australian average of 9.9 weeks.

The Bottom Line

Australian advice firms are already demonstrating strength in client conversion and onboarding compared to their global peers. However, many are still being held back by inefficient SoA preparation processes that create unnecessary delays and frustration.

By partnering with a process-driven paraplanning team, practices can eliminate this bottleneck while maintaining high quality standards. The result is faster revenue generation, happier clients, and a more scalable business model that supports sustainable growth.

The question isn’t whether firms can afford to outsource their paraplanning – it’s whether they can afford not to. In an increasingly competitive market, the practices that can deliver quality advice quickly will be the ones that thrive.