1. What is the public interest? What is the public interest that should be protected by the...

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1. What is the public interest? What is the public interest that should be protected by the financial planning profession?

3. Social contract: What is the social contract between the financial planning profession and the community? What rights and duties do the profession and the community have towards each other?

4. Features of a profession: Is financial planning a profession? What would it take to make it a profession? Who should act, and how, to make it happen?

5. The golden rule: What is the ‘golden rule’? How should it be applied in financial planning?

6. Poker ethics: Is the ethics of doing business different from everyday ethics? Justify your position (See Carr, Reading 2).

7. FPESB core principles: What are the 8 core principles of a financial planner’s Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility? What does a financial planner need to know to ensure the Code is upheld?

8. FPA practice standards: What are FPA’s seven practice standards? What is the role of these standards in shaping professional behaviour? How should the standards be used to guide the activities of financial planners? Give an example to illustrate each standard.

9. Conflict of interest: What is a conflict of interest? Discuss an example from your own experience.

10. Conflict of interest in FP: What are the most common patterns/situations, in financial planning practice, where conflicts of interest are likely to occur? When does a conflict of interest lead to unethical decisions or actions? What are the most effective ways for a financial planner to manage / avoid such conflicts in a professional manner?

11. External pressure: Who/What is responsible for pressuring financial planning professionals to act unethically? How are these pressures manifested?

12. Moral agency: Who is ultimately responsible for the professional decisions and actions of financial planners?

13. Professional association role: What role do financial planning organisations (managers and leaders) play in addressing the ethical issues of the profession?

14. Other institutions’ role: What is the role of other institutions (eg industry regulators, government/state, legislators, the media, NGOs)? What is the role of society / the wider community?

15. Moral responsibility: Who has moral responsibilities in a corporation? How can a corporation be held responsible for its decisions and actions?

16. Shareholder value theory: What are the main arguments in favour of the shareholder value perspective? What objections (if any) can be raised against it? According to shareholder value theory, what are the duties of a manager or director of a financial planning corporation? What justifies these duties?

17. Stakeholder theory: What are the main arguments in favour of the stakeholder perspective? What objections (if any) can be raised against it? According to stakeholder theory, what are the duties of a manager or director of a financial planning corporation? What justifies these duties?

18. The two theories compared: Which of the two perspectives (shareholder value vs stakeholder) aligns better with the duties and responsibilities of a financial planning professional? Justify your position.

19. Sources of unethical behaviour, the fraud triangle: What combination of key factors leads to unethical behaviour? How does the fraud triangle function? Give an example of a source of unethical behaviour that you believe is most relevant in financial planning practice.

20. Systemic responsibility: If you apply the systemic responsibility principle to unethical behaviour in financial planning, what punishment should a financial planner in breach of the professional code receive? Justify your response.

21. Performance incentives: What performance incentives should management promote and apply among their FPs? How should these incentives be justified? How should FP performance be managed to avoid perverse effects and support ethical behaviour?

22. Understanding yourself, understanding others: What are the main features of understanding yourself? What are the main features of understanding others? Why is understanding yourself and understanding others important in maintaining good client 3 relationships? Give two example (one for understanding yourself and one for understanding others) to justify your responses.

23. Peer pressure: In your opinion, what is the role of peer pressure in the individual decision making of FP professionals? What can be done to resist peer pressure when it leads to unethical behaviour?

24. Moral courage: Identify situations (from the readings or your own experience) when moral courage was needed. To what extent was it exercised? If it was not exercised, what were the reasons?

25. Cognitive bias, risk profiling, suitability principle: What cognitive biases can occur in the reasoning of a financial planner? How can these biases be identified and managed? How can risk profiling help develop a sound financial planning strategy for your client? What cognitive biases may be overcome by using risk profiling and the suitability principle in financial advice?

26. Active listening: What is active listening? Refer to a situation when your listening did not prove effective. What prevented you? What could you have done differently?

27. Non-verbal communication: What are the main aspects of non-verbal communication? What is the role of body language in the financial planner – client communication?

28. Persuasion: How important is persuasion in the financial planning/advice profession, and how should it be used? What are the key questions a financial planner should be asking themselves when using persuasion techniques, to ensure ethical communication with the client?

29. Conflict management: What factors can contribute to tensions (and even conflict) between a financial planner and their client? If a financial planner has to deal with an unhappy client, how should they handle the situation? What conflict management approach should they take?

30. Client trust management: What are, in your opinion, the single most important principle that a financial planning professional should apply to effectively build and maintain client trust? Justify your response.

31. Ethical culture management: What is, in your opinion, the most important way in which an ethical culture in financial planning professional services can be built and maintained? Justify your response.

32. Professional integrity: How is professional integrity reflected in the FPESB Code and the FPA Standards Framework? What can you do if your professional integrity as a financial planner is challenged by your client or your manager?