As the financial planning profession grows and evolves, some firm owners are increasingly recognizing the value of bringing in interns. A well-structured internship program not only provides meaningful experience for aspiring planners but also helps firm owners build a pipeline of future talent, delegate meaningful work to save themselves time and become more efficient, and contribute to the profession's long-term strength. 

However, an effective internship doesn’t happen by accident—it requires intentional planning, clear structure, and a commitment to development.

Here’s how financial planning firm owners can establish an internship program that benefits both the firm and the intern.

1. Define the Purpose and Goals

Before recruiting your first intern, clarify what you want the internship to accomplish. Are you trying to develop future full-time hires? Lighten the workload on administrative or client prep tasks? Introduce students to the profession? Defining your goals will help shape the structure, responsibilities, and outcomes of the internship.

For example, if the goal is long-term talent development, you might focus on exposing interns to all aspects of the firm’s operations. If it’s short-term support, you might design the internship around specific deliverables, such as data entry for a wave of new clients or marketing support for an upcoming event, to achieve particular near-term business objectives.

2. Design a Structured, Educational Experience

An effective internship provides real-world learning. Interns should be exposed to a variety of tasks, not just solely busywork. Strive to offer an opportunity that includes:

• Participation in client meetings 
• Assisting in the preparation of financial planning deliverables
• Using planning software and CRM tools
• Exposure to the compliance and administrative processes
• Participate in marketing or content development

Ideally, interns should leave with a clear understanding of how a financial planning firm operates and what a career in the industry could look like.

Here are 10 specific projects or activities an intern at a financial planning firm can do to alleviate potential bottlenecks:

• Prepare Client Meeting Materials: Help assemble financial plans, performance reports, and agenda packets for upcoming client meetings using firm templates and CRM data.
• Assist with Financial Plan Data Entry: Enter client data into financial planning software (e.g., eMoney, MoneyGuidePro, RightCapital), including income, expenses, assets, and liabilities.
• Research Investment or Planning Topics: Conduct basic research on topics like Social Security strategies, 529 plans, Roth conversions, or ESG investing, then summarize findings for the team.
• Create or Update Financial Planning Templates: Review and enhance planning checklists, onboarding forms, or workflow templates to improve internal efficiency and client consistency.
• CRM Database Cleanup: Review and update client contact records, tag client profiles, and ensure data accuracy in the firm’s CRM (e.g., Redtail, Wealthbox).
• Observe and Take Notes During Client Meetings: (With client permission) Sit in on virtual or in-person meetings to learn how advisors engage with clients and handle planning conversations. Review, confirm and/or clean up data if using AI notetaker.
• Draft Client Communications: Help write newsletters, blog posts, or educational emails on personal finance topics relevant to the firm’s clients.
• Assist with Compliance Tasks: Support basic compliance tasks like organizing documents for audits, logging communication records, or reviewing client file completeness.
• Benchmark Firm Metrics: Analyze internal firm metrics such as client retention, AUM by segment, or service model efficiency—and provide a short report or presentation.
• Social Media and Marketing Support: Create social media posts, schedule content using platforms like Hootsuite, or help update the firm’s website and digital presence.

3. Assign a Dedicated Mentor or Supervisor

Interns need guidance—and they need to feel like someone is invested in their success. Assign a dedicated staff member (or yourself, if you’re solo) to serve as the intern’s mentor or supervisor. This person should meet regularly (weekly) with the intern to answer questions, provide feedback, and help them reflect on their experience.

The mentor should also be the intern’s go-to for any challenges or uncertainties, helping the intern feel supported and part of the team. Even if you aren't the primary supervisor, be sure to make yourself available at least once a week for at least 30 minutes to debrief with your intern. 

4. Compensate Fairly and Respect Time

Interns should be paid fairly for their work. Not only is this ethical, but it also reflects the professional nature of your firm and helps attract more serious, qualified candidates. Unpaid internships can exclude capable students who can't afford to work for free, limiting diversity and opportunity. It can also be illegal, especially if they are not receiving course credit. Here is a Department of Labor fact sheet to help, but essentially if the firm benefits in any way from the intern’s work, they should be classified as employees and paid at least minimum wage. 

Be respectful of interns’ time as well. Stick to agreed-upon schedules and avoid last-minute changes. Remember, this may be their first exposure to professional work culture—make it a positive one.

5. Evaluate and Improve the Program

At the end of the internship, conduct an exit interview. Ask the intern what they learned, what they liked, and what could have been better. Reflect on your own experience, too—what went well, and what could be improved?

Document the lessons learned and refine your program for next time. Internships often improve significantly after the first cycle as processes get fine-tuned and expectations become clearer.

Conclusion

A well-designed internship is a win-win: interns gain meaningful experience and insight into the financial planning profession, while firm owners build relationships with emerging talent and create more capacity for their team. By investing the time to create structure, mentorship, and a focus on development, financial planning firm owners can establish internship programs that add real value to their firms and to the profession.

Contact us at info@newplannerrecruiting.com if you would like us to help with your next financial planner hire.  

 

Caleb and the New Planner Recruiting Team*

*AI assisted