Michelle Wilson-Stimson on how she helps advisers to balance work and health, while living by the same mantra

Michelle Wilson-Stimson is Founder and CEO of eParaplan Connect, providing “out of this world support for advisers, planners, and brokers”.

As well as providing a complete client-servicing solution to UK and international advisers, Michelle is also very aware of the crucial balance between health and work. Read this in-depth interview for a revealing view on how outsourcing to firms like eParaplan can help you focus on what you love.

To set the scene, can you tell us a bit about your company, your role, and your WHY?

eParaplan Connect provide a white-labelled, outsourced, fully bespoke, client servicing subscription solution to financial advisers and planners. We completely fulfil the client servicing journey, freeing up adviser’s time to gain new clients or enjoy free time.

In fact, our servicing solution allows each adviser to service up to 528 clients a year on their own with just our support.

I like to think of myself as a bit of a “space commander”, supporting and leading a team that keeps financial advisers focused on what they love – helping their clients – leaving us to manage all administrative, paraplanning and operational tasks.

My “WHY” is simple: I believe advisers should be free to build their business and enjoy their lives without drowning in administration and paperwork or worrying about compliance or whether the FCA will come knocking.

I don’t want advisers to suffer like I did when I was advising.

We streamline everything so they can focus on what matters most – clients, growth, and a bit of free time for themselves!

In a nutshell, I facilitate freedom for busy financial advisers.

Can you explain how partnering with external experts like your firm helps financial planners reduce operational risks and improve profitability? What are the key areas where outsourcing makes the biggest impact?

Partnering with external experts like eParaplan is all about reducing the operational risks that can really weigh down financial planners.

We handle the critical but time-consuming tasks of admin, paraplanning, and managing client servicing, so advisers don’t have to worry about capacity issues, unexpected staff absences, or maintaining quality control.

In the past, we’ve taken on advisers who have had their whole team leave in a short space of time leaving them in a real pickle.

Outsourcing to experts like eParaplan Connect removes these type of operational headaches.

With our Client Connect™ service, we manage the entire client bank – ensuring each client is serviced according to the client agreement, which removes the risk of losing ongoing fees due to non-servicing.

By outsourcing these responsibilities, financial planners reduce their exposure to risks associated with running an in-house team, including staff turnover, parental leave, or sickness cover, and the constant need for training.

With salaries being high for admin and paraplanners, if you select a partner that has straightforward fixed fees (like our client servicing subscription), you have complete transparency on how much each client costs you from the beginning to ensure you charge accordingly.

Imagine you’re a financial adviser and your paraplanner leaves, resulting in you having to find a new one on a much larger salary. There is then the added headache of having to re-assess your internal business costs. This could result in you having to make amendments to your charging structure as advisers and planners need to stay profitable to continue to service those clients.

One of the biggest impacts outsourcing makes is on profitability.

When you no longer need to pay for office space, salaries, recruitment, benefits or National Insurance, those savings positively impact your bottom line. Our streamlined processes ensure the work is done efficiently and accurately, meaning fewer mistakes and less wasted time.

In fact, making full use of our client servicing subscription, we’ve calculated that each adviser could see and service 528 clients a year.

The right external expert can eliminate operational, business and human resource risk completely and provide an efficient and effective business that has huge scalable potential and thus, larger exit valuations.

Many business owners struggle with focusing on core strengths while managing day-to-day operations. How does your service enable financial planners to concentrate on what they do best, and how does this translate into long-term growth for their business?

Our service allows financial planners to focus entirely on their core strength – building client relationships and providing good advice – by taking the administrative, management and operational work off their plates.

Whether it’s booking client reviews, handling paperwork, or implementing follow-up tasks, we manage everything that doesn’t require the adviser’s personal attention.

Additionally, with no need to manage a team of administrators or paraplanners, financial planners can focus on what they really enjoy, meeting their clients or spending time on hobbies and with family.

In short, by outsourcing the operational side of the business, financial planners free up time that can be better spent on growing their client base, refining their strategy, and focusing on long-term business goals.

The result is simple: more client satisfaction, more referrals, and, ultimately, more growth. We’ve built proven processes that ensure everything runs efficiently, so advisers don’t need to get bogged down in the nitty-gritty.

By letting go of the operational distractions, advisers can scale their business without the growing pains, which translates into sustainable, long-term success.

After all, the more time they spend focusing on clients, the better the client experience – and we all know that happy clients are the best form of marketing!

Health and wealth are often seen as competing priorities. How does your business help financial planners find the balance between professional success and personal wellbeing, especially in such a demanding industry?

Health and wealth shouldn’t be competing; they should complement each other.

Our role is to give advisers back their time. By offloading their admin, servicing and operational tasks, they can reclaim their evenings and weekends, spend more time with family, or even hit the gym!

One of my main questions for advisers is “what personal goals do you have or wish to achieve?”

It’s not only about business.

In a profession as demanding as financial services, it’s all too easy to let work take over, but we make sure that advisers can achieve that balance between professional success and personal wellbeing.

By taking care of the administrative and operational side, we give them the space to avoid burnout, maintain their health, and actually enjoy life.

As a CEO and owner of a rapidly growing firm yourself, how do you personally balance the pressure of scaling your business with maintaining your own health and wellbeing? What strategies have you found most effective?

It’s no easy feat, but I’ve found that delegation and trust are key.

That said, having clear processes, easy to follow and documented in an operating manual, for all aspects for the business is also paramount in being able to put your trust into others. This way, you can refer to the operating manual of your business to ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goals and in the same way.

When we onboard a new adviser firm, we work to build an operating manual for that firm. This results in a consistent approach that’s reliable and reduces stress and supports wellbeing.

I personally tend to focus on what I’m best at: leading and strategising. And I rely on my team to manage the day-to-day operations.

Much like we encourage our clients to outsource their admin and client servicing tasks, I’ve built eParaplan to function efficiently without needing my constant attention.

I’ve also set some personal non-negotiables. Regular walks in the countryside, time for reading and listening to podcasts, and making time for family are key things that help me stay grounded.

And, crucially, I’ve learned to switch off in the evenings – no emails after a certain hour!

Having a capable and trusted team means I don’t need to carry the business on my own anymore, which helps me stay focused on the big picture while maintaining my health and wellbeing.

By finding the right outsourced partner, this is the kind of healthy balance financial planners can also enjoy.

How do you see the relationship between health and wealth evolving in the financial services sector, especially as more professionals face burnout? What advice could you give?

This is definitely shifting in the financial services profession and it could be that the Covid years launched the shift.

More professionals are realising that you can’t build sustainable success at the expense of your health. Burnout has become a serious issue, and people are starting to understand that it’s not a badge of honour.

It’s also about knowing who you are and how you work best. For example, while I have good friends who are up at 5 am, I’m not an early morning person. As I’m often still awake past 12 am, a 5 am rise for me would be detrimental.

Outsourcing is a key way to find that balance.

By letting firms like ours take care of the administrative and operational tasks – whether it’s admin, client servicing, or paraplanning – advisers can focus on what truly drives their business while also making time for themselves.

My advice? Don’t wait until burnout hits to make changes.

Be proactive. Outsource where you can, set boundaries, and make time for both your business and your wellbeing. You don’t have to do it all yourself!

Your firm is aiming to dominate the outsourced support space for financial planners. What challenges do you foresee in achieving that goal, and how do you maintain your own work-life balance while striving for such a high level of success?

One of the biggest challenges is ensuring we maintain the high level of service and quality that advisers rightly expect, which includes having the right capacity in our team.

As a bespoke-solution provider, we must adapt to each of our client’s business requirements. This gives rise to certain additional challenges. However, once onboard, most of our clients allow us to run and control everything proactively and following our own processes – simply because they are tried and tested and typically best practice.

As we grow, it’s crucial that our white-labelled solutions continue to feel like a seamless extension of our clients’ businesses, offering excellent customer service to the end customer.

Looking ahead, technology and AI will play a key role in how we evolve our offering.

We’re already exploring ways to leverage tech to automate more routine tasks, improve efficiency, and provide even faster, more accurate service.

By incorporating AI into our workflows, we can further streamline processes, reduce human error, and offer more proactive solutions for our clients, as well as being able to service more financial planners with the same team.

So, financial planners can expect an even more seamless, tech-driven service, but one with excellent and personal customer service, that allows them to focus on their clients and less on the operational side of things.

As for maintaining my own “work-life circuit” (as I call it), I practice what we preach. I apply the same principles I offer to our clients: delegate, put trust in your team (be that internal or external), and focus on what truly drives your business.

I’ve learned that setting clear priorities, both personally and professionally, is key to staying grounded while scaling the business.

It’s always a juggling act, but it’s rewarding when you see the positive impact on your clients and your own wellbeing. You don’t need to do it all yourself – outsourcing where needed helps everyone thrive.

Lastly, what advice would you give to financial planners who are hesitant to outsource certain functions of their business, especially if they’re worried about losing control or the personal touch with their clients?

I completely understand why financial planners might hesitate when it comes to outsourcing. There’s a fear of losing control or the personal touch that sets you apart from the competition.

But outsourcing doesn’t mean handing over the reins; it actually gives you more control over how you spend your time and resources.

When we take care of the operational tasks, you’re free to focus on what really matters – your clients.

Since our service is fully white labelled, your clients won’t even realise the support is outsourced. From their perspective, everything remains seamless and professional.

In fact, by outsourcing, you’ll likely find you have more time to build those personal relationships with clients, because we’re handling the time-consuming admin in the background.

And if something doesn’t quite fit with your outsourcer, you’ve got the flexibility to change providers without the complexities of managing in-house staff. You’re not locked in, so outsourcing gives you more freedom, more focus, and more time to spend on growing your business.

Get in touch

To find out more about how Michelle and her team at eParaplan could help you to grow your business and free up your time, email hello@eparaplan.co.uk or call 01733 699071.

Keen to discuss how outsourcing could affect the value of your business, chat to Melo – email hello@melo.co.uk, or call 0113 4656111.