Unpacking 45 Years of Financial Planning Evolution with Bob Veres

In this Swift Chat conversation, Marie Swift speaks with renowned industry commentator and author Bob Veres to explore his sweeping new book, "A Behind the Scenes History of Financial Planning and the Profession: My 45-Year Journey as an Insider."

Veres shares how he went from knowing almost nothing about financial planning in the early 1980s to chronicling the evolution of the profession from sales-driven roots to a true fiduciary calling, including vivid stories from the early IAFP days, the rise of NAPFA, and the ongoing tug-of-war between product pushers and client-centric planners. The conversation traces the profession's major inflection points, the collapse of limited partnerships, the tech wreck, the Great Recession, and the COVID pandemic, and how each crisis exposed weaknesses, tested advisor–client relationships, and ultimately elevated the value of real planning over pure asset management.

Veres also offers candid views on regulatory capture, the SEC's treatment of fee-only advisors, and why higher, self-imposed standards remain the true engine of professionalism and public trust in advice. He reveals the "secret formula" he has observed among the most enduringly successful advisors: a willingness to think, read, and continuously adapt early to new realities, from fee-only models to modern planning standards and emerging technologies, rather than waiting until change becomes a threat. Whether you are a seasoned practitioner or newer to financial planning, this conversation delivers a rich mix of history, hard truths, and hopeful direction for anyone who cares about where the profession has been and where it needs to go next.

Get the book and learn more about Bob Veres at www.BobVeres.com.