The Power 20
Kevin Keller
What
CEO, CFP Board
Why
Kevin Keller has been a force of change at the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. since joining the organization in 2007, when it moved its headquarters from Denver to Washington, in part to have a more influential voice in public-policy decisions affecting financial advice and the professionals who deliver it.
Today, Mr. Keller, 51, is on the front lines in the fight to revamp adviser oversight (and prevent the move to a self-regulatory organization), as well as to establish a uniform fiduciary standard. The board’s continuing efforts to promote the CFP mark, with the help of a $40 million advertising campaign, got a boost this month when the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors said it will require the CFP designation as a condition of membership.
But the CFP Board may have a few of its own internal battles to fight next year. The November resignation of board chairman Alan Goldfarb because of an ethics investigation sparked questions about the transparency of the board’s oversight process. More broadly, the CFP Board’s frequent and high-minded pronouncements about fiduciary duty will have to be balanced in 2013 with the reality that many of its commission-based CFPs still operate under a traditional sales model.—Dan Jamieson
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