The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards has begun the search for its next chief executive, engaging executive recruitment firm Spencer Stuart to lead the process.
The move comes as Kevin Keller, who has led the organization for nearly twenty years starting in 2007, prepares to retire in April 2026.
The board’s transition plan, initiated earlier this year, includes the formation of a CEO search committee led by 2025 chair-elect Terri Kallsen. The committee’s early start is designed to ensure a smooth leadership handoff and to allow for broad engagement across the financial planning community.
“The Board of Directors is approaching this transition with a clear plan, and we are excited to partner with Spencer Stuart in this important search,” Liz Miller, board chair, said in a statement Thursday.
Kallsen emphasized the qualities the board is seeking in its next leader. “We’re looking for an innovative leader who will not only drive our strategic initiatives forward but also embody the core values of our organization – integrity, commitment to the profession and a focus on the public interest,” she said.
Keller’s tenure has been marked by significant growth and increased visibility for the CFP Board. During his leadership, the number of CFP professionals nearly doubled to more than one hundred three thousand, and a record ten thousand four hundred candidates sat for the CFP exam in 2024.
The organization also reported a surge in pro bono activities, with advisors volunteering three hundred eighty-nine thousand four hundred thirty-five hours last year, up eighteen percent from the previous year.
Keller also played a key role in relocating the board’s headquarters from Denver to Washington, DC, and in establishing the Center for Financial Planning, which aims to diversify the profession’s ranks.
“We at CFP Board envision a future where every American has access to competent and ethical financial planning. It's that mission and that vision that motivates me and the 120-plus staff here at CFP Board on an ongoing basis,” Keller, who was among the contenders for CEO of the Year at the 2024 InvestmentNews Awards, told InvestmentNews in an interview last year. “We live in Washington. I could be representing any number of different special interests, but this is one that's special to me.”
The board’s search for a new CEO will include outreach to leaders in both the association and financial planning sectors, with the goal of attracting a diverse and highly qualified candidate pool. The process is expected to unfold over the coming months, as the board seeks a successor to build on the momentum established during Keller’s tenure.
Whoever ends up following in his footsteps, it seems Keller will step away having no regrets. When his retirement was first announced in February, Keller said: “It has been the privilege of my career to serve the CFP professional community as CFP Board’s CEO and work alongside our dedicated Board of Directors, thousands of volunteers, stakeholders and staff to expand access to competent, ethical financial planning.”
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