UncommonCents

Hosted by Dean Holmes & Craig Kouimanis

Business EntrepreneurshipInterviews guests

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Episodes

121

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

EN-AU

About the show

Craig Kouimanis - Head of Paragem Dean Holmes - TWN Partners The role of licensees, coaching, mentoring, and business advice is changing. Participate in a fortnightly discussion about the financial planning industry's challenges and opportunities. This is a great opportunity to hear from industry leaders who are providing services to Financial Planning firms.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

November 13, 2026Episode 12222 min

UncommonCents Episode 122: The First 90 days in a New Role

Dean and newly appointed chief growth officer Craig Kouimanis share a playbook for advisers and staff starting somewhere new, and the owners hiring them. Think two ears, one mouth: listen first, learn how the business makes money, and hold your “at my last firm” ideas until you’ve earned trust. Owners, have the desk and laptop ready 10 days early, then run a 30-60-90 plan: remove uncertainty, shift from teaching to coaching, then hand over ownership. The golden rule? Slow, not fast. Next up: special guest stars join Dean while Craig’s on leave.

October 29, 2026Episode 12126 min

UncommonCents Episode 121: Value Creation vs Value Capture

If you could make a client’s $100,000 tax bill disappear, what would that be worth? Dean Holmes and Craig Kouimanis unpack value creation versus value capture for financial advice business owners and advisers. Learn why “everyone” isn’t a target market, how to make invisible value visible, why every client must be profitable, why you need a fee menu, and why fees belong in conversation, not the SOA. The rule: forget high or low; ask whether the fee is fair.

October 23, 2026Episode 12029 min

UncommonCents Episode 120: How Advice Practices Should be Optimising Xplan for 2027 and beyond

Why don’t more advisers love Xplan, often the most expensive tool in the office? And what can your practice fix before Christmas to get more out of it? Host Dean Holmes is joined by Xplan specialist Courtney Youngblutt from Iress for a practical chat aimed at advice practices running Xplan. They cover cleaning up your data, setting up template access levels, reviewing who’s paying for which modules, and using Scheduler to automate workflows and run exception reports that find the “needles in the haystack”. Courtney also previews the Microsoft Teams integration, an AI meeting assist tool and the new Roadmap Hub. The big rule: AI is only as good as the data underneath it.

October 15, 2026Episode 11920 min

UncommonCents Episode 119: Adviser 2.0 Skills Uni Won’t Teach You

You’ve got the degree and passed the exam. So why is financial planning still an apprenticeship? In this solo episode, Dean Holmes answers quick-fire questions for PY candidates and admin staff moving into advice. He covers whether to start in admin, why remote work can slow your learning, how to talk about fees with confidence, and why you should practice your pitch before you use it with clients. He also explains his 80/20 rule: fit your current work into 80% of your time so you have room to learn.

October 1, 2026Episode 11833 min

UncommonCents Episode 118: Acquisitions, Succession & Buyouts: The Current Funding Landscape for Advice Firms

Thinking about buying a book, funding an acquisition, planning for succession, or bringing in new shareholders? Dean Holmes sits down with lending specialist Connor Brennan to explore how lenders assess advice businesses, structure deals, and fund growth. From valuations and gearing to equity buy-ins and bank expectations, this episode offers practical insights for advice firm owners at every stage.

September 30, 2026Episode 11731 min

UncommonCents Episode 117: How to use the Russell Value of an Adviser Research in your Practice

How do you show clients the true value of financial advice? Dean Holmes sits down with Neil Rogan from Russell Investments to explore the latest Value of Advice research, why reassurance is the number one reason clients seek advice, and how advisers can better communicate their impact. 💡 Russell’s A-B-C-E-T framework estimates advice adds 5.5% of value each year , helping advisers quantify their value, strengthen fee conversations, and build deeper clientrelationships.

September 29, 2026Episode 11625 min

UncommonCents Episode 116: Netwealth Innovation Summit Debrief

Dean Holmes shares his key takeaways from the Netwealth Accelerate Innovation Summit, covering the growing impact of AI in financial advice, emerging technologies, business growth strategies, and lessons from leading entrepreneurs. Discover what's shaping the future of advice and how advisers can stay ahead in a rapidly changing landscape.

September 3, 2026Episode 11535 min

UncommonCents Episode 115: Cybersecurity - A Business Opportunity, Not Just Risk Management

What does a cybercriminal see when they look at your business? Fraser Jack returns to UncommonCents to reveal the biggest cyber risks facing advice firms today, how AI is changing the game, and the practical steps businesses can take to stay ahead. 🎧 A must-listen for advisers, business owners, and leaders navigating the AI era.

August 20, 2026Episode 11429 min

UncommonCents Episode 114: Value for Money in a Consumer-Duty World

Dean Holmes and Craig Kouimanis explore why confidence, better decisions, and peace of mind may be the most valuable things advisers deliver. Plus, the one question every adviser should ask their clients: "What was the most valuable thing from today's meeting?"

August 6, 2026Episode 11346 min

UncommonCents Episode 113: Insurance Bonds or Investment Bond: What do we call them?

Old is new again . 👴➡️💰 Jarrad Gray from Key Invest joins us to trace these products from 1800s "friendly societies" to today's tax-savvy investment tool — and bust the myths advisers still believe: ❌ "They're expensive" → fees as low as 0.3% ❌ "Your money's locked for 10 years" → fully liquid, always ❌ "Limited investment options" → menus now 40+ deep Plus: the 125% contribution trick, tax-free switching, and how new super & trust tax rules are bringing bonds roaring back for estate planning. Time to stop skipping page 42 of the DFP3 textbook. 📖🔥