There’s been a lot happening in the west this year and it’s not just getting ready for the FAAA Congress in Perth this November.
FAAA WA State Community Chair Naomi Mee-Martino CFP® and the WA State Committee have been busy with projects that have seen the FAAA community looking westward.
Firstly, the WA State Committee has been working on a local mentoring program. “It’s really kinetic what they’re building here – it’s literally energy in motion – it’s about connecting mentors with mentees,” Naomi says.
This is the second year of the program. “It’s mentors passing on their wisdom and mentees soaking it up,” she says.
“Essentially, it’s an opportunity for the mentees to supercharge their careers and get the right insights and then the right learnings.”
Between 24 and 30 people have participated in the program each year; with some mentors returning for a second stint.
“There’s a cohort of extremely experienced professionals and practitioners who genuinely want to give back to the profession that they hold so dear, just as this next generation of financial planning aspirants is coming through,” she says.
“It used to be the case that it was the big wealth management institutions, the big banks that were the incubation grounds for that next generation of advice coming through.
“It’s not the case anymore, so we determined that there was a chasm there between the new aspirants coming through and the experience that was already in the room and it was one way of connecting them both.”
Inspiring to Grow
WA has also been active in supporting the local Inspire community, with the Inspire GROW program now in its third year.
The GROW Series is geared towards female financial planning aspirants, promoting collaboration in an inclusive space.
Over her 18 years in financial planning, working up from a client services administration position, Naomi says she was often the only woman in the room in a male dominated environment.
“I became a business owner six years ago. I didn’t have the GROW initiative to lean into, but if I had, I would have jumped at the chance,” Naomi said.
“Bastion Financial Group (of which I am owner and managing director) is honoured and thrilled to be the series sponsor of the 2025 GROW Series. It’s a wonderful way to support the next generation of advisers, and to celebrate diversity in financial planning.
“If there are any other business owners out there who would like to get involved and support this amazing initiative, please get in touch with your local FAAA Community committee to voice your support.
“This is an initiative that is kinetically in the Australian financial planning profession’s interest. It’s truly energy in motion.”
The GROW initiative was seeded in WA by Katie McDonald CFP and Cara Graham CFP, together with Julie Matheson CFP.
“It’s not about ticking boxes in learnings, it’s about the peer network so there’s a cohort this year that also attended last year and there are also new attendees,” Naomi said.
“It was lovely to see really young new faces out there as well as a mix of females and males.”
Each session attracts around 50 attendees.
Led by the WA Inspire Committee and delivered between July to October 2025, the series was dedicated to empowering women in finance, fostering leadership, and driving meaningful industry change.
While these sessions focussed on women in finance, they were not exclusive to women; with all genders welcome to participate.
- Session 1: Communicating with confidence
- Session 2: Reach your potential
- Session 3: Opportunity to grow your personal brand and network
- Session 4: Women running successful financial planning businesses
Connecting with graduates early
Naomi is a member of the School of Accounting, Economics and Financial (SAEF) Financial Planning Advisory Panel at Curtin University, which offers the Financial Planning degree in WA, and therefore has a line of sight into the ‘grass-roots’ level of the WA Financial Planning profession.
Over the past year, student enrolments have been increasing, showing a strong upward trend.
“The WA FAAA Community is actively involved in supporting this next generation of advice, including supporting them and connecting them with the right life-learning experiences in the professional sphere,” Naomi says.
The WA FAAA State Community is focused on supporting as many students as possible to attend the 2025 FAAA Congress this year, up from one or two students in previous years.
Find out more about FAAA communities here.
