Meet the team: Ian Gregory

Ian Gregory has worked in financial services for over 20 years. He began his career as an independent financial adviser and later joined Aviva as one of our Equity Release Business Development Managers. In this article, Ian explains how he helps advisers.

It’s important to me to be an integral part of an adviser’s equity release business. I learn and understand the needs of each individual adviser and their clients so that I can tailor my support for them. I’ve specialised in equity release for 11 years so I’m able to pass on my expertise of the market and how it’s changed to help advisers with their client conversations.

Adapting to adviser needs

Throughout the pandemic, I’ve adapted to working remotely and changed my working hours so that I can continue to be there for advisers. This meant using different tools to connect with advisers such as virtual meetings and LinkedIn. Being able to still be there for advisers, in a secure and safe way, has improved my adviser relationships and helped to deliver positive outcomes for them.

The work I do varies day-to-day. One day I could be making calls to new and existing advisers doing introductions and fact-finds, conducting CPD training and helping them generate and grow their equity release business. The next I’m offering product webinars, joining their team meetings and working out how I can better support their needs.

It takes Aviva

Being a key part of Aviva’s distribution team and advisers’ businesses has given me opportunities to help develop our own proposition.  Having close relationships internally and externally, and being able to get useful feedback, has led to changes that give the advisers and clients more flexible outcomes.