Tony van Niekerk, COVER
In a rapidly shifting financial services environment, the word “advice” has undergone a quiet revolution. No longer confined to product sales or one-off consultations, advice today is about journeys, about understanding, enabling, and walking alongside clients through every season of life.
I recently had the privilege of sitting down with the leadership team at Consult by Momentum, Johan Minnie (CEO Designate), Yvette de Lange (Head of Operations), and Oswald Kuyler (Head of Short-Term Insurance), to unpack how Consult is building the future of advice by putting people and partnerships first.
From selling to guiding – Johan Minnie put it succinctly: “Advice is a human process, not a once-off event. It’s something that evolves every day.” He believes Consult’s true value lies in enabling advisers to bring meaningful human interaction into the financial journey. As our society becomes more complex, so too do clients’ lives, people now marry later, retire differently, and hold shifting financial goals. What clients really need is someone to guide them, not dictate, but coach, through an increasingly unpredictable landscape.
And as Johan highlighted, clients don’t always know what they need. Referencing behavioural finance, he said, “When people are given too many choices, they often do nothing. That’s why sales don’t always happen online. It’s too complex.” Consult flips the old script by putting conversation first: “Describe your retirement. Is it on a beach? In the bush? With your kids? From there, we build the plan.”
This shift from fear-based selling to hope-led planning represents the evolution of advice at Consult.
Seamlessly integrating operations and digital transformation – Behind this human-centric vision is a robust digital backbone. Yvette de Lange’s passion lies in operational excellence, making it easier for advisers to do what they do best. “Our aim is simple,” she said, “to enable advisers to engage deeply with clients while streamlining everything else.”
The Consult Adviser Workspace, called ConsultConnect, a recent launch, embeds compliance directly into the advice process, reducing administrative load and improving collaboration. “It’s not just about submitting a policy,” Yvette emphasised. “It’s about tracking a client’s full wealth journey. We want advisers and clients to be able to see progress, on a smartphone, visually and interactively.”
This is no longer about digitising paperwork; it’s about enhancing experience. Yvette added, “We must move from digital transformation being a buzzword to becoming part of the client’s lived experience.”
The focus is not only on technology but adoption. Consult works closely with provincial management teams to guide advisers through new tools, ensuring they aren’t left behind in the tech transition. And crucially, as Yvette pointed out, “Success in the past should not be a barrier to future growth. We ask advisers to be brave, to lead the change.”
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Oswald Kuyler brought in a vital component of the discussion; short-term insurance. While often seen as a supplementary product, Oswald reframed it as a powerful gateway to holistic financial conversations.
“Short-term insurance is a door-opener,” he explained. “It allows advisers to start with something tangible and immediate while opening the door to longer-term planning.” But in the Consult environment, short-term is anything but transactional. It’s repositioned as a strategic enabler of asset protection and business sustainability.
What sets Consult apart, Oswald believes, is the five-pillar solution framework that includes differentiated advice experiences, digital advancement, business and data insights, sustainable practices, and advanced fulfilment systems. “We use cutting-edge technology, apps, AI, and integrated CRM systems, to make advice hyper-personalized and seamless,” he said.
Importantly, Consult’s system integrates with insurers using a variety of mechanisms, from APIs to automated emails, to feed real-time data back into the advice process. “We don’t just store that data,” Oswald said. “We use it to enhance the quality of the advice given.”
Simplicity, enablement and growth – Johan returned to the core purpose of Consult, to remove friction, empower advisers, and expand the possibilities of financial advice. “Let computers do what they do best, and let humans do what they do best, engage with other humans,” he said. “Our goal is to give advisers back their time. Time with clients. Time to build real relationships.”
The independence of the Consult platform is another key drawcard. Despite being part of the Momentum Group, Johan reinforced that there is no prescriptive selling: “Advisers are free to build their own strategies, supported by a suite of more than 130 product providers.”
It’s that blend of scale, support, and independence that gives Consult a powerful position in the market. “We’re not resting on the R50 billion in assets under management,” Johan said. “This business is geared for growth. The infrastructure is in place to double that number and make a real impact on South African lives in the process.”
From comfort to opportunity – Johan’s closing message was a rallying cry to advisers across the spectrum, from lone operators and franchise owners to bank-based planners and those considering a new direction. “If you’re comfortable, come speak to us. There’s more opportunity out there than you’ve imagined.”
He urged advisers to think beyond their current models. “Even if you’re doing R500 million in assets, are you tapping into your full client potential? Are you offering short-term, wealth protection, and the full suite of advice? Consult is built to capture that opportunity and do so in a way that’s client-first.”
Consult by Momentum is building something more than a brokerage platform, it’s crafting a reimagined advice ecosystem. Rooted in human engagement, enabled by innovative technology, and backed by scale and independence, it is setting a new standard for what advice in South Africa can, and should be.