08/08/24
When Will Chiles joined CTT in 2007, the role he stepped into wasn’t the one he’d applied for. With a background in Financial Services that included working with a long-term care insurance company, a life company, and experience auditing financial advice, he was expecting a similar position with CTT. But fate had other plans for Will.
“Things were very different back in 2006,” he laughs. “A whole gang of us joined at a similar time – a number of us are still here! We were quite a small team then – only 20 of us – and everybody mucked in. Since then, CTT has evolved into the group it is now and the Estate Planning team has grown and grown. I started off helping on the wills and trusts side of things and the rest is history. I’ve been delivering Estate Planning support to our advisers ever since!”
Having amassed a wealth of Estate Planning expertise over the last 17 years, eventually becoming CTT’s Senior Technical Adviser, Will’s well-known to CTT members for offering them flexible options and good counsel for their clients.
“Will’s personal approach to looking after our advisers means they always get the help and advice they need when they need it,” says CTT Private Client Director, Lucy Miles. “He’s always on hand to lend an ear and share his experience, so our members and their clients can benefit from his depth of expertise.”
Now, Will’s stepping into a new role at Gables House, one that offers some welcome challenges for the next phase of his CTT journey. “I’m ready for a new challenge,” he says. “This is a natural evolution of my role over the last 17 years, which has been sitting on the shoulder of our advisers and helping them with their clients.”
Will’s move from the Estate Planning Team to CTT Private Client will see him advising and managing his own private clients directly. The new role calls for a range of Estate and Financial Planning expertise, as well as client-facing soft skills, which come naturally to Will, who is both compassionate and professional.
“There’s a subtlety to working with your own clients. Naturally, advisers need to know a lot of the technicalities within Estate Planning, but when you’re working with clients, you need to keep things simple,” he explains.
“I’m very passionate about people having the right advice. Back in the day, I saw what happens when people are given advice that isn’t the best. Even though I’m running my own little business, I believe strongly in helping clients by taking an advisory approach and offering them guidance – not a salesman’s pitch.”
“Will’s experience and time spent at CTT make him an invaluable member of the team, as well as all the knowledge he’s gained through training with us and supporting our advisers,” says Lucy. “We’re delighted Will has chosen to develop his career in Estate Planning further with CTT and that we’re able to support him in the next stage of his professional journey. It’s also a win for our private clients, who will get to benefit from Will’s expert knowledge and advice.”
Will is looking forward to the challenges and opportunities of his new client-facing role within the Private Client Team, headed by Bob Massey – who interviewed Will when he joined CTT over 17 years ago!
“There’s already been a lot of learning for me in the last 10 days looking more at the intricacies of planning, how to project that to clients when I’m talking to them and organising my own administrative processes. I’m looking forward to getting into that zone of managing my own business.” he shares.
“But there’s a lot of familiar faces in the Private Client team which has made the move easier. Having that sense of familiarity and being able to bounce ideas off people really helps. I feel refreshed by the new challenge!”
CTT Director Bob Massey says, “It’s been a pleasure and a privilege to watch and share in Will’s professional journey since he joined CTT all those years ago. I’m delighted to welcome him to the Private Client team and look forward to many more years working with him alongside our valued clients.”
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