As an added extra .... we're extending Wednesday's online Howwow by 30 minutes to cover some of the other issues front of mind at the moment for paraplanners. We'll start by discussing home working and move on from there.

Are you in the same boat as many other Paraplanners? Wondering what PROD or, to give it its full name, 'Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook' means for you, your role and your business? Are you struggling to work out where to start?

Well, at the Powwow, we're with you in that boat. And we want to get out.

So, we've partnered with our friends at Ascentric to bring you an hour-long guide to PROD. What's more Ascentric are bringing along their friend (and ours) and PROD expert extraordinaire, Mike Barrett of the lang cat to join the discussion.

We're going to explore the practical implications of PROD for Paraplanners and at the end of the Howwow you can claim an hour's CPD from Ascentric.

Our Paraplanner on the Panel, Richard Allum is going to ask:

What are the rules, roles and responsibilities?

Segmentation: What is it, what information do you need, what approaches can you take, what about model portfolios?

What's the next thing you can do following this Howwow?

We'll do our best to make PROD digestible for Paraplanners - even if we can't make it super tasty. We're going to try and fit this all into an hour long Howwow! Yes - it will be a challenge but don't worry, if we run out of time, there will be a follow up to make sure we cover all bases. 

 You'll also be able to claim an hour's structured CPD from Ascentric after the Howwow, along with accessing all the help available in their PROD resource centre.

This is the first in a series of five online Howwows that we're partnering with Ascentric to deliver through this year. We’re calling them the Magnificent Seven Five because,  we're a fan of the original film (not the remake). Every Howwow will focus on the practical implications and will finish with recommended next steps.

What with it being a Howwow, there are plenty of ways for you to get stuck in:

Ask a question: If you tune in on the day, you can pop a question in the Q&A section or share your experiences in the chatroom

@ us on twitter: If you can’t make the sessions but still want to ask something, send it to @ParaPowwow on twitter and we’ll see what we can do.

Richard Allum - Founder of The Paraplanners (and manages to run a few paraplanner events, Powwows and Howwows, or something like that).

John Allen - Institutional Business Development Director, Ascentric. John focuses on helping advise businesses weather the changing commercial, regulatory and propositional landscape we operate in. Centralised Investment Propositions (CIP) and Centralised Retirement Propositions (CRP) are high on the agenda post MiFID II and PROD, as well as trying to drive cost out of portfolios and processes. John joined Ascentric 18 months ago after 20 years with Elevate / Standard life. He doesn’t live in the Wild West – he lives in Wales.

Mike Barrett - Consulting Director at the lang cat and our PROD guru.  Mike is a driver and survivor of platform mergers, migrations and RDR and held senior roles at Skandia and Old Mutual Wealth.  He now works with platforms, advisers, banks and asset managers to help them create and communicate in a way that’s a little less corporate and a little more human.

Our panel will join us on Wednesday 18th March, at 1.00pm for this hour-long online chat.

Want to ask a question on the topic already? Go on, once you've registered, pop your question under the Q&A section - don't wait for the Howwow, or email us here, or ask in real-time on the day.

Join us by pressing the 'save my spot' button.

This Howwow online is on Wednesday 18th March, 1.00-2.30pm. Can't make it? Then watch the replay, available just after the Howwow finishes.

If you enjoyed that Howwow, then head over Big Tent and say hello. There's a whole bunch of paraplanners hanging out there.

Signing up for the Powwow Post or by following us on Twitter for news on any upcoming ones.

For a full list of past events, just click here.

Got a question? Try these answers on for size

Save your spot by clicking the button on the top right. It's free, the only thing you have to do is register an account.

On the day of the Howwow just sign back in here. But, we'll also send a reminder email ten minutes before it starts.

On the tech side of things. Viewing the Howwow on browsers such as Chrome or Firefoxwork best. Headphones are a good idea if you share an office, plus the ability to type so that you can ask questions via the chat feature.

Just sign-in and view a recording of the session whenever suits you.

Yes! As many as you can throw at our panel. Plus, if you can't make the Howwow, book a spot and add a question beforehand, the panel will then answer it during the event.

Can I suggest a Howwow topic or be on the panel?

Absolutely, the more the merrier. Drop us an email.


You bet your bottom dollar there are, and on lots of useful topics for paraplanners. Watch past and/or register for any upcoming events here.


There isn't an upcoming Howwow listed, when will the next one be?

Sorry about that. We're just confirming the topics and putting together an A-Team panel for it. We do aim for every last Wednesday of the month, at lunchtime (1-2pm for most normal folk), so you can join in while eating your sandwich. 
Sometimes we'll throw a curve ball and change the date. That's because we want to bring you AMAZING panel members, and they just can't make Wednesdays. It's as simple as that.

Powwows vs Howwows - what's the difference?

Here's the Powwow lingo. Powwows are informal gatherings designed by paraplanners for paraplanners to exchange views, learn things, fix things and share things.

Got that? But there's more. Where Powwow gatherings are on a number of topics, Howwows are for those times when we want to focus on ONE topic in particular and, in depth.

Sometimes we meet in person, and sometimes we just like a good chinwag online. Enter Howwows Online.

You can find out more about Powwows or see a full list of all events here.

Actually, my question was on something else

Ooh, we like new questions. Just pop it in an email and send it on its merry way to how@paraplannerspowwow.co.uk.


One last question, what do you do with my details when I sign up?

Crikey, another good question! We’ll use your details to keep you posted on Powwow happenings. From time to time, this will include activities that our supporters are participating in that we think you’ll find interesting. We share information at an aggregate level with our supporters every now and then.

Please see our Privacy Policy here for details of how we will process your personal information.

Howwow Online: Let us introduce you to the new-ish Sheriff in town; PROD!