CFP Board Announces CEO Leadership Transition

CFP Board today announced that Kevin R. Keller, CAE, will retire as Chief Executive Officer on April 30, 2026, after serving nearly two decades as the organization’s leader. The Board of Directors has initiated a planned succession process to ensure a smooth leadership transition.

“Kevin's visionary leadership has transformed CFP Board and the financial planning profession,” said Liz Miller, CFP®, CFA®, Chair of the Board of Directors of CFP Board. “Under his stewardship, CFP Board has achieved unprecedented growth and awareness while elevating the standards of the financial planning profession. The organization is well-positioned for its next chapter of leadership and continued success.”

Under Keller’s leadership, CFP Board has achieved numerous milestone accomplishments, including:

• Nearly doubling the number of CFP® professionals to more than 103,000, with a record 10,400 candidates sitting for the CFP® exam in 2024.
• More than doubling the public recognition of CFP® certification through a Public Awareness Campaign that has reached millions of consumers through digital, television and print media.
• Strengthening CFP Board’s position as the leading voice for the financial planning profession and relocating its headquarters from Denver to Washington, D.C.
• Creating the Center for Financial Planning, which has significantly accelerated the growth of women and racially and ethnically diverse CFP® professionals.
• Elevating the financial planning profession’s commitment to serving public interest through strengthened fiduciary standards.
• Building a robust talent pipeline by raising awareness of financial planning as an attractive career choice and supporting those pursuing the profession.
• Introducing scholarship programs that have awarded over $2 million to people pursuing CFP® certification, with a particular focus on building a more diverse financial planning workforce.
• Establishing a 501(c)(6) professional organization to promote the benefits of financial planning careers and advance the profession for the benefit of the public.

“It has been the privilege of my career to serve the CFP® professional community as CFP Board’s CEO and work alongside our dedicated Board of Directors, thousands of volunteers, stakeholders and staff to expand access to competent, ethical financial planning,” said Kevin R. Keller, CAE. “CFP Board is stronger than ever, with robust leadership, clear strategic direction and momentum that will carry the organization forward. I am confident that the Board of Directors will select a successor who will lead CFP Board to even greater heights.”

The Board of Directors has established a Search Committee and will engage an executive search firm later this year to assess internal candidates and conduct a national search.

“Our next chapter builds on a legacy of transformation and growth at a time when the financial planning profession stands at an exciting crossroads,” added Miller. “As client needs, wealth demographics and technology continue to evolve, CFP Board’s strong foundation and forward-thinking approach will continue driving financial planning forward as a trusted, accessible profession that makes a meaningful difference in people’s lives.”

ABOUT CFP BOARD

CFP Board is the professional body for personal financial planners in the U.S. CFP Board consists of two affiliated organizations focused on advancing the financial planning profession for the public’s benefit. CFP Board of Standards sets and upholds standards for financial planning and administers the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification — widely recognized by the public, advisors and firms as the standard for financial planners — so that the public has access to the benefits of competent and ethical financial planning. CFP® certification is held by more than 100,000 people in the U.S. CFP Board Center for Financial Planning addresses diversity and workforce development challenges and conducts and publishes research that adds to the financial planning profession’s body of knowledge.

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