Alan is a Chartered Financial Planner and Fellow of the Personal Finance Society, with an MSc (with Distinction) in Financial Planning and Business Management from Manchester Metropolitan University, where his dissertation addressed motivations for responsible investing.    

A firm believer in the need for the financial planning profession to continually evolve, Alan splits his time between lecturing in sustainable finance at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, researching behavioural finance and impact investing for a PhD in financial planning with Manchester Metropolitan University, and providing training and consultancy services to financial planning firms via Unburdened Solutions.    

He is currently the PFS North Scotland Chair, a former President of the Insurance Institute of Aberdeen and is a recipient of the CII Distinguished Service Award.