In its third year, the life insurers association said ReCALIbrate is an initiative to “highlight the women shaping the future of risk advice”.
Recipients will receive a $2,000 grant to attend the Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) Congress in Perth, with CALI describing the grant as “helping cover the costs that can hold women back from these events”.
The 2025 ReCALIbrate recipients are:
• Zoe Kennedy, financial adviser, Whitsunday Wealth
• Natalie Lackner, life insurance specialist, Parachute Cover
• Alyssa Turner, financial adviser, My Fortress Townsville
• Clare Telford, provisional financial adviser, Purely Finance
• Kristy Mitchell, director and life insurance specialist, Stella Advice
CALI CEO Christine Cupitt said this year’s recipients highlight the diversity and leadership women in advice are bringing to their profession.
“Each of these women is a role model in her community and represents the future of the advice profession,” Cupitt said.
“We’ve seen the ripple effect of ReCALIbrate firsthand; from the confidence it builds in women advisers to the way it changes conversations across the industry.”
According to CALI, recipients will gain “exclusive” support, including access to CALI’s women’s mentoring network, media training and visibility tools, industry speaking opportunities, a complimentary ticket to CALI’s annual conference, and a meet-and-greet with CALI in Perth.
Reflecting on her selection, regional financial adviser and 2025 ReCALIbrate recipient Zoe Kennedy said: “The chance to be mentored by industry change-makers and amplify the voice of women in advice is priceless. I am passionate about bringing quality advice to regional Australians, they’re my community.
“My vision is to build an accessible platform where women can find practical resources about life insurance and advice and be empowered to make confident informed decisions that protect them and their families.”
FAAA CEO Sarah Abood said the program plays a powerful role in keeping the profession inclusive and future focused.
“ReCALIbrate is one of the few programs that addresses the real-world barriers women face when building their advice careers. We’re excited to welcome the 2025 recipients to Perth – their energy, diversity and fresh perspectives on the congress,” Abood said.
How wonderful that CALI has discovered barriers exist in financial advice! And how remarkable they’ve identified exactly ONE group facing these challenges.
I must have missed the memo explaining how conference costs and networking barriers only affect women. Silly me for thinking Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisers, LGBTQ+ professionals, or advisers with disabilities might also struggle with the $2,000+ cost of attending Perth conferences. Or that someone in a wheelchair might benefit from mentoring when most “networking events” are standing cocktail parties in inaccessible venues.
Here’s a revolutionary thought: maybe an Indigenous transgender adviser with a disability from remote Australia faces slightly more barriers than someone whose only challenge is gender?
CALI says this grant covers “costs that can hold women back.” Fascinating. I wasn’t aware financial constraints were gender-specific. Do Indigenous advisers get secret discounts? Does being LGBTQ+ come with complimentary conference tickets? Do wheelchairs include free flights to Perth?
Perhaps for 2026, CALI might realize discrimination doesn’t conveniently limit itself to one demographic. But why embrace actual diversity when you can tick one box and call it progressive?
The “ripple effect” CALI mentions is certainly real – it’s rippling right past every other underrepresented group in our industry.
Whataboutism at its finest on display here Marcus. I highly recommend you proposition insurers, industry bodies, super funds, investment funds etc to support barriers for these marginalised groups you mention. This CALI grant came out of a conversation a female adviser had with CALI about the difficulties women face in this male dominated profession.
The more support we can give to marginalised groups in financial advice, the better our profession would be.
Genuinely looking forward to seeing the additional grants on offer from your efforts.
Well put. CALI here’s your chance, otherwise ouch!