What does a financial planner do? Well, that depends. Many individuals refer to themselves as “financial planners”, but not all perform true multidisciplinary financial planning. Investment, insurance and tax professionals sometimes specialize in certain areas of financial planning (such as retirement planning, estate planning, tax planning, or investment management). A Certified Financial Planner™ practitioner is qualified to give you comprehensive financial advice, as a result of examination, continuing education, board certification and accumulated experience.