The Council of Australian Life Insurers has named this year’s winners under its annual female adviser support program.

The five prize recipients are Nicole Bendeich from Calibre Life, Janice Choo from Big Oak Financial Services, Nikki Szprinc from DC Advice, Rebecca Pritchard from Rising Tide Financial Services and Samantha Greene from Greene Financial.

They will each receive $2000 under the ReCALIbrate program to attend the November 27-29 Financial Advice Association Australia conference in Brisbane.

They will also be paired with senior women in the industry, to provide a forum for mentorship, learning, support and career advice.

CALI launched the program last year, aiming to foster diversity across the life insurance industry and to provide opportunities for more women to participate.

“Women in risk advice are essential role models in our industry,” council CEO Christine Cupitt said. “They give customers the option to talk to someone who is like them and who understands their unique experiences.”

FAAA CEO Sarah Abood says the association looks forward to having the grant recipients at next month’s conference “to learn, build lasting professional relationships and have a memorable experience. We once again applaud CALI’s ... initiative to foster the next generation of women in financial advice and to help address the decreasing number of financial advisers in Australia.”