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Client trust and confidence waning as over half say they count on themselves for financial advice now. Client attrition is another fallout, reports GENEVIEVE CUA

A GLOBAL survey has found that only one-fifth of chief executives of wealth management firms believe that their relationship managers (RMs) are of ‘high calibre’, with more than a quarter saying their RMs are of only average ability.

Despite this, training hours globally were reduced last year compared to 2007. In Asia, training hours increased but the emphasis was on market updates and products.

The cut in training, says PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), is understandable when budgets are under pressure. ‘However, the quality of RMs has never been more important. If quality of advice is to be the real differentiator, wealth managers need to improve their RMs’ skills – and quickly.’

This is one of several significant findings of a study by PwC earlier this year. The study, A New Era: Redefining the Way to Deliver Trusted Advice, points to a crisis on several fronts for wealth managers.

The obvious one is that of client trust and confidence as over half of clients say their main source of financial advice is now their own research and knowledge. The survey polled nearly 240 private banks and wealth managers in 40 countries between December 2008 and March 2009. Asia Pacific accounts for about 16 per cent of respondents.

Client attrition is yet another fallout. The survey indicates that attrition rates are higher in Asia where 31 per cent of respondents are grappling with an attrition rate of over 25 per cent. Globally, around 10 per cent of bankers suffered attrition rates of more than 25 per cent.

Globally, only 55 per cent of respondents have formal client retention programmes, which PwC sees as a ‘dangerous omission’ on current market conditions. Most private clients report that they are rarely asked to comment on the quality of service they received; about 35 per cent said this happened only once a year.

Perhaps this explains yet another statistic: only 38 per cent of respondents are able to retain more than 50 per cent of assets upon intergenerational wealth transfer.

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/storyprintfriendly/0,4582,344748,00.html?

Here’s an extract;

AFTER all the turmoil in the markets, after Bernard L. Madoff and a bunch of other financial scandals, investors may well be questioning whether they’ve chosen the rightfinancial adviser.

It may be someone you like and trust, but is it someone competent to manage your money?

A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of 238 private banks and wealth management firms is not reassuring. “The economic crisis has presented client relationship managers with challenges that they have neither the experience nor the skills to deal with,” the study said. If quality of advice is the real differentiator, the study went on, then wealth managers need to make sure that their advisers have the relevant skills, tools and training.

What is disturbing in the study’s findings is that only now, after the crash, have wealth management firms realized they need to train advisers to do a better job.

“Does the person you’re talking to understand?” said C. Steven Crosby, head of PwC’s wealth management practice for the Americas. “It’s not going down a checklist and saying how many wives, how many kids, how many homes? It’s what wealth means to you.”

STATE OF PLAY The survey paints a picture of the wealth management industry that may be different from what investors expect, particularly investors with substantial wealth. Mr. Crosby said the survey questioned managers who advised clients with $500,000 to $20 million.

Of that sampling, only 7 percent said they felt strongly that they had received adequate training to complete their job to the highest standard. A little more than half said they felt they had received some training. What is shocking is the rest — some 36 percent of wealth managers surveyed — said they believed they were not fully qualified to do their job.

Read more of this article here – http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/01/your-money/financial-planners/01wealth.html

Companies can now also include a short write up for themselves, list their product partners and update all advisors’ portals with updates on company news, products updates and events.

She highlighted 5 areas, namely

• An Advisor’s product knowledge
• Full and comprehensive disclosure  of products attributes
• Sincerity in a client’s financial welfare
• Continuity of servicing a client and
• Helping a client with a smooth claim processing

Here’s an extract of her article dated 17th April

In my nine years as a financial journalist, I have been approached by many frustrated bank customers and insurance policyholders who wished to complain about their advisers and the firms they represented. They hoped I could highlight their plight in my articles so that they could get redress.

This is not to say that I have not heard good things about advisers. I do know of advisers who provide comprehensive and professional financial advice.

They also have the habit of contacting their customers regularly, even when they don’t have a product to promote. These are advisers who eventually become their customers’ friends.

Perhaps it’s the nature of my job, but the complaints I have received against advisers outnumber the compliments. Unfortunately, some customers had such a bad experience with their advisers that they vowed never to trust another.

This is a sad outcome because financial advisers play a very important role. Almost everyone has protection and investment needs, and I believe that advisers are the best people to provide the much-needed advice and service.

For the full article, please go to AsiaOne - What customers really want.

He mentioned 3 important qualities, namely

• Product knowledge 
• Trustworthiness 
•  Similar life stage

Here’s an extract of his article

One of the problems I have been wrestling with since I started work as a young man has been that of finding a good financial adviser.

Thirteen years later, I still haven’t made much progress.

It’s one of those items on my ‘to do’ list that never seem to get done. But with each year that I put this off, the urgency grows.

Although I have insurance policies and some investments in unit trusts and blue-chip stocks, I can’t really profess to have a proper financial plan for my retirement.

Being a business journalist, I’m in touch with the latest market developments, policy changes and product innovations – so I could conceivably do my own financial planning.

For the full article, please visit AsiaOne - Wanted: Lifelong financial adviser

Financial advisers first to adapt this platform are Kristina Sharmini, Desmund Chin & Hwei Nam.

Your profile is one of your most powerful marketing tools. It is the first textual impression of you, and you want to present it correctly. 

Introduction (1 paragraph)
State your academic qualifications. If it’s sizeable, state the number of years you have been in the industry. Briefly summarise your professional goals and philosophies.

Body (1 paragraph)
If you specialise in any particular field, begin with a mention of it. Include any relevant awards or recognitions you have received in your line of work; omit any that are not relevant knowledge for clients or prospects. State any particular skills or qualifications that sets you apart from other advisors – this could be in the form of certification or a case where you managed to raise the bar in the industry or pushed through a problematic claim for a client.

Conclusion (1 paragraph)
State some personal details to soften the profile and for you to be remembered more easily – for example: if you’re married, have children, your interests and hobbies, or have you backpacked across the world and so on.

Sample Profile

John Tan began his career with XYZ Financial Institution in 2000. He was then studying in Brown University. Upon graduation with an Economics degree, he was offered a job in the civil service but chose a career in personal financing and insurance. He believes in the altruistic aspect of insurance, and his strong work philosophy has won him clients from many aspects of life.

John is a specialist in Investment-linked as well as health insurance. He enjoys the process of helping others find security and stability in their lives. He has attained the Accredited Financial Planner (AFP^CM) designation, and is working towards the acme in financial planning – Certified Financial Planner (CFP^CM). His assiduous nature has seen him push through many difficult cases, adding value to his clients over and beyond expectations.

Determined to set his personal bars high, Paul is preparing for greater responsibility in a managerial capacity. He is guided by integrity and compassion in his work, and enjoys pushing his boundaries by engaging in the extreme sports of wakeboarding and mountain-climbing.

This partnership will allow advisors from Global Millennium Financial Services Pte Ltd to tap into the capabilities of AdvisoryInc as a service platform and retains control of published content by their advisors. With the help of AdviosryInc, GMFS now are able to list all their existing advisors online, lending them credibility with an online presense.

They will be able to upload information about themselves, their portfolio, professional certifications and testimonials from satisfied clients. This gives potential and current clients immediate access to information that gives them a better sense of security when dealing with the advisor.

About GMFS

Global Millennium Financial Services is a licensed independent financial advisory firm dealing in personal insurance, investments and general insurance business.

Global Millennium Financial Services is focused on growth and we believe that self-development is key. By encouraging growth in individuals, Global Millennium Financial Services will have more foundations for expansion.

In line to that, Global Millennium Financial Services has now grown from a single entity to being a subsidiary of a holdings company, Global Millennium Holdings, which now made complete to our general objective of providing a comprehensive advice on all aspects of financial planning.

GMFS is commited to

• Putting our clients’ interest before ourself.
• Ethical and professional conduct of planners and advisers.
• Continuous training to enhance competence and relevance to the market.
• Continuity and depth of service through a team approach to servicing.

	Jasmi Talib Chief Executive Officer http://jasmi.GMFS-advisors.com
	Lelani J. Kassim Director, Head of Sales http://joanne.GMFS-advisors.com
	Khuzaifah A. Aziz Director, Head of Recruitment http://zaifah.GMFS-advisors.com
	Mohd Raffi Arifin Operations Manager http://raffi.GMFS-Advisors.com
	Sebastian Song Sr Financial Consultant Director http://sebastian.GMFS-advisors.com
	Zuhaili Nadim Financial Consultant Director http://zuhaili.GMFS-advisors.com
	Sarimah Mensari Financial Consultant http://sarimah.GMFS-advisors.com
	Aerniewati Mohd Isa Financial Consultant http://aerniewati.GMFS-advisors.com
	Andy Azali Suboh Financial Consultant http://andy.GMFS-advisors.com
	Terence Liew Financial Consultant http://terence.GMFS-advisors.com
	Meena Ahmad Financial Consultant http://meena.GMFS-advisors.com
	Mohd Zaidil Mohd Fadillah Financial Consultant http://zaidil.GMFS-advisors.com
	Simon Ching Financial Consultant http://simon.GMFS-advisors.com
	Sandrea See Financial Consultant http://sandrea.GMFS-advisors.com
	Johari Md Ali Financial Consultant Director http://mdjohari.GMFS-advisors.com
	Mohd Idris Bin Masjor Financial Consultant http://idris.GMFS-advisors.com
	Shahlan Bin Saim Financial Consultant Director http://shahlan.GMFS-advisors.com
	Zaitun Bte Mohd Zulkifli Administration Officer http://zaitun.GMFS-Advisors.com

For an updated list of GMFS advisors, do check this link http://corporate.gmfs-advisors.com/AdvisorList.aspx