Xmas - traditionally a time to slow down or a time to get going?

With Christmas looming up on us as quickly as ever, it got me thinking about the effects the holiday period has on us personally and professionally and on all our business's as a whole, whether working as an IFA, a financial adviser, a mortgage adviser or a recruitment consultant. Of course, there is all the jollyness, brevity and 'good will to all men' normally associated with the festive season, usually fueled by too many hot toddies and holiday beverages brought by colleagues who don't speak to you throughout the rest of the year, but there is also the perceived notion that Xmas is a time when it all slows down.  Is that, or should that, be the case though?

Seriously, what is about Xmas that makes the majority of us go mad at about this time of year.  We start winding down at about the 10th December, we forget that to get ahead in the New year we should be pushing right up until the final whistle, as it were and instead we go all misty eyed at the Christnas Lights in our respective towns, following some old adage that 'nobody wants to do business at Xmas anyway'  Now this isn't my bahh humbug moment although many will perceive it as such, its simply a realisation that despite the fact that many of us do sit back, eat too may mince pies, indulge in Secret Santa, and make fools of ourselves at the Xmas party, we could still get ahead of the game, if there was a little bit of forethought.

As a financial adviser, an IFA, etc, I'm sure its probably different.  Timing isn't as crucial for someone looking to invest, or start a pension as it is for someone looking to fill a financial advisory role.  In the financial services recruitment industry, January is the time when the financial organisations want more staff, to get a flyer into the New Year, so what do many of us do, we go AWOL. Although we are physically sat at our desks, the activity level is probably at about 50% of what it is in September. What we need to do, is crack on, get those calls done, contact those candidates, check out what your clients are doing - who has new roles coming up in January and start working on those now, not actually in January. We can all still enjoy the Xmas period without grinding our business to a halt.  Keep the activity level high for as late as you can pre Xmas and I can guarantee, you won't have a hangover come New Year when looking at your pipeline!

IFA's and the Internet - where's it going?

There has been a big hoo- ha about the use of social media and the internet for IFA's and financial advisers over the last year - so much so that we are often asked as to whether or not we see any benefit in it.  Now, working in a recruitment agency specialising in financial services recruitment you wouldn't have thought that we would have the answer to that question but aha, hold on - we have to use the same media as financial advisers and IFA's, yet we are targeting a much smaller market.  So yes, we do have a very good idea as to what is effective, whats worth using and what isn't.

In terms of marketing oneself, starting a blog such as this can be a good way for the financial adviser or the IFA targeting the consumer looking for financial planning advice to get good exposure to a web savvy audience.  It doesn't take much to get onto blogger or wordpress, write about what you are experienced in and target the consumer you want as clients.  Ping as many search engines as you can, update with regular posts and get your blog onto Technorati, Digg, and so on. Technorati use some sort of claim system where you have to claim your blog by posting some weird, alien like code such as YPFD9ZHKE6XF or something along those lines but some of the others are simple and much easier to use.  Blogs are a good way to get clients interacting by the use of comments box's, it also makes sure they remain on your site for longer, which will give you more chance to secure them as potential clients.

Social Networking, the waster of untold man hours and the pariah of many an employer is here to stay and that means as a financial organisation, a one man IFA practice or whatever, you have to be using it. Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed, Tumblr, Plurk, there are many and they alll attract different demographics so its a good idea to look into what type of audience are using them before advertising your practice or financial advisory services on them.  Phillip Calvert of IFA life is a great exponent of the social networking phenomenen and his IFA Life website is a great place to start when looking for information on what to do as a financial adviser or IFA.  They also run regular webinars and seminars on the subject.

Longer term, eventually, we will have financial advice being offered over the internet.  Of course, it will take huge amounts of scrutiny and it will be very heavily regulated but that is, most definitely, the way we are moving.  If, as an IFA or financial adviser you aren't web and social media savvy by the time that comes around, then you will be left behind. With the advent of Web cam's, skype, etc, etc, its only a short step to over the net financial advice so get ready people, the future is coming, and its nearer than you think!

Mortgage - the dual pricing effect

Dual Pricing - what effect is it having on the mortgage market from a consumers perspective and what effect is it having from the mortgage brokers viewpoint? To give you an indication as to what dual pricing is we'll take a look at the dictionary definition which states that 'dual pricing is the selling of identical products in different markets at different prices.  In effect, in laymans terms, what the banks and lenders are doing is offering their most competitive products direct to the consumer themselves therefore negating the need to use intermediaries and mortgage brokers.

From the consumers perpective what do they do? They pick up their mortgage calculator, work out what repayments they can afford, go along to their bank, have that amount reinforced and bingo, if they meet the criteria they are given the mortgage.  Is this an advised mortgage though? Has the consumer thoroughly had their financial situation looked at by a skilled mortgage broker, or have they simply been offered the cheapest but perhaps not the best deal?  At a time when financial advice is needed the most, in the midst of an economic crisis, the consumer is not being provided the best truly 'independent' advice that can be offered.  The likelihood is that they will be 'sold to' by a bank adviser/salesperson rather than provided financial advice. The other likelihood is that they will also be 'sold' protection products that they don't need to achieve some target somewhere. Of course, there is the benefit of being provided a cheaper mortgage deal and to be brutally honest, although its not part of TCF, thats pretty much all the majority of consumers care about in the current economic situation.

Almost 70% of all mortgage business was introduced prior to the credit crunch and the introduction of dual pricing, so for the lenders to bite the hand that feeds them as it were, by negating the need for intermediaries and mortgage brokers throughout the difficult period was, silly, to say the least. Of course, the lenders were swift in stating that dual pricing wasn't a conspiracy however, most mortgage brokers will certainly remember which banks and lenders stood by them. The question to be asked is why the lenders would offer the same mortgage products through mortgage brokers if they are so poorly priced in comparison to the same product provided by them? Is it simply greed?

From the perspective of the mortgage broker, dual pricing, although in its 2nd year now, and expected to be a stealthy killer of the mortgage broker and the industry as a whole, has not yet destroyed the market as expected.  Many of the mortgage brokers we speak to have simply moved towards offering a more rounded financial advice offering, covering investments and pensions as well and the consumer appears in most cases to be responding. Although, to survive, many brokers are now providing a fee based mortgage service, it hasn't been to the absolute detriment of the mortgage industry, suprisingly. Every mortgage broker and intermediary has an opinion as to the validity of dual pricing and of course, it doesn't champion TCF in any way, shape or form but what the consumer has to weigh up is whether the lack of advice can be justified for a cheaper mortgage and for many, the reality is - it does.

Economic green shoots - a recruiters view

Everyone working in financial services whether they are a financial adviser, an IFA, a mortgage adviser or whatever, they all have their own opinion as to whether we are really seeing a sustained uplift in not just the UK but the worlds economy. So are we? Have we gone through the worst of it now or is this just the small respite in the tornado of economic catastrophe?

I always say this, but working as a recruitment specialist within the financial services market gives us a unique insight and an all round perspective into how the market is faring overall.  Because we are reliant on the provision of a service to financial services organisations for our income and that service is adversely affected by the lessened need for recruitment, we, as companies suffer, due to the cuts in staffing and redundancies.  Who is going to take staff on in the middle of an economic crisis? Certainly not the industry hardest hit!   Perhaps as much as any financial adviser or IFA, financial services recruiters have been affected by the turbulent economic situation to the detriment of many good recruitment organisations, so much so that I wouldn't be surprised to find out if a large number had gone to the wall. However, working close to the coal face but not actually at it, affords us a very good view of the economic picture.

Financial advisers and IFA's we speak to have recently begun to notice a change, a surge in the market, a confidence returning to the consumer, particularly in the investment market. This can only be a good thing. We as recruiters working with the financial services industry have also noticed an uplift in the number of mortgage advisory roles on offer, comparitively to six months previous. Six months ago, we would have been lucky to have three mortgage adviser roles on our books, down the line we have noticed a huge lift in the numbers of banks and other operators requiring mortgage advisers.  A simplistic view I know, but is it because money is being moved, consumers are borrowing again?  I can see no other reason although I am sure someone will correct me.

The upshot is however, the requirement for more mortgage advisers is one of the key indicators that the market is really, finally picking up.  So lets nurture these green shoots and watch them grow back into economic saplings - but maybe with thicker roots this time and not grown in quicksand eh?

IFA's as football teams - is there a correlation?

I was wondering the other day just for a bit of fun, recruiters do have fun you know, if I could come up with any sort of correlation between financial advisers or more specifically IFA's, and Premier league football teams. In between the hours spent in the noble position of assisting people making excellent financial services career decisions I actually came up with, what we at XL-Recruitment thought, were some rather comical ones. Now, the definitions were that there had to be some sort of direct comparison and that it was the top four teams in the Premier league that they had to represent.Well, five including mine!

So we started with the A - The Arsenal of IFA's. The Arsenal IFA is cosmopolitan, probably a city gent and most definitely the most sharply dressed, suave and sophisticated in his firm. His swift and decisive advice although well executed, has often been known to flirt with monetary gain without really making the knockout blow and delivering the result required. Verdict - pretty but doesn't really get the job done!

The Liverpool IFA - The IFA representing Liverpool is a fanatically detailed financial adviser, technically proficient and stable but often labelled conservative and dour, defensive even. Primarily risk averse, he/she will build a usually solid investment portfolio that will immediately collapse if one or two funds go missing for a short period. Verdict - Conservative and perpetually jealous of the neighbouring firm.

The Manchester Utd of Financial Advisers or IFA's is a big swaggering giant of an IFA, arrogant and sure of his/her own ability. The Manchester Utd adviser has a cosmopolitan flavour with a gritty northern foundation, they will be suave with a steely determination to win and they are ultra competetive. They will quite often get down and dirty in order to get ahead, have a flagrant disregard for authority and you can guarantee, they will be the adviser in the firm doing the mega sized pensions transfer cases. Verdict - Champion in his/her own lifetime, arrogant to the nth degree but unfortunately, bloody good at what they do!

The Chelsea IFA - The Chelsea IFA or financial adviser is a returnee to the financial services fold. Probably a financial adviser that was once 'top of the class' although he/she might have that jaded, hangdog look of the 'almost but never quite got there'. An IFA that builds functional, yet fluid investment portfolios, they work with solid foundations and are usually always lucky enough to get the result, even if it is in the last minute. Verdict - sturdy performer, works well within a system but not so well on their own.

Now, as a Tottenham supporter myself I absolutely have to include my team. So, here we go: The Tottenham IFA is an IFA or financial adviser who harks back to the glory, glory era when they worked in 'tied' home service and their slick moves could bamboozle the punters and the opposition alike ensuring that they quite often topped the tables and won awards. Nowadays, they are bitter, often reminded by bigger and better neighbours of what used to be. An inability to plough funds into their practice at the right time and keep up with the industry has meant that the Tottenham IFA has had to watch as the rest of the world have caught up and even passed him/her by. Verdict: Bitter and constantly tells anyone who will listen how good they used to be.

If any of you professional financial advisers or IFA's out there want to include your teams or your comparisons, please feel free to add comments, it would be a welcome addition to just me writing and it would be funny I'm sure to see some of them like Bolton or West Ham, so come on, get those comments in.

Financial services, unattractive - whatever next?

There was a frightening story coming from The Recruiter last week highlighting how the credit crunch and failing economy have affected the financial services industry. It also mentions how the financial sector as a whole has become less attractive as a career choice for professionals over the last year, something we at XL-Recruitment and certainly on this blog,have harped on about on numerous occasions.

It seems that, according to Universum UK, financial advisory, IFA, banking and financial organisations in general have seen a reduction in the numbers of professionals applying for their positions, well, all except the Bank of England of course, they still stand at 23rd in the all time list of favourable career choices. Well, those Million pound bonus's are kind of attractive aren't they?

Funnily enough though, students were asked the same survey questions and results demonstrated that banks, auditing firms and management consultants were still deemed to be good career choices. Not a mention of the financial adviser, IFA or Broker consultants roles that are the majority of the financial recruitment sectors bread and butter!

Also, surprise, surprise here but career and job security have come out top on the 'what to consider when choosing where to work' scenario. Of course, its going to come out on top, we're in a recession people. You would have thought that the 2.5 million unemployed might have cemented that idea. In any case, job security came out on top as 'the consideration most likely to affect job choice' in 55.9% of cases.

It appears that the new consideration for companies within financial services is that, more and more employees are staying with the same company. However, with the job layoffs and cost-cutting initiatives, employee engagement is low. When the economy picks up, these employees will be looking for new opportunities and employers will be faced with a challenge: how to deal with rising attrition rates and at the same time meet new market demands. Companies cannot afford to neglect their employer brands.

The Government and the financial services industry - pah, they haven't got a clue!

This video, shown live on Sky News and featuring financial adviser, Jonathan Davies, a year ago, when the economy was at its worst,we at XL-recruitment believe, highlights the governments inability to understand the financial services industry as a whole and not just the housing market. Longer term their lack of understanding could potentially have a detrimental effect on the financial services industry as a whole and I think many financial advisers and IFA's are watching with interest how the next few years within the industry as a whole, pans out.

Financial advisers across the UK and particularly in the mortgage industry, have often informed us at XL-Recruitment over the last year, that the mortgage market has died a death. Sub Prime lending is no more - not a bad thing - couples with limited funds and very little expendable income, overreaching themselves with 100% mortgages and property with overinflated values can't be good for the economy as a whole!

Can the green shoots of recovery we are now experiencing - and we are - be attributed to the governments and Bank of England quantitive easing or is it just natural organic growth? For us in the financial services recruitment industry, any growth whether forced or not is fantastic, especially after a year of reduced fee income and business development. The more of it we see, the happier we become, as I am sure, are most, if not all the financial advisers, IFA's and mortgage advisers who have struggled to maintain enough of an income level to survive, let alone prosper.

So come on Mr Brown, get a grip, why not put some measures in place that might actually work and give us a sustained uplift and not a yo-yo recovery.

I don't need to interview, I'm a financial adviser

For those of us working in financial services recruitment, we all have our own pet hates.  I  personally, as a recruiter specializing in financial advisory or IFA roles have quite a few but then thats me. I'm joking of course but the main one absolutely has to be, candidates that haven't fully prepared for the interview they are going for. Now, the fact that I have a few pet hates doesn't automatically make me a grumpy old man, it just means that I have a lower tolerance threshold than is probably required!


How many of you financial services recruiters have contacted a candidate, whether from job board, database or even client referral, sold them a financial advisory position that would be absolutely ideal on paper, thoughtfully prepared them and told them everything you know about the company..............only to have them not look at the website or the job spec you've sent and when they get to interview, absolutely forget everything you've previously told them about the job that will most probably improve their economic situation immeasurably? Clearly this problem isn't limited to financial services recruitment, I've even done it myself, a long time ago mind - I think it was going for my first interview.  It is however exhibited by candidates who believe themselves above needing to research and prepare.  Yes, you know the ones, the guys and gals who think they're too good for the role they are going for - forgetting that there are 2.5 million unemployed out there and that there will also be 15 other candidates going for the same job they are. The ones that absolutely know they are going to get the job anyway, whoever else goes for it.


Now, we all know that in the real world of financial services, this doesn't happen.  No financial adviser or IFA is going to walk into any job in a bank or national IFA firm. All it takes is a bit of humility, a realization that perhaps someone else, the professional, does know best.  Take a little time out to look at a website, research the company you're interviewing for, get your figures together, run through the interview in your head the night before.  Its not that hard and it doesn't take hours but the work any financial adviser or IFA puts in to pre-interview prep pays huge dividends at the actual interview.  90% of people don't prepare for interview so it should come as no surprise to see that the 10% who do, even if less skilled, will often be the ones that progress to 2nd stage or even quite often, get the job.


If you're a financial adviser, an IFA or a mortgage broker, take a bit of time, prepare for interview and you will see the results, I guarantee it.  Take it from a grumpy recruiter who could do, quite honestly, with earning a few more fees from the interviews he's setting up! Rant over!!

CV Writing for financial advisers

As a recruitment specialist working in the financial services industry I am often asked to write the best CV I can for a financial adviser or IFA applying for their perfect role but what is the best way to write a Cv and what should it contain.  The financial services industry and particularly financial advisory organizations or IFA's, are looking for a definitive type of applicant and it's my job, ultimately, to present that candidate in the best light, in order to secure the financial adviser or IFA a 1st stage job interview. The Cv is a concise advertisement of yourself that should create interest for a potential employer and motivate them to want to interview you above anyone else.  

So, what does the modern financial advisory organization want in their IFA or financial adviser? Probably better to start telling you what they are not looking for first.  They are not looking for anyone who has lacked commitment in previous roles - so if you've flitted about from job to job throughout the last four or five years - you had better find a ready excuse to explain it! The financial services organization today is not looking for anyone who has defined targets in previous roles to be too difficult - too difficult, too difficult? By whose standards? The modern financial adviser or IFA type role is  very sales focused, as covered in previous posts,  Salesman, IFA or Financial Adviser?  so for a financial advisory professional to deem targets as unachievable, it indicates to the potential employer that the candidate lacks application and the desire to achieve.  The potential financial services employers also don't want inexperienced, under-qualified individuals that won't hit the ground running although this is currently defined by economic circumstance and as the market picks up and the economy performs better, we will see more leeway on this standard.

Now we have an idea as to what the potential employer in the financial services industry is looking for, how do we put it down as clearly and as attractively as possible.  A good Cv should always be easy to read and it should always have the most important functions close to the top of the page.  Start with your address details obviously but the first thing written should be a short, concise profile of yourself putting yourself in a highly desirable light for the role applied.  Sometimes this is called a career statement.  The next thing should be a bullet pointed list of key achievements, awards, etc.  Again this shows that you have excelled in previous roles and demonstrates you as someone who takes pride in achievement. for the financial adviser or IFA it is vital that they show they have the previous sales performance to excel with the potential employer reading the Cv.
The next thing on the financial services CV should be your past employment history, written in chronological order and showing any achievements, what your job entailed and the key competencies and experience gained.  The last thing on any CV is always personal information followed by referees.

A good financial services Cv should also never be more than two A4 sides long.  That is it! Much longer and it runs the risk of becoming tedious and will probably be repetitive.  Any shorter and it also runs the risk of looking like you don't have enough experience for the role or not enough employment history.  Financial advisory organizations, IFA's or accountants, because they work within the financial services industry are very much more strict with their procedures, references, etc, so it is important that the correct information is also put on the CV.  Lies or embellishment could always be found out at a later stage.  Working in financial services recruitment, I have become used to the need for exact CV's with exact career history and details, financial services is an industry that always checks.

If you need any Cv polishing or assistance with writing a CV - contact XL-Recruitment - financial services recruitment specialists, on 01278 429000 and ask to speak to one of the consultants.  This is just one of the value added services provided by XL.
                      

Salesman, IFA or Financial Adviser?

How strong is the sales aspect of an IFA or financial advisers role?  What percentage of the IFA or financial advisers role is taken up by actually selling financial products rather than financial planning?  These are both important questions that should be asked by new entrants into the financial services industry, particularly those looking to become financial advisers or IFA's.

For those professionals or graduates out there that are considering a career in financial services, the most likely route into the financial services industry is through a banking organisation.  Recruitment througout the financial services industry and certainly more so within bancassurance, is heavily focused on face to face sales skills and targeting of the financial advisory staff. Unfortunately, the financial services industry as a whole doesn't have an exceptional graduate intake like those of the merchant banking industry or the public sector, nor does it seem particularly interested in creating one.  This means that the preeminent route into the financial services industry and regulated sales is that of the banks.

Now, with the onset of RDR and the increasing transparency of the industry, the heavily sales focused financial advisory service provided by the banks retail arms doesn't sit particularly well with the cry for truely independent and unbiased financial advice.  Banks, when offering financial advice, by their very nature are biased towards offering their own products, they have to be.  Therefore, it stands to reason that the advice offered is perhaps tainted by a need for the financial adviser to acheive targets.  Of course, most if not all of the UK banking industry offer independent or IFA arms although they tend to be aimed at catering for the affluent. It is also however, very difficult for a newly qualified financial adviser or graduate/trainee to be offered a position within one of these segments.

What has to be realised for those seeking a career in financial services/regulated sales as a financial adviser or IFA is that there is a sales aspect to the role and most if not all positions will be targeted to a lesser or greater degree. How much of  a sales aspect the newly qualified financial adviser can accept is down to personal feelings.  Some will revel in the targeted environment and thrive on the peer recogntion it engenders, others will prefer the independent route, where perhaps the focus, although still sales orientated, leans more towards the financial advisory aspect and the nature of the financial planning advice proferred.  Each have their own benefits and pitfalls and its really horses for courses.  In my humble opionion the financial advisory industry as a whole is a sales industry first and foremost, the advice, whilst learning your trade as an IFA or financial adviser, comes second.

Polarisation - what effect would it have on the financial adviser recruitment industry?

Depolarisation - the rule that gave rise to the prominence of the Independent financial adviser or IFA has recently come under close scrutiny following the publishing of the Retail distribution review, the guidelines laid down by the FSA for the future of the financial services industry. For the layman, depolarisation legislation gave rise to the term 'independent' financial adviser by drawing a clear line between the differences in those who could offer truely independent advice and those who were working for companies offering their own financial products. Depolarisation also created a third type of financial adviser, the multi tied option. This basically means that the multi tied financial adviser, although not truly an IFA, can provide financial advice on a number of products from various providers, therefore offering a choice of sorts to those requiring financial planning advice.

Are we moving back towards a polarised financial services market and what differences will it make to the IFA and financial adviser of today and more importantly for those of us in the financial services recruitment market, the financial services industry ? Consumer protection was of course a huge motivating factor in the introduction of depolorisation legislation yet many recent studies have shown that consumers are not entirely concerned whether or not their financial adviser is truly independent or not and are more concerned that the products provided are the right financial products for them, with the right image and the right reputation. So, does this mean that consumers are apathetic towards financial planning?  I wouldn't have thought so but I would have expected the recent turmoil in the economic climate to have the effect of making consumers consider their choices more than they perhaps did previously although so far, studies have shown that isn't the case.

It is unsure as to what effect polarisation would have on the financial services recruitment industry and from the consumers perspective it seems to make little difference.  Multi tied advisers would simply have to become truely 'independent' financial advisers offering a choice from the entire market or 'tied' financial planners providing products from one provider, a salesperson in effect.  There shouldn't be a detrimental effect in the amount of roles available although in the short term, as companies within the financial services industry adapt there could be a small drop in the numbers of IFA's, financial advisers and therefore administrators and paraplanners required.  An equilibrium should however manifest itself within the medium term.  My opinion would be that short term it may have a relatively small effect but longer term, the financial services recruitment agencies would survive - we just wouldn't be working for multi tied organisations anymore. Simple really!

Financial Services Recruitment Standards

Having taken a close look at the financial services recruitment industry over the last year, we at XL Recruitment have come to the conclusion that the downturn in the economic climate has been detrimental to the financial services recruitment industry not only in terms of revenue but also in terms of the lowering of standards that were once thought of as a given. High standards of client and candidate servicing are the bedrock of the recruitment industry and are what makes a successful financial services recruitment agency. Its a people business and therefore 'the people' must be treated with the utmost respect. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you!

The highly competitive nature of the financial services recruitment industry means that often IFA and Financial Adviser candidates are treated as no better than cattle or pieces of meat to be traded on the financial services market without their prior knowledge or say so. A practice we are finding more and more prevalent as the Financial Services market contracts.

The biggest cause we can see, of issues, is the use of Job Boards such as Monster, REED or Total in the search for IFA and Financial Adviser jobs. Candidates will quite often apply for IFA and financial adviser vacancies advertised on these boards and will then also be contacted by recruiters sourcing or doing daily searches. Many times, these candidates will be swamped with over 20 financial services recruiters calling them, with most offering the same vacancies. What some unscrupulous recruiters are now doing is submitting candidates to IFA or financial adviser vacancies without their prior knowledge and without discussing it with the candidate first. The vacancy might not even be one the potential candidate would look at - it doesn't matter, to stop anyone else putting that candidate forward - the unscrupulous financial services recruiter will submit them anyway - on the off chance that the company will offer an interview. Its at that point that the candidate will be contacted with something along the lines of "We've got a great opportunity here and you'll never guess what but we just happen to have an interview slot for you on..............."

It works because for an IFA or Financial Adviser out of work, its very hard to turn down a guaranteed interview. Of course, this can and often does give rise to cross over and agencies arguing over ownership of the candidate. To give the uninitiated a look into the world of financial services recruitment, the rule of thumb is that the first agency to submit a candidate to a job with a specific organisation takes ownership of that candidate, with that company only and for a period of six months. Its often exasperating to do all the work properly, as XL-Recruitment always do - speak to the candidate and describe the opportunities we have, gain agreement for submittal, submit the candidate to the company and job involved, only to find out that someone has put the candidate forward to the same IFA or financial adviser role without even speaking to them.

It doesn't help the candidate in any way - a) because they haven't spoken to or began to build a working relationship with the agent that's submitted then, b) the agent will have no idea as to what the candidate is looking for or whether they are a good fit to the role and c) the job simply has not been done to the standard it should have been. In the most extreme cases this can even result in the candidate not being interviewed. What financial services company out there will want to interview a candidate and potentially pay a fee for someone who is being squabbled over by two agents from different financial services recruitment companies?

In all honesty, the economic climate has only intensified the competitive nature of the industry, however, the people suffering most from the recruiters who 'don't do it right' are the candidates and this needs to change. Remember, client and candidate servicing are the keys to a strong business so be one of the recruiters that are 'doing it right'

Self employed financial adviser - Is now a good time?

Its a given that the economy although experiencing some green shoots of recovery, hasn't reached the levels of stability that we achieved 2 years ago. So, taking into consideration, the instability and the uncertainty with regards when exactly full recovery will ensue, is taking the leap of faith and becoming a self employed financial adviser a viable option?

What we at XL Recruitment are seeing in the UK financial services market is that financial advisers who have historically maintained quite good income levels are now leaning towards employed opportunities and positions that offer the stability of a monthly basic salary. Bancassurance financial advisers are one such role that is becoming a more sought after position. Never the less, the self employed IFA position is one that offers a fantastic longer term opportunity.

For many of the AR's(appointed reps) who have established client banks and a good business model from which to work, the economic situation hasn't drastically altered their position. The Independent financial adviser in some respects is in a unique position in that their business is not perhaps as reliant on consistently generating new business as in other industries. Recurring or trail income and a client bank built up over the long term offers a financially stable footing for the IFA from which to operate, lessening the need for continual new business.

As an Independent financial adviser working on a self employed basis, as long as there is a consistent structure in place and a support framework leading into RDR that affords a certain level of assistance with qualification, compliance, TCF, etc there should be no reason why, even throughout the current economic conditions, a stable business cannot be built. There are varying degrees of self employment and we at XL Recruitment would certainly suggest that as an adviser considering this option, at least initially, the options looked at should be ones that offer a good level of support in terms of lead generation and back office support. There are many self employed financial adviser roles out there that offer the earth and supply very little so it does pay to research thoroughly but some can pretty much do what they say on the tin. These are the self employed IFA roles to look at.

So, is self employment a good option for an IFA at the moment? As long as the company can offer a sound framework to work within leading into 2012 and the implementation of RDR review and provide a good level of support whilst getting the business off the ground, yes, it is a good option. Many now pay a draw or salary guaranteed against further commissions so financially there isn't an issue and once the business is up and running as long as the IFA is proactive in terms of generating new business and establishing a presence in their locale amongst potential clients, there shouldn't be any problems. in fact, the business should be well placed to do thrive once the economy picks up.

The Recruiter - Friend or Foe?

The Recruiter in financial services is a much maligned and often misunderstood role. Financial adviser candidates who have placed their cv's on job boards, due to current economic conditions, are saturated with calls from financial services headhunters hawking their positions, candidates that have been actively headhunted regard the financial services recruiter as a nuisance, a conversation that is best avoided, potential employers regard the rectuiter, again as a pest, a necessary evil when there is a lack of quality financial adviser candidates in the market but one to be tolerated and kept at arms length for most of the time.

The financial services recruiter plays an important part in the employment market and takes a lot of the strain from employers and employees alike. Yes they have to actively headhunt potential candidates for clients that want succesful people - who by the way tend to be entirely happy in the job they are already doing - and yes they do approach the potential employer with a view to exposing them to the usually pre qualified candidates on their books. Thats what a financial services recruiter does - proactively matches candidate to job and employer to potential employee.

If there weren't any recruiters where would companies such as Lloyds bank, HSBC and Wesleyan be? The likelihood of them finding the right number and calibre of financial adviser or IFA from the local newspaper is minute, the adverts just wouldn't get the exposure. The larger blue chip financial services employers make easy bedfellows for the financial services recruiter - they are highly aware of the value of a good recruiter and will strive to offer enhanced opportunity to those financial services recruiters they trust, hence the existence of the Preferred Supplier List or PSL which gives the recruiters who provide the best results, the opportunity to work on jobs exclusively.

It most defintely tends to be the smaller companies that have an issue with the use of a financial services recruiter. For some it will be purely monetary concerns - a good recruiter can charge up to £10,000 for a highly qualified financial adviser or IFA - and for some it will simply be the principle - why should they use a financial services recruiter when they can do the job themselves?

Lately, we have seen a number of the smaller IFA organisations, accountancy practices and generally smaller concerns realising that the financial services recruiter is perhaps of more value than at firdst thought. Companies that have been historically loathe to use a financial services recruiter, are now understanding that most offer a cost effective, professional service that will often match an employer with the right candidate within one or two potential candidates, saving man hours, advertising budget, time and money.

So the Recruiter, is he friend or foe? looking at what the good financial services recruiter can offer, I would be inclined to say friend but then of course I would say that - I am one!

Financial professionals report a market surge in property sales

Supposedly, the Property market is showing clear signs of recovery. What this signifies for the financial services industry and the financial advisory and mortgage advisory markets , it is too early to tell. Longer term stability in the financial services arena is still elusive and financial advisers and mortgage advisers will start to see a clearer picture I feel towards the end of the year.

The headline stems from the fact that, the Agency Express Property Activity Index,a measure for the property market in general, which is based on the use of 'For Sale' and 'Sold' boards across the UK is currently revealing that the number of 'Sold' signs instructed by estate agents last month rose to its second highest level since the same time last year.

The use of 'Sold' signs increased negligibly in May, although 1.2 per cent, compared to the previous month and a massive 123.2 per cent on December's low. March has been the only month so far to have a higher level.

The thing is, May's new 'For Sale' board activity was still significantly down, 44.6 per cent on May last year and 63.6 per cent down on May 2007 - the highest recorded month in the last two and a half years. So are we really seeing a significant recovery? Or is it just a dead-cat bounce? Mortgage advisers, I'm sure, will have their own idea's.

The Agency Express Property index has also reported a just over 2 per cent increase from April to May in the number of 'For Sale' boards being erected. Now obviously this doesn't mean that all those houses will convert to sales, however, it does give an indication as to the thoughts of homeowners and whether or not they are seeing a recovery.

This is the fourth month out of the last five that the number of new 'For Sale' boards has increased on the previous month. Personally I think that its more than likely wishful thinking on the part of the consumer, especially given the difficulties still faced in securing a new mortgage. You're going to find it hard to sell your house if the person trying to buy it is unable to secure a mortgage! Many financial advisers are reporting that its still virtually impossible to find lenders that will release money to people with a less than squeaky clean credit rating and less than a 40 per cent deposit - and lets face it, the amount of people that can raise that capital are pretty thin on the ground.

Regionally there are differences in the amount of boards being moved from 'For Sale' to 'Sold' with the largest increase coming from the affluent south east. Reporting a 26 percent monthly rise it is followed closely by Scotland with 23 percent. Conversely there are also regions that are perhaps not faring so well with increases in 'For Sale' signs but no convergent increase in 'Sold' signs and these include both the East midlands and London with Yorkshire next up.

Despite the still turbulent economy and the shaky lending practices some Estate agencies, mortgage advisers and financial advisers are saying that properties are still being sold and more so than they have been for the last 12 months and there are definitely more and more people that are deciding that this is the time for them to try and sell their house.

Also the Agency Express Property Index is confident that because their information is taken from the beginning of the house sales process that it gives a good indication of activity and the way the market is swinging, this will also be reflected further in three or four months time.

As a financial services recruitment consultant I certainly hope so. Any upswing in the financial services market is a good thing for us - it brings about movement in the job market and more jobs are created in the mortgage advisory arena particularly. Because of our focus this is the indicator we are more inclined to use as a more stable measuring tool of long term stability in the financial services industry and it will afford us a better picture of the financial services industry in general. The recruitment industry in this sector, have however, reported a small increase in the number of opportunities available for financial professionals across various arenas, seeming to indicate some sort of recovery across a wider area. We can only hope so!

Redundancy - Law of the Jungle?

Redundancy as a word seems to be rearing its ugly head more and more as we come to the end of the first quarter of the new financial year. But does it hold the same fear as it did twenty years ago, or when the last depression took hold.

As a recruitment consultantancy in the UK financial services industry, we are seeing people displaced at an almost scary rate but is it just the law of the jungle? Using that terminology, in lean times, the herd sacrifice the sick or weak animals for the greater good of the rest, streamlining and making more efficient the smaller group. I believe that this is what we are seeing now in the financial markets.

We have the larger blue chip financial companies shedding the financial professionals that are just reaching retirement age anyway, 'there you go, you gave us 20 years great service, there's a golden farewell' or the ones that are just not performing as they should - 'targets not reached in quarters 3 & 4 - there's a reference, close the door on your way out!' And its not just support staff or back office administrators. Historically, the last people to go when the economy slows have usually been financial advisers or sales people, however, over the last year these have been let go just as rapidly.

You might, after reading the first two or three paragraphs be thinking that its all doom and gloom. You would however, be wrong. Although the banks, financial organisations, IFA's, etc are getting rid of people - as fast as they are getting rid of the older and non performing individuals they are looking to take on new, younger, high volume, high achieving professionals. We at XL-Recruitment are seeing a trend developing of financial services organisations screening very heavily in order to filter out the best. Now this is a good thing although you might ask why?

From a recruiters perspective it means that a lot of the agencies that have, over the last year or two grown fat on the reactive work of job sites, etc will now have to revisit skills that they didn't have to use in a buoyant market - cold calling, headhunting, additional marketing, business development - proactive skills that have to now be brought back out, dusted off and polished once more in order to find the advisers that are successful - usually not the ones looking for jobs. A lot of consultants who have only worked in a buoyant financial services market won't even have these skills. This is why we are now seeing, as in the financial advisory arena, recruitment consultancies in the financial sector shedding staff just as quickly.

From a financial professionals perspective it means less competition and a clear run at a reduced amount of business, which should mean target achievement and therefore bonus. For the smart financial adviser who's performing consistently, now is the time to be pushing your case for a sales management role or senior advisory position, you're the ones still there, you're the ones performing, you're the ones worth £millions to the organisation you work for.

So, redundancy, is it a dirty word? Not if you're doing your job to the best of your ability it isn't!

Old hand, New Rules?

In my role as a financial services recruitment consultant I recently held a conversation with a highly skilled and fully qualified financial adviser who had been working abroad for a number of years in a non UK regulated, financial services market. Now, as a financial adviser he was clearly very skilled and had the relevant FPC qualifications from this country but he was experiencing difficulty getting back into the financial services industry as he didn't hold CAS status.

Certainly as a financial services recruiter I am seeing this more and more. As the economy contracts in other countries, financial advisers who left the UK to go and work in lucrative markets abroad are now looking to make a return to what they know - or so they thought.

With the onset of the Retail Distribution review and the surge in TCF the financial advisory landscape is perhaps even more rugged now for these people than it was a few years ago.

With the UK economy still in turmoil, financial services employers have difficulty justifying the expenditure of taking someone on who isn't going to hit the ground running so if they have to be signed off as competent, with the hours of observed meetings, compliance, etc that it takes, is it any surprise that many are reticent to do it.

There must be a better way of bringing people who are well qualified, highly professional and in most cases, very good at their job, back into a financial services industry that at the moment could do with all the fresh blood it can get.

For a financial adviser coming back to the UK from other markets abroad there are basically two options - 1) You go directly authorised under the protective umbrella of a network. In a lot of cases you won't get client support, you're self employed with no guaranteed income and of course there's no guarantee that your business will be successful, which will leave an unpleasant paragraph on your CV or - 2) You go back in on the ground floor as a trainee with a large organisation - many of which won't sign you off as CAS until they've had their moneys worth, as a trainee your salary won't be anything to write home about and for a financial adviser who has been relatively successful it can be demeaning to have to take not one but a few backwards steps!

I think there's a vastly underused commodity out there for the financial services industry and there must be a way they can be fast tracked back into a role that most are very good at and are clearly qualified for. Answers on a postcard!

When will the banking market return?

With today's(29th April 2009) recent surge in first quarter profits posted by Santander and the Abbey Bank in particular, are we starting to see the first green shoots of recovery in the banking environment and therefore the financial services recruitment industry? I am no economist and can only give a recruiters view on the situation but recent events do seem to indicate that we are perhaps starting to see a small increase in profits generated by financial services organisations, which should theoretically bring with it an increase in the amount of recruitment undertaken by the banking industry.

The stock market experienced a small rise on the back of the banking markets better than forecasted pre tax profits and this indicates a small but significant recovery. Of course, with the UK economy still in the mire of a supposedly full scale depression it could be a long time yet before we start seeing any upturn in the financial services recruitment market but it does however bode well for the latter part of 2009, despite the government telling us that 900,000 people will lose their jobs this year.

The recent increases in first quarter profits aren't quite across the board as yet and the mortgage market in general is still depressed but increased profits must mean increased consumer confidence and a slight easing on the restrictions in lending policy, which in turn will bring a need for an increase in financial advisory and mortgage advisory staff. Is quantitative easing beginning to take effect? Who knows, but after a year of headcounts and financial advisory positions being severely restricted any amount of recovery, however small, would be most welcome.

Working in the UK financial services recruitment industry, reliance on the 'big four' high street banks for financial services roles and the resulting lack of opportunity has brought about a heavy downturn in profitability. This has been offset by increased business development and marketing in order to generate alternative business from IFA organisations, Accountancy practices and assurance providers which has to a degree worked. However, the staple of most financial services recruiters is the banking environment and the financial advisory opportunities they bring, the holy grail of the PSL still being the aim, however,what good being on a PSL does if the jobs just aren't there, I don't know?

Speaking from experience, we have seen a small increase in jobs from the financial adviser or wealth management arms of the High Street banks very recently, resembling a small chink of light in the economic gloom. Hopefully it will increase and continue into the latter part of the year. And, if it manages to get back to resembling anything like it did last year in terms of the number of opportunities, both I and XL Recruitment will be happy bunnies!

Marketing 101

Marketing - Not really a part of the business that many paid attention to up until last year. For much of that time new accounts were a nice addition to the accounts already held and not, as this year, a vital necessity. Much of the marketing we at XL Recruitment did last year was via word of mouth and it wasn't really deemed a priority- perhaps not the best plan for business growth - but then, we are already providing financial advisory staff to the majority of the blue chip companies in the UK, along with a multitude of the national IFA and assurance organisations up and down the country.

Things have changed. The contracting economy and diminished returns from existing business have made it absolutely essential that we market ourselves to new potential clients- getting ourselves and the XL brand exposure to new contacts on a weekly, if not daily basis. It will be the same for any financial professional whatever discipline - whether an IFA, financial adviser or mortgage adviser. The principle won't change - it will still involve you marketing yourself to a new audience with a view to acquiring new business.

As a recruiter working in the financial services industry we are only now starting to take a look at the myriad ways to market ourselves - something we should have been prepared for and up to date with a while ago, certainly it would have helped. With the Internet well established, nowadays there are so many different tools to create exposure for you and your brand and its important to know what works for you and what your potential clients will use in order for you to create a proper targeted media campaign.

Marketing is of little use if its done in an unfocused and scatter gun manner. Its not enough to just create a business profile on Facebook and send out a thousand email newsletters. Its vitally important to put a disciplined plan in place. Think about where your clients come from, what websites and media they will use. You need to focus on those areas.

Its also really important that you can measure what you are doing - its no good throwing money around on marketing that doesn't work. Again, choose what will work and spend time, money and energy on that. If seminars worked before - use them again, if you had success cold calling - get back on the phone - just make sure its to the market that you need to be targeting, not a random section of the population.

The most important things to do are to:

1. Determine what resources you can use in terms of time, energy, money and people and that will give you an idea of what can be done.


2. Determine who and what constitutes your target market? You have to find out who your audience are before you can think of what to deliver to them.


3. Think about what your strengths are - its no good getting up in a seminar and delivering a pitch if you're not very good at it or not confident with it. Choose what you are good at and focus on that - the more confidence you have in what you are doing - the more likely it is you will get better results.


4. Always be prepared to use something that you haven't before. Don't discount something just because you haven't used it - it could be a hugely effective marketing tool- Always look at things with an open mind.

Its more important than ever that we use marketing to get the best results we can and no business plan, whether personal or part of a bigger picture, will succeed if it doesn't involve at least a modicum of marketing nowadays, especially in the financial services industry.

What is a Financial adviser

Financial Services Part 1 - I suppose one of the things I should have done is at least explained what a financial adviser actually is or does. From a recruiters perspective its probably a good idea to 'know your quarry' and if you're looking to come into the financial services industry as a financial adviser then this will give you a good idea as to what to expect. There are a few very good websites that you can look at to get an idea as to what a financial adviser actually does such as the IFA guide website or the Prospects University graduate website, however, here we will give you a brief outline of what you can realistically expect from a financial adviser, whether looking for a job opportunity or a potential candidate for a role.

The title 'Financial adviser' basically explains itself, it does what it says on the tin - a financial adviser will literally advise someone on financial matters, making recommendations on ways to use their money - thats if, given the credit crunch you still have any! Enough joking - the role involves explaining the mulititude of products and services that are available to clients and helping them choose the ones that best meet their needs.

There are different types of advisers varying from corporate advisers that deal with commercial entities - providing say employee benefits advice, High Net Worth specialists that deal exclusively with affluent clients through to general practitioners who offer advice in all areas, pensions, savings, investments, mortgages, etc

There are thousands of advisers across the UK and they are either 'tied', multi -tied or 'whole of market'. The differences are explained below:

• Tied - Can only offer advice on products from one provider - usually one they work for, usually a bank, building society or assurance society


• Multi tied - Can offer advice on products from a panel of different providers - ususally employed in similar settings to the above but with more scope.


• Whole of market - Truely 'Independent'. These advisers can work for a company or be self employed but they can offer advice on the full range of products available from the 'whole of the market' and by law must offer the most approriate advice.

Make no mistake about it, the financial advisory role is a sales job and with sales comes targets and bonus payments for success. However, its not just about making sales at all costs. The products offered are regulated, so there is a strong emphasis on carrying out the right procedures and there are compliance processes in place in order to be able to show that the client has received the best advice. The decisions you help the client make are important decisions for their finances and future, so protecting them and making sure they get the right advice is essential. Having said that, most advisers earn their salaries from commissions on whatever sales they make, although a number do offer clients the option to pay fees for advice. IFAs are obliged to offer their clients this choice. We are tending to see more and more organisations going over to this method of payment now as it inspires consumer confidence and the closer to the RDR review we get in 2012, the more we will see this business model.

When you start out as a financial adviser it is more than likely that it will be in a Bank, building society or assurance society and more than likely as a tied adviser. This will give you good basic training in a range of financial products. Most employers usually provide this in-house. New advisers will usually start by undertaking some of the research and admin and then, gradually begin to deal directly with clients, under supervision. As new financial advisers become more experienced, they acquire their own client portfolio.

If you have succesfully been a financial adviser for a period of time you may want to progress your career. Most will move into multi tied or 'whole of market roles, dealing with higher value clients perhaps or maybe specialise in dealing with one type of advice - pensions specialist or mortgages - or one type of client - commercial or long term care clients, say. You may even want to go self employed which is another option.

Salaries for financial advisers can be varied. As a 'tied' bank adviser you could realistically expect a base salary between £18,000 and £28,000 per annum initially, rising to say £40,000 for an experienced financial adviser with OTE of £60,000. Self employed IFA's can earn anything from £25,000 up to £100,000 per annum. Its a great opportunity whether looking for your 1st or 2nd career.

A Change of Plan Perhaps

When I started this blog - not so very long ago I might add- I had a vision of an information portal for financial services professionals whether a financial adviser, IFA, financial services recruiter, anyone basically working in and around the financial services and financial advisory industries in particular, somewhere financial services professionals could find relevant information to do with their industry. That hasn't changed because although there are a number of information sites for the industry, as a resource I have yet to see many websites or blogs covering the financial services industry from a number of perspectives.

The initial format idea has changed slightly in that yes, it was going to be about hints and tips on sales, marketing, advising itself but in particular the headhunting of suitable financial advisory candidates for many of the jobs I work on - if I'm honest I thought it would be a good way to get in contact with more financial services professionals. The thing is, I quickly realised that it was going to take a very long time to get the number of followers required to make it a viable source of industry professionals. Since then, I've made a conscious decision to change the format of the blog and make it more into a look at the industry from a recruiters perspective and still contain the things I wanted it to initially - so more of a resource for professionals - whether new to the industry or old hands - than a resource for candidates. Of course theres also the novelty value of something personally written - sometimes it will be serious and factual - sometimes it will be blase and amusing -It will however still have its roots in the financial services industry and that's, I suppose, what I wanted.

Goal Setting - small targets for big results!

For a new financial adviser starting out in the financial services industry it’s probably a bit unrealistic to set yourself grand targets that are most likely doomed to failure, certainly without the relevant experience. It is still however, a very good idea to set realistic goals and targets in the form of a business plan as when results are achieved as written down it drives you on further to do even better. A great man once said to me ‘always write down your goals, visualize them every morning, put the hard graft in and eventually those dream and goals will be realized’ 

So how should a new financial adviser with little experience go about setting their goals? It doesn’t really matter to be honest. I think the important thing is that you write them down. Seeing them in black and white makes them real. Your goals and targets should also be realistic and answer your purpose whatever that might be – increased income, better holidays, better work life balance, etc. I’m sure that most of you started off this career for a reason. For some, it’s to pursue an interest, some to earn financial freedom, others to challenge themselves. 

I would advise keeping it simple in the beginning and writing achievable goals that are realistic and can be achieved in say 2 to 3 years. If you can’t see any result in the short term it will make you disillusioned and more likely to fail. A good example would be something like the one below:

‘When I started this job it was to earn financial freedom within 10 years but in the short term I would like to at least match what I was earning in my previous role and be earning 100,000 GBP in the next three to four years’

Short and to the point but matched with realism. This is a good example of goal setting.

Now another thing to think about as a finncial adviser is how you are going to achieve those income goals. How much you will earn I determined by how much activity you do and how you do it. You can only manage what you can control, forget what you can’t influence. You can control how many calls you make, how many appointments you make and how many clients you see. The better you get as a financial adviser the easier it will be to make these controllable aspects profitable.

It is vitally important that the small activity goals you set are being achieved. Planning your time effectively to include exclusive times for cold calling and appointment setting is important. At the moment you should jut focus on seeing the number of new appointments you set per week and making the right number of calls to new prospects. Achieve those targets and your income targets will surely be met.

In conclusion it’s important to keep things simple and focus on getting the things you can control right. Don’t waste time setting unrealistic goal that you won’t achieve making you disillusioned and less likely to have a successful career as a financial adviser.

New Clients are the new black

Recruitment for Dummies - Part 2 - Developing new clients

If you are a consultant working in the financial services industry you will be finding your role has changed over the last year to include a much higher percentage of new business development than it did. I would go as far as to suggest that perhaps an increase of 25% wouldn't be too much. In today's financial services market there are a whole host of financial advisers displaced from their roles, a lot from the major high street banks, who aren't recruiting as much, and from the larger National IFA firms. Candidate generation isn't really the issue - finding roles to put them in however, well that's a different story.

In your organisation, do you have specific individuals responsible for new business development and subsequent account management or do you, like us at XL-Recruitment make everybody responsible for developing new accounts? Both business models work and both can be very effective, like most jobs, its about having the right people. It takes a lot to successfully develop and manage a new account, from initial contact, right through to successful placement of financial services candidates.

Firstly it takes the development of some sort of rapport. Its ok having a strictly professional relationship but people will be much more willing to help you with any queries if you've taken an interest in them previously. It also helps in getting past the 'gatekeeper' if by the 5th time you've called you know they're married and support Everton football club! See how many times you get through to the decision maker then?

Secondly - finding out exactly what the client is doing currently to source their financial advisers or IFA's, if they are getting good results? what they are unhappy with? whether or not whatever they are doing is cost effective? Gently probing to determine what it will take to differentiate your company from your competitor - and then offering to supply that, can make all the difference in securing the business

You may not get the business immediately and I would suggest that with the financial services industry and the economy in turmoil at the moment, it probably will take more than one call. Persevere though and if you can't get on the PSL immediately look to at least secure a trial when they are next looking for new financial services professionals. How are they going to know what you can do without giving you a go?

Finally, when you do get the new business and you've been tasked to find a new IFA or a financial adviser, para planner, whatever, make sure that you keep in contact and develop the relationship. Keep them in the loop, provide good feedback and make sure that you provide a professional and most of all cost and time effective service.

New business generation and finding new roles is a much more important part of the successful financial services recruitment consultants armoury nowadays and is a part that shouldn't be neglected. Its also a hell of a lot easier to talk to candidates if you have a role that is different from the jobs that have been put to them by five consultants before you!

Financial 'advice' or just another sale?

With the RDR looming in 2012 the onus is now on IFA's and financial advisers to mantain their qualifications at a higher level than previously. Simple FPC3 or CEFA qualifications just won't cut it any more and Diploma or Chartered status will now be almost a prerequsite. This is a smart move by the FSA partly designed to clean up the financial services industry and bring a regocgnised standard to the financial services industry. Advisory organisations will have to decide whether they want to go down the route of qualifiying their advisory sales force in order to make them truely 'independent' or stay as they are and be labelled as a 'sales' force.

Financial adviser or Sales man? What is the essential difference between a financial 'adviser' and a sales person. As a recruitment consultant working in the financial services recruitment industry I see a hell of a lot of different roles that all encompass the same specifications - the sale of financial products - whether on a self employed basis working through various providers (usually the ones with the best commissions) or as an employed adviser selling the products of your employer. Most roles will all involve some sort of up selling.

So how do you differentiate from an adviser providing true 'advice' or one selling you the product that best fits their needs or acheives their target. My advice - no pun intended, would be to construct a checklist of questions that you can use to validate whether or not the adviser is offering you advice in your best interests. Of course, before you interview financial advisers or IFA's to find out what they can offer, you need to ask yourself some questions first to determine exactly what you need. Is it a full financial overhaul or a lifelong financial plan with long term goals, is it just a mortgage or protection policy. The answers you give will help you determine who's services you will require. The questions to ask should resemble something along the lines of the below:

• What experience do you have? - find out how long they have been practicing, which companies they have worked for previously - it will give you an idea as to whether they will have the right experience.
  
• What are your qualifications? - will help you determine whether or not they have the right qualifications to be able to assist you
  
• What services do you provide? - Some may be able to offer pension tranfers, some may not, some may offer mortgages but can't do investment business - there are a few variations and the question is a valid one to determine if they can help you.
• How do I pay for your services? - A vital question to ask - since the RDR was announced more and more advisers are offering fee based services alone, rather than commission based - the advice offered is more likly to be impartial and true financial 'advice' as there is no benefit to the financial adviser pushing products from one provider (usually with the biggest commission rates!)

A simple list of just a few questions, but they will help the client to decide if the financial adviser is more of a 'salesman' then a true financial planner. In some cases, the advice and financial products offered by a financial adviser will be absolutely spot on, whether with the provider paying the best commission or not, so don't discount out of hand the financial advisers that will take the 'salesman' route after the RDR but if you are looking for truely impartial. independent financial advice then I would suggest a reputable IFA.

Lead Generation

Whether you work as a financial or mortgage adviser or even, god forsake us, as a recruitment consultant in the UK financial services market, chances are you will have been approached by a  lead generator.  Usually its a company located in India or in some cases in the UK but it almost always consists of banks of cold callers who will pre qualify a lead, usually with a scripted questionnaire of inappropriate questions.  Most will take your money and run whilst supplying you with ridiculously poor leads that have once upon a time, maybe last year, asked about a mortgage or a bond or if a recruitment consultancy, a job.

A year or perhaps two year ago, how many business's needed to employ the services of a lead generator?  Most were basking in the warm glow of a booming economy and leads were coming from traditional means, referral and recommendation, networking, cold calling yourself even.  As business dried up so did the leads and now most firms, whichever segment of the financial services market they work in are finding that lead generators are a viable and most times valuable resource.

I think its very much dependant on the initial outlay.  Well qualified leads from outsourced generating companies can be expensive and the ratio for success is something like 2 or 3 out of every ten.  So, imagine if each lead costs 50 GBP, to get a good return you will need to buy a large amount and that means a significant outlay.  And how many companies these days have that money to spare?

I would suggest that even if its difficult to find, it could be money well spent.  With most organisations finding it hard to see where the next business is coming from, a source of well qualified leads from a well managed and reputable company are a lifeline not to be scoffed at. It does however require finding a good company to use.  Find out what your colleagues or your peers are using, get a recommendation and don't be afraid to contact these companies and ask to speak to companies that have or are using them.  If they are any good they will supply you with names.

In any case lead generators are here to stay and until the economy starts to resemble, once again, the boom times of two years ago they are a viable source of income.

Is now a good time to be an IFA?

With the UK financial services market experiencing so much doom and gloom and with the redtops and the broadsheets conspiring to make it sound considerably worse than it actually is, its vitally important for the Independent financial adviser to try and ensure that they are the choice of the consumer rather than the 'big four' or the other high street banks and building soceities.
 
Given the behaviour of the banks over the last year or so, completely reckless and without consideration for recourse, mismanagement on a grand scale and complete ignorance of the consumer now should be the time that IFA's are marketing themselves as heavily as they ever did to ensure a fair market share of the displaced business.  I don't think that the brand that the banks have spent years nurturing is going to be strong enough to retain the consumer confidence that they have held for so long in its entirety and this means more business for the UK Independent financial adviser

The IFA is 'Independent', not tied or multi-tied, nor do they fit into any of the new breed of groups of sales or 'generic' advice.  Their actions are based on the need of the client and not on the requirement to achieve a target or the need of a banking or assurance institution.  There is no sales target, most are self employed,  they have no product targets, they're not required to sell a particular quota of say, life assurance or bonds.

Another good thing to the IFA is that most of their business comes via word of mouth with a good recommendation.  There is no reliance on counter  staff almost kidnapping customers as they walk in branch and harrying them until they agree to see what can loosely be termed an 'adviser' and in truth probably comes closer to a sales person.

Also, they aren't multi-tied,  which means that they don't have to try and sell one type of protection product from a limited panel of providers which conveniently happens to be more expensive for the client to purchase, simply because the commission is loaded.  This practice is called dual pricing and is demeaning: there's the real price (which they would rather have teeth pulled than show the client) and there's the one specially arranged between the 'multi tied' adviser and the insurance company.

Independent Financial advisers pride themselves on always being able to offer the best advice at all times and they will always act on the clients behalf and not with a hidden agenda - Now which would build the better relationship?

Pre Qualified - The best way!

Recruitment for Dummies - Part1 - Pre qualified candidates

For the seasoned professionals out there this will be a tremendously boring entry as I am certain that the reasons as to why Pre qualified candidates are an absolute must will be plainly evident to most but bear with me, for the uninitiated its pretty valuable information and perhaps even more so today than it was yesterday.

There are two vital components to the matching of candidates to roles in the UK financial services industry. The actual sourcing of the candidate - obviously quite important! And something we will delve into in greater detail at a later date, and the second is pre qualifying them or matching them to the role.

Its hugely important once you've found your candidate to make sure that they are a good fit for the role and even more so today than it perhaps was a year ago. The UK financial services industry is contracting and client companies are more definitive as to their specifications now, a lot more than they used to be. To use a sliding scale as an example, whereas last year the client company might have taken a look at a candidate who, in terms of skills and qualifications being a match to the role, was a 6.5 or 7 out of 10, this year they want a 9.5 or 10! So the skill comes in not only finding the right candidate but pre qualifying them to be absolutely sure that the guy/gal you are putting forward has a damned good chance of getting the job. Time is precious in the UK FS recruitment industry and you don't want to be wasting it on a candidate who plainly has no chance of getting the role when it could be better spent finding someone who would have.

Firstly, there are two ways of making sure the candidate is right for the role - pre qualify them over the telephone or face to face. Of course, face to face is the ideal, it's so much easier to build a rapport with the candidate. Still, if distance makes it prohibitive, the telephone, providing the questions asked are asked in the right way and the right questions are asked, is a very good way of ensuring you have a good fit.

Open questions are King - a good recruitment consultant asks the right question and then sits back, listens to the answer and dissects whats relevant and whats not. But let the candidate do most of the talking - you'll find that you'll get a much better idea as to whether or not they are a good match to the post you're looking to fill. Do they use a good conversational style, are they easy to understand, do they use relevant phrases and words, are they confident, expansive? A good financial adviser should tick of all of those boxes.

As a consultant in the UK financial services recruitment industry its more and more important to make sure that you have the right person for the job you're trying to fill. Its no longer good enough to just take a CV off a job board, find out if the candidates interested in what you have to offer and send it off to all your clients in the area. Pre qualification is the key - be more selective, throw less mud against a wall - and watch more of what you do throw - Stick!

Social Media, new business gold or a waste of time?

For recruiters in the UK Financial services industry its a turbulent time to be doing business. Companies are downsizing, there are less actual vacancies, organisations are a lot more specific than they were a year ago as to what they want, candidates are more likely than ever to be dealing with another agency and its more difficult to find advisers and finance professionals of the right quality. So, in my mind, anything we can use to our advantage in terms of both sourcing new business and new candidates is more than welcome. In any case, the value of social networking, if used correctly can be immense as indicated by the number of people now using social networking sites.

The strength of your brand and therefore your business is influenced heavily by the web and other media's and of course, word of mouth is still one of the best ways to build a reputation. Everyone has access to a computer and the FS recruitment industry is now recognising the value of social networking, 'word of mouth' for the electronic age, in building a brand and finding new business. Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Myspace, they are all valuable tools in getting your name and your reputation out there and most, if not all offer company profile pages.


There are obviously things to do and things not to do when raising your profile on these sites and I suppose it won't hurt to list one or two:

• Use your real name and not just a faceless brand ie; Jim@ XL-Recruitment rather than just XL-Recruitment - it builds a more user friendly image


• Use recommendations - a powerful tool!


• Be careful about the content placed on your profile - it has to come across as human and not just an organisation


• Target the audience you want and focus on those particularly
  

Just a couple of things that should be looked at when building your brand on social networking sites.

Most of these sites have job boards now, which are again a hugely valuable resource, and some of the networking groups can be real sources of value. If anything though, the key to it is getting the right people. The same as sourcing in any particular way, its about finding the right calibre of individual or the right opportunity.

Web based marketing is here to stay and over a difficult period, the more widely you are known and the better your brand recognition, the more value will come from what you are doing. I think in the UK we are perhaps a little behind our friends across the pond in recognising the value of the web to the UK Financial Services recruitment industry but we are catching on and the more time spent building your brand, the better the rewards. Social Networking? S Where do I sign up?

Is financial advice made an attractive career prospect?

How many times did your careers adviser suggest to you at school or college that you might like to be a 'financial adviser'?

If they were anything like mine, I doubt very much if they mentioned it once. Is it the industry itself that is seen as an unattractive career choice or is it the fact that its not advertised heavily and pushed like other career options such as 'nursing' or 'teaching'. The financial adviser should be of no less value than those careers. Arranging someones finances to enable them to achieve their dreams is a noble idea certainly and one that should be marketed. The reality however is that an industry that has seen better days in terms of consumer confidence is awash with people that don't generate much in the way of trust - no offence to the hundreds of thousands of very, very good professionals out there - its more that one or two bad eggs that are heavily publicised have more effect on the uptake of a new generation of advisers than the good ones do.

So what can the financial services industry do to make itself a wholly more attractive career proposition? Can they offer FS exams as a supplementary addition to the curriculum? work experience shadowing financial advisers, apprenticeships perhaps? Cash incentives like the golden handshakes offered to teachers?

They say that there is no such thing as bad publicity, I beg to differ, given the pounding the FS industry is taking at the moment in the media, however, I think the best thing that financial services can do to make itself more attractive as a career choice, is clean up its act, regulate itself more critically, make itself whiter than white and restore consumer confidence in what to date has been to most, a shadowy law unto itself. Only then will we see more younger people entering the industry.

Is generating new business the Key?

Or is it servicing the clients you already have at a higer level than previously? I think there are pro's for both and given the state of the ecomony in the UK financial services market currently, there is nothing wrong with having more than one string to the bow.

Generating new business does not always mean the corresponding 'new revenue', well, not immediately anyway. For a financial adviser in the UK there is much importance placed on the generation of new business, particularly in interview. One of the key questions you will be asked at interview is not 'how much total you have written in gross commissions or API' but 'what was the percentage of new business'. Because an adviser with a large percentage of new business is a proactive adviser, someone who is not afraid to contact new people and sell the company, its services and finally 'a product'. In some cases, although you may generate the contacts, it can be difficult to convert them to 'business' without demonstrating a high level of client servicing first.

Which brings me nicely onto new business generation via the servicing of existing clients. How mant times a year do you phone exisiting clients? I would suggest it should be plenty. The better serviced a client feels and the more happy with the service received, the more likely they are to refer you to their friends or their colleagues. It doesn't take a genius to work out that referrals from someone who is already happy with the way you treat them are almost certainly more likely to do business. Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool. In this day and age with email and social networking at the forefront of any brand recognition strategy, treating your exisiting clients in the most considerate way possible is a very good way to secure new business.

As I said at the beginning, there are pro's and cons for both and you should definitely pay equal attention to both areas of business, if you want to be succesful that is!