Advisers building tomorrow’s customer centric advice businesses
Craig Parker
Financial advisers are rapidly evolving and the industry is starting to see a new breed of professionals – tackling the challenges of an increasingly complex regulatory environment and heightened consumer activism, says risk specialist dealer group, Affinia Financial Advisers General Manager Craig Parker.
On the day of the launch of a thought leadership campaign for advisers, Mr Parker said that Affinia is empowering its advisers to actively put clients at the centre of their business model, rather than paying lip service to the concept of customer centricity.
“If this industry is going to truly change and be a profession that genuinely embraces customer centricity, we should not have to wait for regulation to drive behaviours and actions,” he said.
“The advice community should stand up and self-regulate, and impose high standards to ensure we deliver the confidence for consumers to embrace the advice profession as we seek to help more Australians obtain the financial advice and protection they need.”
Yesterday’s campaign launch sees Affinia showcasing leadership examples within the network.
“We are using video and other content to share stories and information on the things we know advisers are seeking. Our hope is that this will help advisers tap into best in class strategies and techniques to grow their businesses in a sustainable way,” Mr Parker said.
“We are sharing this not only within our own network but the wider advice community to contribute to its ongoing and evolving professionalism. This is about engaging the community in a conversation about how we deliver on the promise of advice for the end customer.”
One story is a case study of Melbourne adviser Peter Blassis who operates Langley Securities. “Twenty years ago I had the pleasure in presenting a benefit cheque just three weeks into my first role in the industry. Spending two hours with that family and seeing first-hand the impact that advice has on lives is to this day, a key motivator for me and why I put my clients at the centre of my business.”
Another best practice example comes from Brisbane adviser Ralph Woods, who wanted to take his philosophy of client service to the next level. “I knew I had to move away from a transactional finance business to one that put the client at the heart of everything we do. My clients were looking for more, so as a business owner I needed to acknowledge that and make the necessary changes to deliver true value to my clients”
Mr Parker said a problem practices can often experience is not having the right networks or ‘go to’ people to share stories or assist them. Worst of all, they may have the wrong people telling them how to run their business, not fully appreciating the customer-centric business models they may be seeking to adopt.
“Advisers prefer to learn from practitioners – people who have been successful in changing and growing their businesses. This campaign is about meeting that need,” he said. ‘We work in an amazing industry, an industry that still has much work to do to ensure all Australians can sleep better at night. We hope that this campaign is the start of an ongoing conversation – to share the stories of best practice and success that will encourage more and more advisers to build tomorrows businesses, today. ”