Article list

Having a clear strategy is probably the most misunderstood concept in professional services. The business often has a Vision. A clear picture of what it wants to look like, and what success means to the owners. The business often is excellent at Operational Planning. Perhaps because we are trained as planners there is a tendency […]

The decision-making process – or buying journey as it has become known – that prospective clients go through today is complex, time-consuming for all parties, and is also often an incredibly  frustrating affair for all parties.  It is less frustrating if we understand what is actually going on and allow the time required for our […]

On some things you just have to roll the dice and take your chances in life.  Asking someone for a date….getting on a plane…or asking for referrals. It doesn’t always work out of course, but as a great hockey player once said: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” (Wayne Gretzky) Depending on […]

Everyone is after the good advice clients it seems…or are they? Robo-advisers, direct marketing, 24/7 online transaction facilities, product kiosks and over the counter solutions to shoppers at supermarkets…these are all “financial advice” choices for consumers today.  (For “Financial Advice” read “anything associated with a financial services product or service which may or may not […]

The typical financial planning report or statement of advice produced for clients is ineffective. Being effective means getting the key points across as quickly and as simply as possible, so that the reader understands them, and is then able to make decisions relatively quickly and easily.  It will engage, motivate and rapidly lead to positive action. […]

If there is one objection which continually gets professionals in a tangle it is the client who says “it’s too expensive”.  When a client says “too expensive” YOU haven’t done your job… there is a gap between the value being delivered and value being perceived by the client.  A value gap is deadly when it […]

Professional development is all the rage…the regulators and the professional associations and training providers in the compliance space are all putting it top of mind continuously. And virtually all of them have an extremely narrow focus when it comes to the concept of developing a professional. Virtually no emphasis upon developing skills, and almost no […]