When we joined the investment committee, we saw that the decision making process and outcomes were aligned to our own.
But, of course, without the brunt of the time, aggravation and regulatory hurdles being borne by us and our team.
Being able to blend and add to the Dynamic Portfolios is what finally swung it for us.
As independent advisers, we were already using them and that ability to tailor the portfolio under a ‘restricted’ model looked to us like what we were doing already.
Having spoken about the process to a number of other independent advisers, the end result is ultimately the same.
In a people-to-people business, trust is everything
We grappled with the decision to move because we wanted to avoid doing anything that would undermine the trust our clients had placed in us, making the choice of partner a crucial one.
If we had had to unpick everything we had so carefully constructed for our clients’ portfolios to fit in with a prescriptive restricted model, it would have undermined their confidence in our advice to date.
It’s not an issue of ego, it’s about protecting the whole basis on which the relationship is built.
For that reason, the importance of being able to reassure our clients that, after a review, their investments would be staying where they were, cannot be overstated.
The outcomes are the same and the delivery is same for the client. The robust financial plan you put in place is doing its job.
But the difference now is that our small team is supported by a department of investment experts. The plan and its suitability remain our primary focus.
Having gone through the process we believe concerns about relinquishing ‘independence’ are natural and understandable but that shouldn’t stop you from making the move. As long as who you partner with is at the right end of the prescriptive scale it’ll be worth it in the end.
For us, it has meant we’ve been able to get in front of more clients because we’ve been gifted a good chunk of each day back to us, time we’ve put to practical use taking the independence offered by having more time to being more proactive with clients.
Some of the hurdles, at least, were all in the mind.
Gary Beerling and Paul Baldwin are financial advisers at Foster Denovo
