by Dave Chessell, Chief Commercial Officer
We recently asked advisers what their top concerns were in terms of running their businesses. The response put compliance and RMAR reporting top of the list. Luckily, the FCA has announced that they plan to simplify RMAR reporting, cutting down on the frequency and detail they require, which should help go some way to making advisers’ lives easier in the future.
Interestingly though, when we dug a bit deeper, we found that some advisers are frustrated at the different systems they have to use when dealing with different providers, which for independent advisers using a range of companies, means they have to spend valuable time learning each system. This use-of-time factor has a knock-on effect on other topics that give advisers sleepless nights: servicing clients, costs of running a business and client charging.
This issue is something the Intelliflo team has been addressing and our existing strategic partnerships with companies such as Cofunds and Zurich illustrate how things are moving in the right direction. Our Wealthlink service allows straight-through processing, freeing advisers from the need to rekey data. The good news is we’re working hard to extend this service as we know it’s what our clients want.
The economy may be enjoying an upturn but adviser businesses have to become leaner and more efficient to simply survive, let alone make a profit. The saying ‘time is money’ has never been truer for advisers in the post-RDR world, so the more the industry can do to free them from time-intense systems, the better.
See the full list of the top five adviser business challenges.
