Advisors who want their businesses to grow and thrive will have to do a lot more than manage clients' investments and use goals-based planning. They'll need to help clients achieve peace of mind and ultimately a sense of accomplishment with their life and the ability to leave a legacy, according to Fidelity Investments.
Its Clearing and Custody Solutions division just introduced this "New Advice Value Stack" to help advisors "articulate and deliver greater value to their clients" by way of three "New Advice Value Drivers." The drivers focus on Better Outcomes for Clients, Building Digital into a Firm's DNA and Creating a Sustainable and Enduring Firm. Advisors would use all three drivers to achieve each of the four values included in the value stack.
Matt Chisholm, head of the division's practice management and consulting group, described this new model as "a redefinition of" of wealth management that reorders priorities for advisors to better align their business with the needs of clients, the quickening pace of technology and changing regulations.
"Firms need to be 'future ready," said Chisholm.
But to get there they first have to get through "the big squeeze," said Sanjiv Mirchandani, president of Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions in a video on the Fidelity website.
They're being squeezed by increasing demands from investors who are sensitive about fees and demanding high-touch and high-tech services; by regulators requiring higher standards of client care and transparency on fees and conflicts of interest; and competitors delivering high-quality, tech-savvy services, at lower prices, such as Vanguard and robos, according to Fidelity.
Advisors can get through that squeeze by creating value for their clients, according to Fidelity.