Practice

‘The Happy Valley’ case study

When members of the Institute of Advanced Financial Planners (IAFP) met in late 2009 in London, Ont., they were presented with a case study entitled “How do you Solve a Problem Like Happy Valley?” and asked to explore the relationship between financial planning and sustainability. In simplest terms, sustainability means resources must be used at […]

By John Hope |March 1, 2010

6 min read

Planning and Advice

Conquering the CFP

Most financial planners revere the Certified Financial Planning (CFP) exam like Dorothy and her friends revered the Wizard of Oz. But be warned, many embark on the road to the Emerald City, but not all make it. With Toto, my financial calculator, by my side, I embarked on my CFP journey some three years ago. […]

By Jeff Pocock |March 1, 2010

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Education builds trust with clients

You’d think a million dollars would ensure you a spot in the business books of most financial planners. Well, not if you’re dealing with Josée Dumas, investment counsellor at RBC Phillips, Hager & North Investment Counsel in Quebec City. Prospects must pass the education round before she will accept them as new clients. Don’t panic! […]

By Steven Lamb |March 1, 2010

5 min read

Planning and Advice

Handling high-net-worth clients

High-net-worth clients are different. Their expectations are high. They’re not easily impressed. And they don’t go for canned solutions. So, what’s an advisor to do? Start by understanding the segment. Who are the wealthy? Definitions of high net worth vary widely. One client, who springs from humbler beginnings, may feel quite wealthy with $300,000 in […]

By Staff |March 1, 2010

11 min read

Dressing for success

Take a walk along the underground passageways that connect the office towers in downtown Toronto’s financial district; you can pick them out. Advisors who work with high-net-worth clients stand out—although in many respects they do it by not standing out. The secret is revealed by the way they knot their ties, the well-burnished but not […]

2 min read

Faceoff: Asset allocation

Participants: Andrew Beer, manager of strategic investment planning, Investors Group, Dave Velanoff, CEO, MGI Financial. Your philosophy? Dave Velanoff: We don’t really have a philosophy. We broach asset allocation much further down the financial planning chain. Every client is different. We start off by meeting with the client and conduct a comprehensive needs analysis and […]

8 min read

Is diversification dead?

It is certainly well understood that 2008 was one of the worst years for global stock markets. To call the last 18 months “historic” would be an understatement. But after witnessing one of the greatest stock-market downturns on record, we then saw one of the greatest stock-market rallies in history, all within a year and […]

4 min read

High-net-worth mystery shoppers

Is your prospective client a gruff millionaire who makes stiff demands and is given to secretly scribbling copious notes? Watch out, he or she could be a mystery shopper trained to test your mettle—and merit—as an advisor. But wait, there’s no way you can call the bluff. UBS, the global financial services firm, has perfected […]

7 min read

Big business needs extra care

Business owners account for a large percentage of high-net-worth clients. And advisors are in a unique position to help steer these exclusive clients to superior levels of success, says Jenifer Bartman, CA, CMC and founder and principal of Jenifer Bartman Business Advisory Services in St. Adolphe, MB. Most start-ups are, one way or another, family-run […]

5 min read

LaValley: Providing valuable retirement advice

Blog Polls Have your say in our forum . Not long ago, I was making a presentation on the role of a retirement advisor to a group of financial planners. In my audience were advisors with a wide range of academic credentials and experience. Our discussion focused on what a retirement advisor was supposed to […]

By Barry LaValley |February 25, 2010

6 min read