C’mon Irene: Advisers say they’re ready for hurricane

While much of the East Coast battens down the hatches ahead of Hurricane Irene, advisers in the path of the storm say they're not overly concerned about what the nasty weather will do to their operations. One piece of advice: buy a generator.

Financial advisers in the path of Hurricane Irene say technology and backup systems make them well-prepared for any disruption a big storm could cause, although some of their older clients may need a little more help.

“Most of my clients are retired, and half don’t even have a computer,” said Noel B. Swain, president of ProVest Wealth Advisors, headquartered in Spartanburg, S.C.

He advises them to buy a good quality waterproof and fireproof lockbox for their important papers, and to keep it on the highest floor of their home. That way, if they have storm damage, it will be one less thing they need to worry about.

But for most advisory businesses, a potential storm “isn’t a big earth-shattering thing, because as we get more tech-savvy, a lot of information is in the cloud,” he said. (Click on the following link to see a checklist of what advisers should do ahead of the storm’s arrival)

Advisers expressed relief that Irene is expected to strike the Northeast over the weekend, which made it a bit easier to prepare, although it may disrupt their own personal plans.

“We’ll have a normal end to the week and we’ll see what Monday brings,” said Greg Large, a managing partner at Lenox Advisors Inc., based in New York.

As long as there isn’t a state of emergency, his information technology department will head into Manhattan Monday at 6:00 am to fix any problems and assess the systems.

“Our core organization is on a cloud so our staff can access information and do their jobs virtually,” Mr. Large said. “The backup plan for Monday is for senior management and people with clients to work from home.”

Beth Blecker, chief executive officer of Eastern Planning Inc., of Pearl River, N.Y., sent out an email blast to her clients Friday morning with a weather update and an emergency checklist to help them prepare for a sudden evacuation. Ms. Blecker said she is in the habit of getting in touch with clients when events warrant.

Her own firm is ready for anything, with important information already encrypted in the ‘cloud.’
“I do remind my clients to keep some cash on hand, and to keep a credit card that doesn’t have a balance,” for events such as this one, she said.

At adviser Muriel Siebert’s Manhattan headquarters, she is confident that branch offices, including those in California and Florida, could handle any customer needs should the New York offices be closed after the hurricane hits.

The Wells Fargo Advisors LLC office in Virginia Beach, Va., which has about 30 advisers, is closing at noon today, to allow advisers to prepare for the storm, an assistant in the office said. Phone calls will automatically get rerouted to another office.

Aberdeen Asset Management, a global firm which has an office in Philadelphia, has a fair amount of experience dealing with disruptions, including recent ones in Tokyo and Bangkok. The firm is well-prepared for any emergency, locally or worldwide, said James Thorneley, group communications manager.

“We are monitoring the situation and may station a small operating team near our Philadelphia office overnight on Sunday, if forecasts suggest that there may be access difficulties on Monday morning,” Mr. Thorneley wrote in an e-mail.

The company’s U.S. disaster recovery site is located far away and is on a separate power grid, he said. The company also can reroute operations to other centers worldwide in the case of a disruption, and employees can log in from home PCs.

At adviser Muriel Siebert’s Manhattan headquarters, she is confident that branch offices, including those in California and Florida, could handle any customer needs should the New York offices be closed after Sunday’s hurricane.

Advisers expressed relieved that Irene looks like it will strike the Northeast over the weekend, which made it a bit easier to prepare, although it may disrupt their own personal plans.

Steve Hamm, an adviser with LPL Financial LLC in Richmond, Va., said clients know that they can always call into LPL and reach the home office in San Diego. Mr. Hamm’s greatest fear is a sustained loss of electricity. After Hurricane Isabel hit the area in 2003, power in the area was out for about 10 days. He has a generator now.

“We had the earthquake earlier this week that might have loosened things up,’ he said. “And now the winds may blow everything down.”