Are you optimally efficient?

A successful financial advisory practice depends on how several capabilities are employed. You, your team, knowledge, skills, systems, education, office space, and technology are all capabilities. When all of these capabilities are systemized and aligned, you operate well.  This piece provides a few ideas on recalibrating your practice to win.

You probably also know what life is like when you are not operating in a systemized manner. When this happens, mistakes are made, and essential documents vanish. Delegation does not work because your team lacks the skills, or you can’t find the time to teach them.  

Systemize three capabilities

Systemizing the following three capabilities will make the most significant difference in being optimally efficient.

1. Segmentation

Categorize clients into service groups, then pair up an appropriate set of service “activities” to match (e.g., high-net-worth (HNW) and non-HNW clients).

2. Core systems

There are three core systems to automate:

3. Team alignment

Assign responsibilities to the people most suited to deliver each service event. This will require aligning your team to meet your new service expectations.

Your team isn’t just the people on your payroll. Top advisors must always remind and update their team of all three core systems. Using CRM technology, project management websites, and communication services like advisorstream.com or getresponse.com can reduce your time and increase efficiency while improving your value proposition and client experience.

Also, consider centers of influence – an insurance professional, a tax accounting professional, a lawyer, and a portfolio manager.  These people are part of your team and should know related client developments to help you wherever possible.

All three capabilities (segmentation, core systems, and team alignment) work together to ensure that:

• You have the time to focus on new opportunities
• Your clients will be looked after as promised
• Your team members will be optimally efficient in the areas of their strengths

Systemizing puts your value proposition into action

Once you’ve determined how to create value for your clients, you must communicate it through service. Lead by example. To demonstrate excellence, you have to practice it.

•    Demonstrate how you deliver on your value proposition by thoroughly understanding their needs.
•    Demonstrate that you have the capabilities to support their needs through the promises made in your value proposition.
•    Remind clients how great it is to do business with a top professional with a well-articulated process.
•    Be consistent and accurately display your behavior, follow-up details, and trust-building activities.
•    Demonstrate how your client service employs “routine excellence”: high productivity, high quality, and value creation.

Systemizing also leads to your next most enormous opportunity

Top advisors achieve the most success when they practice routine excellence: Everything in its place:  Everyone knows what to do – delivering what their service promises. Clients are getting more than they expect. Backup plans are in place for the unexpected. The back office supports your efforts in working with clients.

As you raise your standards, so too will your opportunities rise. When everything works, better opportunities present themselves. When you can rely on your team and your systems, you’ll have the confidence, time, energy, and focus to acquire your largest opportunities.
 

Jeff Thorsteinson is an industry veteran with more than three decades of professional experience. A former financial advisor, he helped build an award-winning online custodial platform and TAMP.