Financial adviser: Job description and activities
Job description
Financial advisers provide clients with advice on financial matters, making recommendations on ways to best utilise their money. The role involves advising clients on products and services available, ensuring they are aware of and understand those that best meet their needs, and then securing a sale.
Clients may be:
- private individuals;
- corporate organisations;
- specific groups, e.g., societies.
Advisers may specialise in particular products, depending on their clients, e.g., selling employee pension schemes to companies or offering mortgage, pension or investment advice to private clients. Others are generalists, offering advice to clients in all of these areas, plus savings plans and insurance.
Typical work activities
Currently there are three types of financial adviser:
- tied advisers, who work for one organisation, such as a bank, building society or insurance company, and sell only their products;
- multi-tied advisers, who are permitted to sell several companies’ products;
- independent financial advisers (IFAs), who can advise on any company's products and by law, must provide clients with the most suitable advice.
The Financial Services Authority (FSA)
has recently undertaken a review of the sector and plans to make many changes by 2012 (see Financial Services Authority Retail Distribution Review
), including a proposed change to the titles that financial advisers use.
Tasks typically involve:
- contacting clients and setting up meetings, either within an office environment or in clients' homes or business premises;
- conducting in-depth reviews of clients’ financial circumstances, current provision and future aims;
- analysing information and preparing plans best suited to individual clients' requirements;
- designing financial strategies;
- providing clients with information on new and existing products and services;
- assisting clients to make informed decisions;
- talking to groups and individuals about personal finance;
- researching information from various sources, including providers of financial products;
- promoting and selling financial products to meet given or negotiated sales targets;
- negotiating with product suppliers for the best possible rates;
- liaising with head office and financial services providers;
- liaising with other professionals, such as estate agents, solicitors and valuers;
- keeping up to date with financial products and legislation;
- maintaining detailed records to comply with the regulations of the Financial Services Authority (FSA);
- producing financial reports;
- contacting clients with news of new financial products or changes to legislation that may affect their savings and investments;
- preparing and sending out annual summaries of investment and pension and cost details to clients.
AGCAS
Written by Kelly Biggs, University of Portsmouth
