Financial Advisor as a Career Choice - Essay Example

Financial advisor as a career choice Financial advisor as a career choice Development plan Financial advisor is a professional who offers financial services to clients. Financial advisors may act as: investment advisers, brokers, lawyers, insurance agents, brokers, financial planners, and accountants. Depending on the training and the licenses financial advisors have, they provide clients with financial services and products. An illustration: an insurance agent is qualified to sell variable annuities and life insurance. Their compensation is in terms of commission, fees or both (DE GOEY, 2003, p. 65). A financial advisor has the following duties: they should be independent of influence from outside so as to make reasonable investment recommendations, their selection of brokers should be based on the ability of proper execution of their responsibilities, make inquiry of client’s objectives of investment, financial and other factors before any recommendations are drawn, and always let the client’s interest have the upper hand. As a financial advisor there necessary skills and qualities required. The skills are grouped into two, financial and non-financial skills. The non-financial skills needed are: Relationship-management skills This is a people skill required to excel in the career of a financial advisor. A financial advisor is required to listen, ask the right questions, counsel clients, educate clients, resolve conflicts, and understanding the different personalities. They should be knowledgeable in psychology and finance as well, though research has it that “15% technical knowledge and 85 % psychology. Clients mostly approach a financial advisor in case they are spending a lot, saving nothing or even saving everything. Therefore they need a financial advisor who is not biased thus will attend to their needs and will assist them in making their decisions on finances. I have acquired the life skill which is essential in the profession of a financial advisor. The life skill I have acquired has been of help since I interact with my fellow colleagues and I am able to solve issues amongst us. Therefore becoming a financial advisor will not be challenging as I will be in a position to relate with my co-workers, boss, and the people outside the firm. This could result to a recommendation of a client to me and it could warrant a promotion. According to chapter 8 of Fitzsimmons and Fitzsimmons for any improvement in performance there should be suitable management skills. Personal skills; I am competent enough to manage equally I have been a leader. The relations that I have created in college are evidence that in a job market I can create a good relationship with my co-workers, bosses, and people around me. At times the advisor goes to the extent of making less money so as to create good relationship hence develop a long-term relationship of trust. Leverage comes about after offering quality services and in return they get referrals of other clients and the satisfied clients are willing to offer more for consultancy. With trust the client follows the guidelines of the advisor. The interests of the client should be placed above your own (KANDAMPULLY, 2012, p. 68). Communication skills. They should be articulate, good in writing and presentation skills to assist a client With the appropriate communication skills it is possible to explain to the customer the available investment opportunities. A financial advisor should be ready to be involved in a one-on-one discussion with a client since that is the main role. Ability to take and relate complex investment ideas and strategies to their clients in a manner that is effective and simple. Professional competence and no arrogance should be reflected in their communication. Empathy coupled with confidence have created a communication style that is powerful. The module has improved my communication and listening skills in a great way. Personally: I have learnt to be confident with what I say. I have learnt to relate to affluent individuals, engender trust and project confidence. Caring is also part of the financial advisors role. This therefore creates a good relationship between the client and the advisor (EDESESS, 2007, p. 87). Problem solving techniques Encountering problems in the job environment is normal therefore the financial advisor should be in a position to resolve the conflict amicably. As a team player I am supposed to help co-workers solve their problems rather than reporting them to the management. This goes over the personal responsibilities of a financial advisor. Although it is not their responsibility to resolve conflicts they are obliged to as it contributes to the success of the firm. A team player, it is said, “people gravitate toward you and your career will flourish”. Organizational skills The focus should always be toward the achievement of the goals, objectives, mission, vision and the strategies of the firm. A financial advisor should effectively plan their time, meet deadlines, manage budgets, and get what is needed from people in order to execute the duty allocated. The financial advisor should focus on details for the success of the firm (David J Mullen, 2010, p. 36). Through the module study I am now able to manage my time and fulfill the obligations set for the time as I have been handing my assignments in time. Technical skills Even though the responsibility does not involve any technology, proficiency in computer software and hardware is essential. This assists the financial advisor to pick the new programs that relate to their job description. A financial advisor is better placed if they are aware of more programs, shortcuts, functions, and keys (WENTZ, 2007, p. 79). Financial advisor should familiarize themselves with the software which relate to communication, computing, and marketing elements. The person should have sufficient knowledge in finance in insurance, retirement, financing accounts, accounts and tax services. They should fulfill the conditions of the respective authorities (Fontinelle, 2013, p. 78). I am in a position to operate a computer well and operate a variety of programs. Tenacity and ethics In every career choice there are ethics that govern it. A financial advisor should ensure that their execution of tasks is within the ethical limits. Passion for work, stamina to work for long hours and a competitive personality are essential in this career. A financial advisor should be able to go beyond what their competitors and co-workers practice. This sets them apart and makes them stand out. The consequences are production and offering of quality products and services. A competitive personality is also crucial for the success of the firm (RATTINER, 2002, p. 96). The possible employers include investment firms, Banks, sales associates, wealth management Client Relationship consultant, and many others. Reflective report Analytical skills The mindset of the advisor should be business oriented and operation with a high level of confidence is key. Their key activities revolve around interacting and talking to clients therefore if you regard spending time talking to people a waste of time, then a financial advisor is not the right choice of career. I personally enjoy spending time helping people out therefore this will not be a problem. In my course of study I have learnt how to interact with people. In have also developed listening skills which are key in the career. The study of finance was wide enough and enabled me gather knowledge on financial issues. This has placed me in a position that I can handle any financial problem and ensure that the client is no longer in a financial dilemma. The career is related to some level of stress which can only be eliminated if the financial advisor is passionate on their job. If they are passionate they enjoy their job and have fun while working. The passion results to a high productivity level and results in strong work ethics (WEST, & ANTHONY, 2000, p. 98). Trustworthy A financial advisor should be a person who can be trusted with the client’s financial issues. Client’s financial issues should remain private and confidential. The exposure of a client’s information impairs the relationship between the client and the advisor. If there is no relationship then it is difficult for the client to seek assistance from the advisor. I am trustworthy and work under minimal or no supervision. An illustration is: when I was on holiday I participated in a voluntary program. In this undertaking I did not need any supervision to execute my tasks. (CASE, & WILKINSON, 2007, p. 98). The main financial skill required is wide knowledge in the area of finance. The financial advisor should have a comprehensive knowledge on the subject. This enables the advisor to handle a range of cases in a more professional way. One of the major strengths is that I am social, a peacemaker and patient. This will help me in my interaction with the clients. I will be patient to listen to the client and offer appropriate advice to the client. As it has been discussed long hours of one-on-one discussions are vital to arrive to a proper solution. With the peacemaker character I stand a chance to resolve conflicts in an organization and not report some issues to the management as long as I can handle. Peace in any enterprise is very key. People in an organization should coexists peacefully to accomplish the goals, mission, vision, and strategies of an organization. Harmony promotes the co-ordination of co-workers and improves on productivity. I enjoy reading and this will help me to read far and wide so that I am familiar with the various cases and the solutions therein. I will also be informed on the current trends in the market. A weakness is that I am a poor time manager. Therefore I will work on my time management. I will achieve this by formulating a schedule for my work and program on the activities I am to be involved in and follow it to the letter. To be an effective advisor then I should ensure that my time is well planned, otherwise I will fail my clients. Service management It is assimilated into the chain of supply as a link between the customers and the sales. Larger inventories are required for most of service-intensive supply chains.Service is carrying out an action. A leader or manager should be a servant leader. Therefore they should be ready to serve the people in the society. Any organization aims at offering quality services. I find delight and get satisfaction after I serve people. I am gratified when I offer my best and produced satiating results. From the module I am now in a better position to serve others for I know what benefits come with service. In the case of a financial advisor, if I serve my clients well, they will be satisfied and this will result to more payment. Satisfied clients will recommend me (financial advisor) to other clients and hence marketing. (SCHNEIDER, 2003, p. 85). The tenacity of service management is to decrease the products and integrating service costs and retain the levels of inventory low, reduce the useless costs, increase service revenue, improve the satisfaction levels of the customer, optimize the quality of the service, and minimize technician visits. I have learnt to serve others without expecting anything in return since I have been a student leader. References DE GOEY, J. J. 2003. The professional financial advisor: ethics, unbundling and other things to ask your financial advisor about. Toronto, Insomniac Press. WEST, S., & ANTHONY, M. 2000. How top advisers sell: story selling for financial professionals. Chicago, Ill, Dearborn. EDESESS, M. 2007. The big investment lie: what your financial advisor doesnt want you to know. San Francisco, Calif, Berrett-Koehler. RATTINER, J. H. 2002. Rattiners Financial Planners Bible the Advisors Advisor. New York, John Wiley & Sons. http://public.eblib.com/EBLPublic/PublicView.do?ptiID=140162. David J Mullen, J., 2010. The million-dollar financial advisor : powerful lessons and proven strategies from top producers. In: s.l.:New York : American Management Association, . Fontinelle, A., 2013. Investopedia. In: s.l.:s.n. WENTZ, B. 2007. Food service management: how to succeed in the high-risk restaurant business-- by someone who did. Ocala, Fla, Atlantic Pub. Group. THEJENDRA, B. S. 2008. Practical IT Service Management a Concise Guide for Busy Executives. Ely, IT Governance Pub. http://www.books24x7.com/marc.asp?bookid=34427. FITZSIMMONS, J. A., & FITZSIMMONS, M. J. 2006. Service management: operations, strategy, and information technology. Boston, McGraw-Hill/Irwin. CASE, G., & WILKINSON, J. 2007. Service management strategies that work: guidance for executives. Zaltbommel, Van Haren Publishing. SCHNEIDER, M. 2003. Automotive service management series. From intent to implementation. Clifton Park, NY, Thomson/Delmar Learning. KANDAMPULLY, J. 2012. Service management: the new paradigm in retailing. New York, Springer. Read More