Advisors across industry segments recognize the advantages of Rep as PM platforms. Broadly speaking, advisors agree that the platforms help them better serve their clients: They help advisors deliver a higher level of customizable service, allow them to be more tactical in responding to market movement, and enable them to provide more value to clients. Wade Wilkinson, president and CEO of Securities Service Network, a Knoxville, Tenn.-based broker dealer, says the platform gives advisors the freedom to develop the best solutions possible for each client. “Our reps have a single system where all those investment products and the attendant tech tools are available,” Wilkinson says. “That makes it easier than ever to provide their clients with the very best financial solution, whether that is a model of their own construction, a separately managed account or some combination thereof.”
Click to EnlargeYet not all advisors are such fans. One broker dealer with 21 years of experience doesn’t use his firm’s Rep as PM platform because “not enough clients want to be on it.” Another broker dealer with more than 25 years of experience says, “It’s too much work. We have firm-directed accounts. I am an asset gatherer, not an investment manager.”
Next Part 4 of 4: Personalizing the Model