As the financial planning industry wades into an era of fiduciary duty with a client-centric focus, we’ve got some challenges on our hands when it comes to training.
In short, we’re failing to adequately prepare our new advisors for what comes after their technical education. It’s as if we give them all the letters of a new alphabet but don’t reveal the formula for combining those symbols into coherent words.
Many young advisors—even those who have completed comprehensive, rigorous schooling to earn respected degrees and professional certifications—discover that sitting down with a client requires far more than financial know-how. And it’s not just about having people skills. It’s about the process…how does an advisor guide and educate the client through each and every meeting?
Without knowing which questions to ask, when to ask them or how best to communicate information to clients, new advisors often find themselves stumbling through a slipshod process that guarantees little chance of a successful outcome.
And therein lies the problem. If financial advisors are going to work in the best interest of clients, the training offered by the industry needs to reflect the journey, not just the launching pad. We need to address the gap between education and implementation.
The solution, as I see it, lies in apprenticeships and better training programs.
By way of example: The medical profession arms its budding doctors with a wealth of technical knowledge. But beyond their technical education and exposure to different specialties—i.e., medical school—young docs are required to do a residency to learn how to apply and strengthen their knowledge.