What's on my mind

Adviser charging from the client’s perspective

2nd March 2018

Follow these five rules to get communication of this tricky issue right. I can hear you already: “Oh no, not another article on adviser charging…” But bear with me. Many advisers have (perhaps subconsciously) hitherto approached the matter from the perspective of what they are required to say based on regulatory
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How to get adviser remuneration right

15th January 2018

Too many business owners base remuneration structures on assumptions, missing the chance to make them work better for all involved. Remuneration, which encompasses salaries, bonuses and other variable pay such as incentives, is usually the largest expense item for advice firms. Yet many directors spend relatively little time on the design and
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Ten steps to acquisition success

21st December 2017

Integration is rarely easy but getting it right is key. There is a widely held view that the majority of acquisitions do not deliver long-term value to the acquirer. The Institute of Directors reckons this figure could be as high as 70 per cent, though it varies between market sectors. Here,
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Five steps to a successful risk management strategy

10th October 2017

Risk management is an ongoing process, requiring the right documentation, commitment and resource. If you were to ask 10 advisers what risk management meant to them, you would likely get a wide variety of answers. Quite probably 10 different ones. I am often asked what constitutes a sensible risk strategy for an
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Ten key challenges for advice firm owners

11th July 2017

Businesses that can address all 10 points are likely to be profitable and successful... I spend a lot of time with the owners of advice firms discussing the development of their businesses. In many instances, what holds them back is not their drive or ability but rather taking the time to articulate
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Is working from home bad for business?

23rd June 2017

Working from home has been part of the employment structure in a number of firms for many years. For some people it is now a firmly established way of life. The impact can certainly be seen, at least where I commute into London. On Fridays, for example, the station car
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Meet the Adviser Champions: Video interview with Roderic

23rd June 2017

Advisers are relating to clients better than they ever have done as a result of the Retail Distribution Review, argues Roderic Rennison in our latest Adviser Champions interview. The Rennison Consulting director gives further credit to the regulator for the improvement in client-adviser relationships for encouraging advisers to do more research before
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Startups & Pensions Auto-Enrolment: What you need to know

16th March 2017

If you are one of the 500,000 plus people in the UK who started a new business in the last year, pensions are probably not uppermost in your mind. Nevertheless, if you are employing anyone apart from yourself, it’s a mistake to ignore them as you could face fines of
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10 mistakes not to make with pensions auto-enrolment

6th March 2017

All employers have to provide a workplace pension for their eligible staff by 2018. This process is called ‘automatic enrolment’, and is often referred to as ‘auto-enrolment’. Avoiding the topic is not an option, so it’s important to be aware of what is required and by when. Otherwise, you may make
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How to manage your advisers

13th December 2016

Most people that run their own firms combine client work with the day-to-day management of it. Clients often have unexpected requirements and, as the lifeblood of the business, the natural thing to do is to give them priority. However, that may mean the management of your employees takes a back
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Writing & Speaking

To read the various articles and papers I've written in the recent past, please click here