Money Talks: Naz Al-Asadi, Aspirion Wealth
Increasing regulatory compliance and rising back-office costs have prompted many financial advisers to take a greater look at the way in which they run their advisory business. As a result of these increases, we have seen a dramatic surge in advice firms of all sizes approaching and joining the ASHL Group networks.
How long have you been in the financial services industry, and what initially drew you to this profession?
I’ve been in the financial services industry since 2012 after leaving University (with a 6 month break in between to do a bit of travelling) and have been an adviser since 2014. I was drawn to the profession by accident to be honest! I won the Aviva Future Adviser Gold Award during my final year of my degree which allowed me to spend some time at Aviva’s head office in York, and also shadow a number of people who perform different roles – a tied adviser in a bank, an Aviva BDM, and a couple of IFAs. I also had the opportunity to speak to the CEO of Aviva at the time as well as attend a round table with representatives of the ABI, CII and AIFA (now known as APFA). I loved it and it was then that I realised I wanted to be an adviser, rather than work in accountancy which is the area I had been studying and obtained my degree in.
Reflecting on your experience, what significant changes have you observed in the industry since you began your career?
I came into the industry just as it had gone through RDR so I was able to observe the changes first-hand which this brought to the industry. Even beyond that though, there has been a lot of (largely positive) change – most recently consumer duty, of course. I have always felt the professionalism within the industry has been high during my time, however I genuinely feel as though the perception of this in the ‘wider world’ has increased year-on-year. In terms of the change which has had the biggest impact on client behaviour and has involved the most significant change on a day-to-day basis for us as advisers, I would say pensions freedom has been the big one!
If you could go back and advise your younger self when starting out in this field, what key piece of advice would you offer?
I would say to be yourself and to have confidence in your own knowledge and ability. It’s tough being a ‘baby-faced adviser’ trying to advise those 30-plus years your senior on what they should do with their pension and, sometimes, I think I perhaps tried to act how I thought an adviser with more experience should act. I would say to my younger self - Be confident in being you! This role is all about the people behind the numbers and building relationships. It’s a lot easier to build relationships by embracing who you are, and by being authentically you.
What strategies or approaches do you find most effective in building strong, long-term relationships with clients?
I think being personable and providing an environment where clients can feel comfortable asking questions is essential. Money is such a taboo subject sometimes and so being able to have conversations in plain language and delivering your advice in such a way that is understandable is so important. In my experience, this has allowed me to build a lot of long-term relationships and has also led to existing clients being more than comfortable recommending my services to their friends and family – no better endorsement and sign of client satisfaction in my view.
In your opinion, what are the most pressing challenges facing financial advisers today, and how do you navigate them in your practice?
I think the advice gap is a pretty pressing issue industry-wide. Providing a suitable and valuable ongoing service, which meets all FCA and consumer duty requirements, is quite a costly exercise and so I think some people who perhaps can’t afford to get this ongoing advice are being left behind. The general lack of clarity between advice and guidance only exacerbates this issue.
There are many people, particularly those who are younger, who aren’t obtaining advice and so I think we have a duty as an industry to find some way of ensuring these people are able to get at least some sort of guidance. If we don’t there’s a danger they may ‘fill the void’ by getting this online from unqualified sources and this could perhaps lead to costly mistakes.
In terms of what we are doing at Aspirion Wealth, we’re looking at engaging with those who aren’t obtaining advice personally through their workplace where possible, and delivering financial guidance and education where we can. We also encourage, where appropriate, younger generations to be involved when talking to parents about estate planning – As I said earlier, money can be quite a taboo subject (especially within families) so I’m not saying it’s always easy – But we need to try!
Can you share a particularly memorable success story or client interaction that reaffirmed your commitment to this profession?
There’s been a lot of success stories when I sit back and think about it – I love that part of the job where you can see a plan coming to fruition and the personal satisfaction that gives clients. By the very nature of having been in the industry longer, I’m seeing this more and more. I have dealt with some of my existing clients since first starting out and so, as the plans we put in place are often longer term, I have some clients retiring now who I first started dealing with in their early-to-mid 50’s. I had a meeting with two clients (husband and wife) only last week who will be retiring over the next 3 months at age 63 & 60 respectively. During the meeting, we talked about the holidays they have planned and the fact they will be going to Japan this Autumn. That’s something we have been discussing for a long time so to see that becoming a reality is not only very exciting for them, but it also gives me a great deal of professional satisfaction. I also can’t wait to hear all about it when they get back!
With the rise of digital tools and platforms, how do you integrate technology into your advisory services?
I still think we have a long way to go with this and I am constantly on the lookout for how we may be able to use technology to improve. When I look back on how things have changed in this space, we do leverage technology a lot more than was previously the case. I think that is probably true for a lot of the industry.
For example, as well as using cashflow modelling tools as the norm during client meetings and reviews now and working hard to ensure our systems are communicating efficiently with one another, we also carry out a lot more video-calls and make use of electronic signature systems, for example, whereas that wasn’t always the case. Covid actually accelerated this, in my view, as clients who may have previously been reluctant to use video got used to doing this with their family and so are more than comfortable meeting with their adviser using this medium. This may not work with all clients, and in some instances wouldn’t be appropriate, but I have some clients who, despite being given the option of face-to-face meetings, would much prefer to use video now due to the convenience and flexibility this provides.
What do you see as the key issue on the horizon for the industry?
I think a key issue is actually broadly related to the previous question and that is to do with technology. I think we need to embrace AI in particular as it is more and more a part of people’s lives. I don’t think this needs to be a threat – I believe there will always be a need for personalised advice, largely due to the sensitive and nuanced nature of dealing with money and making financial decisions. However, I do think we need to use AI to improve efficiencies where possible and that, those who don’t and ‘stand still’, are in danger of being left behind.
How will you leave your mark? (Either professionally or personally)
I want to leave my mark by showing others what a great industry this is to be a part of. Not enough school leavers or graduates (or even second careerists) know about it. I didn’t know anything about it myself until I was 22! I recently went into the University that I myself graduated from to promote how rewarding the job can be – not just financially, although of course if you work hard this can be the case, but also in terms of the effect you can have on people’s lives.
There is very much a need for good, quality advice out there (with this need only growing), and we need to ensure being a financial adviser is up there as an aspirational career for some of our best future talent, alongside being a doctor, a solicitor, or an accountant, for example.
And we end on perhaps the most important question…
What's your go-to Karaoke song?
Take Me Home, Country Roads – John Denver
#BuildingValue
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