The Evolution of Investment Advice
When we started in this business the job was to find the best stocks. Stocks that performed better than other people’s stock picks, that was the role of a stock broker. Change has taken place in many areas including significant changes in investment portfolios and philosophy.
Owning a portfolio heavily weighted to Canadian dividend paying stocks is not accepted as a well-diversified portfolio anymore. Actively trading a few stocks with highly concentrated positions is not accepted as good portfolio management anymore. Times have changed and evolved. Just as there has been evolution in many areas of our society there has been an enormous evolution in investment advice and portfolio management.
Investors should have access to proper planning. Proper financial planning and goal setting that is focused on what is important to them that requires planning, money and time that they want to accomplish in their life time.
Investors should demand efficient portfolio management. The days of “buying” a few Canadian bank stocks, pipelines, and utilities have been replaced with focusing on asset allocation, being properly diversified and understanding factors of return and how they are linked to your goals.
Investors should demand reasonable fees and expenses. Working in a fee based arrangement with negotiated reasonable fees. There has a been a great deal of evolution in fees and fee disclosure.
By our definition the evolution of advice focuses on wealth management, referring to modern and efficient planning, goal setting, and execution.
