A financial plan is essential for the success of any organisation. However, financial planning is getting increasingly tougher as the days go by. Not only the costs but also the compliance obligations are rising every year. As a result, it is taking more time than ever to complete manual processes such as signature collection and populating your SOR (System of Record). Furthermore, there are higher chances of mistyping key details when you enter details manually. That is where financial advisor software can help you. Automating the planning processes reduces your administrative costs and increases accuracy.
Let us look at the Benefits of financial advisor software.
Reduces Overall Costs
The financial industry is growing, and it is expected that in the next few years over 2 million Australians will turn to a financial planner for advice. With the growth of the sector, the costs incurred also rise. Running a financial planning business is an expensive affair as there are several recommendations by the Royal Commission on Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation, and Financial Services Industry. For instance, phasing out of grandfathered commission, as recommended by the Royal Commission, would adversely impact the profitability of financial advisors by cutting their income by almost half.
In short, new compliance regulations, higher administration costs, and complex reporting could impact the net earnings. A financial advisor software can take over a lot of routine stuff, thereby bringing down the costs.
Better Compliance
As the regulations get stricter, you’ll need stricter qualification standards to meet, undertake frequent professional development programmes, and document everything in greater detail. Financial planning software can take most of the burden off your shoulders and help you meet the compliance requirements. With better compliance, you might have a greater chance of retention under the proposed changes by the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA). You can make your business efficient by deploying financial planning software to suit your specific needs.
Saves Time
Traditionally, many tasks associated with financial planning have been manual in nature. Tasks such as signature collection and System of Record (SOR) integration is manual and drain both your time and money. Financial planning software can save your time by taking over manual workflows within the firm and with the licensee partners. Simple changes such as digital signatures and automatic documentation can go a long way in saving time. It also makes tracking the data easy. Furthermore, you can easily check your records with a few clicks if needed.
Reduces Mistakes
As most of the routine work is undertaken automatically, there are fewer chances of human fatigue leading to mistakes. Any unusual activity or discrepancy is easily noted and can be rectified immediately. Additionally, it is possible to enter the figures and do a forecast using various scenarios. It is possible to show the clients exactly what they can expect under various circumstances.
As you can see financial planning software brings a lot of flexibility and dynamism to your business. It frees up your time so you can use it on growing your business further and become more competitive. Scaling up your business is also easy as you don’t have to invest too much or make some drastic changes. A few tweaks here and there with the help of the software are all you need. And more importantly, it allows you to devote more time to your existing customers, thereby increasing customer satisfaction and better value.
