"there are three big trends afoot in financial planning:

Many progressive advisers have learnt how to offer a credible SMSF program to their suitable clients, often within a “fee for service” offering. There is an almost total overlap between SMSF equipped advisers and those that also provide direct equities advice to their clients (many of these advisers include direct equities as part of a portfolio including the best performing managed funds – the latter ideal for sectors that direct equities don’t provide an easy solution for, eg international, small cap, specific styles, etc). Those same advisers tend to a judicious use of structured products eg ASX listed instalments over the same shares that have been selected for direct investing, hybrid securities for the enhanced fixed income component, and maybe 100% protected investments for accumulators.

ETF’s are increasingly being used as part of the “core” of the investment portfolio, with direct equities and structured products sitting neatly in the “satellite” component. ....We focus on how to optimize the “core and satellite” approach, to deliver powerful benefits to clients and to your practice.

.....This year the media feasted on the numerous regulatory reviews of the financial planning industry. What we didn’t see, unfortunately, was any reasoned response from the progressive end of the planning industry or the fund managers that were the subject of the report. This is troubling, because as the many, many well trained and professional financial advisers that are thinking ahead of the curve know – keeping your clients happy and comfortable now includes attending to the performance of the investment portfolio. And in this regard, a good financial planner will be very well equipped to deliver exactly what their client’s want, and need.

Any adviser that succumbs to the mantra of the large fund managers (“investing is too complex” – “leave it to the professionals” – “planners should spend less time thinking about investing and more time cultivating new and existing clients to build a profitable business” etc etc) is ultimately destined to fail in their pursuit of a large and profitable business with quality clients and recurring revenues. The market is moving too quickly, and retail clients are becoming too well informed, to hide behind these orthodoxies any longer.

What we have seen over the last 5 years is the rapid recognition by many quality advisers that they have to re-think the way they do business, and that this extends to the investment portfolio and its construction. At the same time, for lots of reasons (some good, some less so) the mantra of “scalability” is still a key concept for advisers – and in the era of modern business systems, it does seem sensible to ensure that the investment process is scaleable and efficient to administer.

...We focus on the tools that progressive advisers are implementing in their practices: the use of a “core and satellite” approach to investing – and within that core, increasingly advisers are using Exchange Traded Funds to generate low cost beta, as well as to enhance the efficiency of the planner’s practice. The data showing the relevance of ETFs as beta generators just keeps on improving. The analysis in these pages shows just why it is that low cost ETFs are becoming an important part of the global investment landscape.

The core and satellite approach offers several benefits. Clients can get real focus on alpha generation, at the same time as keeping their beta generators running efficiently. The core and satellite approach allows advisers to implement the latest buzz word in investment management – by rotating between alpha generators, clients can benefit from DIY “portable alpha” in their portfolios. This means that the core of the portfolio can remain relatively unchanged for lengthy periods – with the risk budget, as well as the advisers time and management budget – being diverted to what the client will really value them for – the generation of outperformance. This meets the test of scalability, and once you have made the transition, seems to be easy for many of our planning clients to implement without significant change to the way their business runs.

2009 has closed with a sense of vibrancy for many, with quality advisers around the country rolling out a sophisticated value proposition to their client base. If you haven’t already done so, now is the time to think about how you can re-boot your practice and your clients’ portfolios. Core and satellite investing will be part of that approach; but don’t forget that if you are going to the trouble to change the way you do business, tell your clients what the benefits for them will be....."

They may speak English but I still don't understand them. This should fill the populace with total confidence in our legislators and their neverending fight for fight for truth, justice and the Australian way.

http://www.smh.com.au/business/big-flop ... 1c6qn.html

Big flop planner's life ban overturned
Ben Butler
March 24, 2011

A FINANCIAL planner who was closely involved with two of Australia's biggest investment flops, Westpoint and Trio Capital, will be back in business within months after his life ban was overturned by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission banned Ronald Caines, of Ellis Lane, New South Wales, in 2008 because he advised clients to invest in Trio, then known as Astarra Capital, without telling them the company had lent him and his wife more than $500,000.

ASIC discovered the loans after investigating Mr Caines over his role in property investment flop Westpoint, which collapsed in 2006 owing investors $388 million.
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Trio Capital was shut down by authorities in late 2009, and in December last year former director Shawn Richard pleaded guilty to three dishonesty charges over his role in the $426 million collapse.

In a decision last week, AAT deputy president Robin Handley reduced the term of Mr Caines's ban to three years despite finding the former bankrupt ''still does not understand his obligations'' as a financial adviser.

This means Mr Caines, who has been offered a job with Titanium Group, will be able to practise as a financial adviser from August 12 this year.

Mr Handley said that in 2004 Mr Caines sold his business, Financial Strategies (Aust), to Richard for $300,000, almost $50,000 of which came from Century Investments Holding Group, a company associated with Richard that was registered in a tax haven, the British Virgin Islands.

Mr Caines received an additional $252,000 from Century in seven payments over the next two years ''which took the form of loans'', Mr Handley said.

Mr Handley said he had difficulty understanding Mr Caines's financial arrangements at the time.

''I suspect that the confusion over exactly what these financial arrangements were and the lack of substantiating evidence is at the root of Mr Caines's problems,'' he said.

''Mr Caines's muddled thinking also seems to be reflected in the lack of clarity in his understanding of his obligations in relation to conflicts of interest and disclosure.''

Mr Caines told the tribunal he had tried to research courses on disclosure requirements and managing conflicts of interest, but admitted he had not looked at the ASIC website, which has links to financial planning courses.

I applaud those with more patience than I, to deconstruct such gibberish

The chief executive of Westpac, Gail Kelly, again had analysts and financial journalists scrambling for their phrasebooks on management consultant terms yesterday when she presented her bank's full-year results in Sydney.

Kelly had been expected to push her new term ''new reality'' but in a major shock to the market she peppered her results briefing with several new catchphrases.

... Westpac was ''leveraging the optionality inherent in the model'', .. that the bank was ''stepping up'' and ''pushing hard'' on several fronts.

''We need to invest to achieve this upscale and well-governed best-sourced environment,'' she reasoned. ''But the benefits to efficiency in effect to this are already significant.''

.....''We made good progress here over the course of the past three years. We're really pleased our people leader index operates above global best practice [ !! B. ].''

The Westpac chief also discussed the bank's ''productivity agenda''. ''Best sourcing at its heart involves systematically identifying and engaging the most skilled and most cost-efficient resources to run identified functions or processes.''

At the earlier analyst briefing, Kelly remarked that Westpac was ''retooling the platform''.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/kelly-to ... z1caIe0M1n

That would be a SELL in broker languauge??