Financial Planners Job Description
Job Descriptions October 26, 2013Financial planners are economic experts who prepare financial plans for people and companies, including provisions for cash flow management, retirement, education, investment, insurance, tax, estate and other home issues.
Usually, the financial planner deals with personal financial planning. This is because when he or she meets with clients, it is oftentimes a custom-made solution for each individual client, who wants to protect his/her assets beyond just one business.
What Does the Financial Planner Do?
It is the job of the financial planner to consider all questions, key information, and advice from the client when creating a comprehensive financial plan. The planner, in this scenario, has a monumental task. First, he must ensure that goals are achieved and all assets are kept secure. The financial planner must also find direction and meaning in all decisions, making sure that all of these goals lead to a secure income, now and in the future. Of course, none of this happens by accident.
A successful planner ensures that all of these issues come together and that all goals are achieved by the target date. All of this will culminate in a predictable and profitable conclusion, not decided by change but based on sound mathematic decisions.
When providing these services to high profile clients, it is important to establish trust. This is partly done by honest, ethical and outgoing behavior. However, much of that trust will be earned through solid education and work experience, as well as the demonstration of competency and knowledge in your field. You’re not simply selling your products or services, but take a client-first approach to the person’s needs.
You must develop a step-by-step plan and keep your client informed as to what happens in each step. It is, in essence, a lifetime financial plan that you are developing, and you must learn to recognize a variety of financial situations so you can better determine the risk and reward potential.
Duties and the Important of Earning Trust
Regular duties of the financial planner include preparing analysis and research for the client’s review, crafting forecasts, planning meetings and debt liquidation plans, organizing scholarship or loan contracts for a child’s education, determining risk by comparing income, tax status and other legalities, and making recommendations for cash management and other financial products.
Another important aspect of the job is keeping up to date with current market trends because the failure to do this could result in a poor decision, based on non-existent factors. Therefore, full communication is necessary, not simply with the client but his staff of lawyers, accountant, bankers, trust officers and so on.
This is a job of authority and tremendous personal responsibility. It’s not enough to count the numbers or make an educated guess. This is truly a position of trust—trust that you be able to access a high risk and profitable income opportunity for years to come. The only way to do this is to start learning more about finance and the economy now.
