Shaw and Partners’ new national head of private wealth believes the biggest challenge for financial advisers right now is being able to deliver client efficiencies amid a complex regulatory environment.
Chris Smith was promoted to the role earlier this year, having initially joined the advice firm in August 2024 from Macquarie Group as a state manager for NSW.
The division currently has 220 advisers across Australia and $40 billion in client assets under management.
Speaking to Money Management about the responsibilities in the new role, he said: “On a day-to-day basis, it’s about ensuring our advisers have the right tools to do their job. I see our advisers as my client and I need to provide an environment where they have everything they need so they can help their clients.”
Asked about where he believes the challenge will lie in the role, he highlighted the multitude of responsibilities advisers need to navigate and how that impacts their ability to service clients.
According to an Advice Efficiency Survey from Iress, advisers are spending 12 hours to produce a complex statement of advice (SOA), 6.7 hours for a basic SOA, 4 hours on a strategy paper for a new client, and 2.8 hours reviewing existing documents.
He said: “The biggest challenge is about working out how you can be efficient in the delivery of our service to clients. There are a number of inputs currently which can make looking after clients difficult.
“You’ve got a huge investment universe to look after that’s changing, including additional asset classes, you’ve got cryptocurrency which advisers need to be across, plus a number of new regulations that they need to adhere to and need to be managed in an efficient manner.
“As well as this, there’s been a huge change in how clients are looking to have their money managed. You might have an older client who is used to getting a regular statement and meeting with their adviser, and then you have younger clients who want their information available on an app and you have to be able to respond to both of those.
“So an adviser has to deal with all of those inputs and do it in a way that is as efficiently as possible.”
A big efficiency booster will be the use of technology, he said, and being able to use it productively and to your advantage.
The need for less regulation and red tape has been a common argument among financial advisers who feel it is hindering their ability to serve their clients. With this in mind, the second tranche of the Delivering Better Financial Outcomes (DBFO) legislation is aimed at cutting red tape including by replacing SOAs with a fit-for-purpose client advice record.
