Financial advisor field: Career path and trends

Financial Advisor: A Crucial Profession in the Finance Industry

Financial adviser is one of the most important fields in the finance industry. It is a profession that recommends and provides financial services to various consumers based on their financial problems. Many nations throughout the world require financial advisors to complete specialized training and obtain a license before providing advice. According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, financial advisors typically are required to have bachelor’s degree (“Personal Financial Advisors: Occupational Outlook Handbook:: U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics”). A degree in finance, business, mathematics, or law is considered a good preparation for the occupation.

Working Environment and Associated Occupations

The working environment for these professions is characterized by interpersonal, the desire for mathematics, understanding of sales, excellence in orientation and good analytical skills. On the job and training process, standard training period and close supervision are needed. The profession is associated with other occupations such as budget analysis, insurance, real estate broking and securities.

Career Path and Trends

The career paths for individuals in the field are majorly determined by the industries involved and one’s specialization. Financial advisors that have majored for example in the given area of investment or serving the clients are likely to become a specialist in a given regional or national level in the firm. Their nature of specialization and firms structures will dictate if they are still to be involved in the organization’s books. The specialization position and whether the full time is also considered. Financial advisors with adequate investing skills and knowledge are the most suitable for becoming money managers. In other firms, financial advisors technically remain within the traditional jurisdiction functions. However, with client interactions minimized or eliminated and instead play active roles in managing accounts of the clients concerning the other financial advisors within the firm.

The start of each year comes with trends and breakthroughs in various industries across all disciplines. The financial advisory is no exemption as many changes have been witnessed for the firms and the advisors. Dealing with the realities of the current economy, shifting to the different habits and the values younger generation of investors. The increased statutory oversight also is among the trends. This shows clearly that advisors have a lot in this category to take into account. Firms are to adapt to the new regulatory rules such as U.S. fiduciary proposal and Europe’s MiFID that are meant for protecting the investors. Failure attracts penalty and bad publicity. Increasing mergers and acquisition, increasing number of retirees, Robo-advisors coming up and working with young people among others. Financial professionals will be affected by these changes that are taking place.

Salary and Skills

Financial advisor’s salary averages $57,059 annually; the salaries ranges between $34,463 and $119,933 (“Financial Advisor Salary”). Better payment is determined by the skills one has acquired in the field. The skills that commonly considered to increase payment are the ones related to portfolio management, financial planning, and management of investments, insurance and planning in investment. Individuals in this category of the job have less than 20 years of experience. Experience plays an important role in determining the salaries of the individuals in this sector. There is a positive trend in payment and experience for individuals in this field. The differential payment is witnessed in different locations (“Personal Financial Advisors: Occupational Outlook Handbook:: U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics”).

Other skills which individuals should possess in this field are good interpersonal skills and the ability to gain the client’s trust. Strong skills in speaking which include the ability to discuss the concepts of finance in the terms suitable and easily understandable to the client.

Employing Organizations

Financial advisors work commonly in the fields of financial institutions. Such institutions are banks, companies dealing in mutual funds and the insurance companies. Working with individuals or company clients to determine their financial matters and assist them in attaining their financial needs and plans aspired (Cummings et al. 129). The activities they undertake are choosing the appropriate and most suitable investment in the market, giving the relevant tax laws that ascertain the investments and helping in insurance decision making.

Women and Minority

Getting women to this field of financial advisory remains one of the major challenges. The number of minority groups also is still very low. The percentage of African-American and Latino in the profession are really low this is supported by the last year figures in the Bureau of Labor and Statistics. It highlights that 31.6 percent of the job were women, 6 percent being black, Asian origin individuals representing 7.7 percent and the Latinos having a share of 7.1 percent in the profession (“Personal Financial Advisors: Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics”). The figures are not encouraging. There is the need for the country to become accommodative to the minority groups working towards a majority-minority nation is therefore important not only for social purposes but economical too.

There is need to address the issue, and the firms have a role to play. Organizations should set up goals which are diversified and come up with strategies and programs which are aimed at accommodating and providing opportunities for the women and minority groups. Professional bodies should put in place more programs in the universities and colleges for the same.

Employment and Typical Job Notice

The entry level for the jobs in the industry is determined by the category of the industry, specialization and management’s need. Bachelor’s degree for the beginners is mandatory. The skills and knowledge an individual has acquired determine the specialization areas for those involved. The areas of specialization call for further studies and citification from the relevant bodies before providing the services. Those willing to undertake the management role will pursue the further studies in management. The field is the fastest growing occupation as highlighted in the bureau of labor and statistics; this indicates that it is the most appropriate and suitable for the young generation.

For the job posting, financial advisor, the basic qualification is the bachelor’s degree, three or more years of experience, series of seven before hire and state life and health before hire. Other qualifications preferred are organizational skills, communication skills, ability to multi-task and proficiency on the internet. This job specifically of interest because it indicates the accommodation of the minority groups and the women, as well as those with disabilities and the qualification, can be easily attained by all (“Financial Advisor Salary”).

Working Conditions

The working environment for any financial advisor will be dominated many aspects. The common ones are the analytical thinking, interpersonal relationships, and proficiency in the field of mathematics, sales understanding, analyzing budgets and excellence in orientation (Monti et al. 1753). It is a profession which demands client close relationship and understanding. Moreover, it demands a lot of time during the process which brings along stress both at family and place of work.

Education, Licensure, and Affiliations

Most of the companies and individuals hiring in this field call for individuals with bachelor’s degree in business, finance, and accounting. Coursework in the various field must be accomplished. Investments, financial planning, tax laws and other related fields such as securities and real estate. For the specialization undertaking professional courses is must, the common ones are Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Chartered Financial Consultant. The two will help in persuading the clients because it shows on is fully trained, and they meet the professional requirements. CFP Board is mandated to register and provide relevant updates and requirements in the field. One has to complete the relevant coursework and meet the necessary conditions before practicing as a profession. The CFP credentials are critical, individual needs both working experience and bachelor’s degree to fulfill the process. Certification involves passing the exams and agreeing to the ethics code of the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (Rigby 545).

The Outlook

Financial advisors opportunities are expected to increase compared to other occupations. The growth in this field is to increase by 30 percent creating 60,300 jobs in the field, by 2024 323,200 financial advisors will have been employed (BLS). The contributing factors are increasing the number of young generations seeking retirement advice and the current trend away from pension based companies towards direct savings for retirement purposes (Theodos et al. 1).

Lifestyle Impacts

As a profession, the field demands a lot of time. The nature of work performed and the need for one to be keen is time-consuming. The activities involved are tedious since individual analyses the work of another person. The analysis varies from client to client and from time to time. At the same time one to keep in mind the statutory regulations which keep changing (Theodos et al. 3). As a result, individuals in this field are most of the time stressed which may affect their lifestyles and families as well as marriages.

Conclusion

I find this career, financial advisor, is the most suitable for my case. This is because the field is growing and offers a lot of opportunities for young generations. The requirements for entry to the field can be easily meant. However, what I found to be disturbing is the very low number of women and the minority in the field. It is also important to note that there is improvement to accommodate them. Despite offering the best opportunities, it also has impacts on our relationships with the families given that it demands much of our time. Employing organizations in the field are many banks, insurance, companies dealing in mutual funds and an individual can pursue specialization where they seem comfortable with considering their skills and the knowledge they have acquired all along.

Works cited

“Financial Advisor Salary.” Payscale.Com, 2017, https://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Financial_Advisor/Salary.

“Personal Financial Advisors : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics.” Bls.Gov, 2017, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/personal-financial-advisors.htm.

Cummings, Benjamin F., and Russell N. James III. “Factors associated with getting and dropping financial advisors among older adults: Evidence from longitudinal data.” Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning 25.2 (2014): 129.

Monti, Marco, et al. “Retail investors and financial advisors: New evidence on trust and advice taking heuristics.” Journal of Business Research 67.8 (2014): 1749-1757.

Rigby, Jason W. “Financial Advisor Aiding and Abetting of a Breach of a Fiduciary Duty Post Rural Metro: Clarifying Knowing Participation.” Del. J. Corp. L. 41 (2016): 545.

Theodos, Brett, et al. “An evaluation of the impacts and implementation approaches of financial coaching programs.” Urban Institute: Washington, DC (2015).

Questions

I visited my friend most of the time last summer, his father is a profession in the field of financial advisory. However, most of the time he was not available to spent time with his family claiming the demanding nature of work. How should one navigate this problem?

Financial advisory as a profession. Have you ever thought as the students the role they play in our economy?

The people are becoming less concerned with the pension based investment and considering investments which are directly related to the retirement. What could be the chief reason for this?

The future for financial advisors seems bright, but will it hold going forward?