Blue Chip Digital

Lelané Bezuidenhout, CEO of the FPI, attests that the financial planning profession operates at an intersection of trust and transformation. Consumers seek answers, stability and guidance. Regulators prioritise compliance and responsible conduct. Professionals strive for meaning, relevance and growth. Bezuidenhout adds that at the core of financial planning is a duty of care – a responsibility that cannot be outsourced, delegated or diluted. While discussions about innovation often focus on technology, true innovation in financial planning encompasses leadership. It involves reimagining client engagement, success measurement and the evolution of a future-fit profession (page 8). Research shows the greatest value that a financial planner adds is through behavioural coaching. On page 22, Rob Macdonald suggests that this approach doesn’t change the fundamental nature of the work of a financial planner, which is to help clients implement money decisions. However, he doesn’t believe that financial planners can help clients make sound money decisions without helping them make decisions about their life as well. Regardless of what the biases are or why they exist, a financial planner’s challenge is to help people avoid behavioural biases by putting together optimal portfolios, says Florbela Yates, MD, Equilibrium, in her column on page 16. This requires a deep understanding of financial drivers, different asset classes, various investment styles, what risk means for different investors and what triggers certain behaviours. Investing is a complex and unpredictable game, where emotions and biases can often cloud judgement. By establishing a consistent process, investors can navigate the markets with greater confidence and clarity (page 54). If your advice process has evolved over time without a structured review, chances are it’s inconsistent and holding back your business growth. Turn to page 42 to find out how to map your advice process. AI has been in existence since the 1950s. The most recent iteration of AI relates to the rationalisation and reasoning capabilities of the large language models (LLMs) that underpin ChatGPT and Gemini (page 26). LLMs and Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) have been taking the world by storm. This storm is not going to leave the world of financial advice unscathed. In fact, it is going to fundamentally change the way advice is given. RAG opens the door for the use of LLMs in both financial reporting and advice (page 55). Francois du Toit, founder of PROpulsion, says that by using ChatGPT’s processing capabilities, financial advisory practices can build comprehensive procedure libraries that enhance service quality, boost operational efficiency and strengthen compliance frameworks – without the time investment that documentation typically requires (page 62). On page 50, Zeldeen Müller, founder and CEO, inSite Connect, shares three AI tricks to make your clients love you more. Reimagining client engagement, understanding and coaching behavioural biases and triggers, sound financial knowledge, leveraging technology and commitment to ethics and compliance are the makings of a future-fit financial planner. Read all about it in this edition of Blue Chip.