A number of contributing factors means that financial services firms can
realistically expect even greater scrutiny around their sales processes:
- The introduction of the Financial Conduct Authority and its stated intent of a more intensive and intrusive approach to regulation
- The arrival of the Retail Distribution Review in January 2013
- The looming threat of very prescriptive product governance rules
As such, firms will be expected to review all parts of the value chain and ensure
each stage is fit-for-purpose. The way in which products are designed, how they
are developed and brought to market and how they are managed over their lifetime
will be central to our ongoing sales support proposition.
Huntswood has a proven track record in supporting firms with their sales support
activities, including:
- Financial promotions support - Augmenting in-house teams with qualified
compliance professionals or providing a full outsourced service, ensuring timely
review of sales and marketing collateral and alignment to heightened regulatory
expectations. We have provided financial promotions checking solutions to wealth
managers, life and pension providers, utility companies, banks and financial
advisor networks.
- Paraplanning - Huntswood’s paraplanning engagements deliver a structured back-office to support service to sales advisers. This enables highly skilled advisers to operate where they are most effective: infront of customers, building relationships. Huntswood has been delivering paraplanning services for over five years, operating both on client sites and at our dedicated outsource service centres. The scope of these engagements range from protection products, to more complex pensions, inheritance tax and investments paraplanning.
- New business quality checking - Business checking services are also
provided to a variety of clients to augment or replace their in-house
capability, to ensure fully compliant business transactions. Huntswood has
delivered new business validation services to leading wealth management
companies as well as the retail and commercial divisions of leading UK banks
- Sales process reviews – Providing a holistic appraisal of both the
effectiveness and compliance of existing sales practices, to optimise returns
and ensure continued adherence to changing regulatory requirements.
Huntswood provides support services to maximise the productivity, effectiveness
and compliance of our clients' sales teams.
