Enjoy the current installment of "weekend reading for financial planners" – this week's edition kicks off with some clarity around the big industry buzz around the question of whether RIAs will still be permitted to call themselves "fiduciary" after Regulation Best Interest and the new Form CRS take effect (short answer: yes, RIAs can still call themselves fiduciaries, including in Form CRS, as the SEC merely removed the word "fiduciary" from its own prescribed templated language).
Also in the news this week are several other developments on the fiduciary front, including an announcement that now Massachusetts is looking at adopting its own state fiduciary rule (after the SEC failed to adopt a fiduciary standard in Regulation Best Interest), New Jersey's fiduciary proposal continues to progress (but the comment period is being extended after strong industry pushback), and professor Ron Rhoades raises the question of whether the industry's organized fight against all forms of fiduciary, from state regulators to the CFP Board, could itself constitute a violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act (particularly with respect to a potential broker-dealer boycott against the CFP Board, which itself is a private organization).
From there, we have several articles on advisory firm practice management, including a study showing that the majority of RIAs either don't have asset/account minimums or don't enforce the minimums they do have (which raises significant efficiency and productivity concerns as firms grow), the issues with RIAs (or any advisory firm) requiring clients to sign mandatory arbitration clauses, tips for conducting an effective summer offsite meeting with employees, how to deal with (and what really constitutes) a "toxic" team member, and why one advisory firm decided early on to break the usual pattern of hiring lead advisors, admin support, and junior advisors, and instead hired a "data geek" to help the whole firm run more efficiently (and figure out where to focus its resources).
We wrap up with three interesting articles, all around the theme of our own time and capacity constraints with clients: the first looks at the research on why it may actually be better to make yourself (as a business owner) a little more "scarce" (recognizing that, in practice, when prospective clients perceive you to be less available and in high demand, it can actually make them want to work with you more, as we tend to want what we can't have!); the second looks at the importance of creating some additional slack in your schedule and business (or what may seem short-term efficient can become long-term unstable); and the long-term value of saying "no" more often to ensure that you focus and prioritize the activities and projects that have the most positive impact on your business (with tips on how to actually say "no" more effectively and without offending).
Enjoy the "light" reading!