Brendan,
We would suggest that simply listing an advisers qualifications in itself is an inadequate guide to the service an adviser offers.
We recommend that all advisers should set out in detail their value proposition for example:
Marc Westlake is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER and has worked as an Independent Financial Planning Consultant since 1994 a specialist in Portfolio Management, Pensions and Tax and Estate Planning, he moved to Ireland from the UK in January 2008.
Marc has a Bachelors Degree in Economics, Politics and American Studies from Leeds and Pennsylvania State Universities.
He is a member of the Chartered Insurance Institute (
www.cii.co.uk) and Personal Finance Society in the UK having been awarded the Diploma in Financial Planning.
In Ireland, Marc is a member of the Life Insurance Association (
www.lia.ie) holding the QFA diploma.
Marc is also a member of the prestigious Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners in Ireland (
www.step.ie) and works closely with Estate Planning Lawyers in Ireland to assist clients in managing their wealth transfer to the next generation.
In 2011, Marc was awarded the post-graduate Diploma in Financial Planning from the Institute of Bankers/UCD
I
assist a select group of investors in Ireland to make prudent decisions with their money.
I achieve this through a consultative process providing clarity about their financial goals and what is important to them. I also provide insights into how markets work and how the decisions that investor’s make can affect their investment returns over time.
I apply a Fiduciary standard of care in my dealings with my clients ensuring that my recommendations are in their best interests and meet the standards of the internationally recognised Financial Planning Standards Board’s Code of Ethics and Professional conduct applicable to Certified Financial Planners.
One of my guiding principles is to act in the best interests of my clients, earning and maintaining trust by doing what I say I am going to do. I follow this principle by adhering to a core philosophy that forms the foundation for all the portfolios that I manage.
Some advisers think that their job is to make some kind of investment forecast and try to protect their clients from risk by moving them in and out of markets. This is a tactical asset allocation or market timing strategy and I don't believe that this is possible to do consistently because I don't have a crystal ball. Numerous studies support this view.
I believe that the role of a professional adviser acting in a fiduciary capacity is to help clients to make prudent decisions with their money matching their portfolio to their long term financial goals and focusing on risk and return.