What is a financial adviser for? How can they help? One view is that advisers have unique insights into market direction that give their clients an advantage, like gazing into a crystal ball. But of the many roles a professional adviser should play, fortune telling is not one of them.

The truth is that no-one knows what will happen next in investment markets. And if anyone really did have a crystal ball, it is unlikely they would be plying their trade as an adviser, a broker, an analyst or a financial journalist; they’d be living on a boat in Monaco without any cares.

In reality, the value a professional adviser brings is not dependent on the state of markets. Actually, our value can be even more evident when volatility and emotions, are running high.

The best advisers offer multiple roles with their clients, beginning with the needs, risk appetites and circumstances of each individual, irrespective of what is going on in the world. A good adviser listens, asks probing questions and builds a good understanding of the client’s goals, desires and concerns.

None of these roles involves making forecasts about markets or economies. Instead, the roles combine technical expertise with an understanding of how money issues intersect with the rest of people’s complex lives.

Below I have listed seven hats an adviser can wear to help individuals or business owners without ever once having to look into a crystal ball:

The expert: Investors need advisers who can provide client-centred expertise in assessing the state of your finances and developing risk-aware strategies to help you meet your goals.

The independent voice: The global financial turmoil of recent years demonstrated the value of an independent and objective voice in a world full of product pushers and salespeople.

The listener: The emotions triggered by financial uncertainty are real. A good adviser will listen to your fears, tease out the issues driving those feelings and provide practical long-term answers.

The teacher: Getting beyond the fear-and-flight phase often is just a matter of teaching you about risk and return, diversification, the role of asset allocation and the virtue of discipline.

The architect: Once these lessons are understood, the adviser becomes an architect, building a long-term wealth management strategy that matches your risk appetites and lifetime goals.

The coach: Even when the strategy is in place, doubts and fears inevitably will arise. The adviser at this point becomes a coach, reinforcing first principles and keeping you on track.

The guardian: Beyond these experiences is a long-term role for the adviser as a kind of lighthouse keeper, scanning the horizon for issues that may affect you and keeping you informed.

These are just seven valuable roles an adviser can play in understanding and responding to your whole-of-life needs that are a world away from the old notions of selling product off the shelf or making forecasts.

For instance, you may first seek out an adviser purely because of our role as an expert. But once those credentials are established, the main value of the adviser in your eyes may be as an independent voice.

Knowing the adviser is independent—and not plugging a product—can lead you to trust the adviser as a listener or a sounding board, as someone to whom they can share their greatest hopes and fears. From this point, the listener can become the teacher, the architect, the coach and ultimately the guardian. Just as people’s needs and circumstances change over time, so the nature of the advice service evolves.

These are all valuable roles in their own right and none is dependent on forces outside the control of the adviser or client, such as the state of the investment markets or the point of the economic cycle. However, if you characterise these various roles, good financial advice ultimately is defined by the patient building of a long-term relationship founded on the values of trust and independence and knowledge of each individual.

May 2021