InvestmentSense

The financial services industry is changing rapidly. Helping members embrace these changes is part of IMCA’s 2017 strategic initiatives and we wanted to share how the association is working to transform knowledge into value for you and your clients.

IMCA’s strategic plan was developed by your Board with you in mind – not only to help facilitate greater success for you and your clients, but also to help propel the industry by increasing public trust and improving outcomes for investors.

The plan positions IMCA for the future and at its center are objectives–based on GEARS: Grow, Educate, Add Value, Relevance, and Standards–designed to accelerate our role as the premier provider of advanced education for investment and wealth practitioners.

Here’s what this means to you:

• Grow. With more than 11,500 members and certificants in 38 countries, IMCA is growing. We are an organization of and for advanced practitioners. The objective for growth is simple: The more professionals we certify,...

IMCA’s Annual Conference Experience in May covered a wide range of topics with immediate and clear impact on investment and wealth professionals, from investment theories to behavioral economics. But the conference also tackled subject matter of a broader scale—including how economic and political developments abroad can affect money management at home. Dr. Paul Tiffany of the University of California – Berkeley took a close look at the dynamics of the American-China relationship in...

One of the key principles underlying all of IMCA’s online and live educational opportunities, including its Annual Conference Experience, is providing pragmatic education that helps investment and wealth professionals drive their business forward. As part of this mission, this year’s conference offered an Advanced Business Strategist Program (ABS), a “conference within a conference” designed for leaders of small, medium or large advisory teams or independent advisory businesses.

Ray Sclafani,...

Last week, we provided an overview of the Department of Labor’s new fiduciary standard, set to go into effect this week, based on a number of presentations from experts around the country at IMCA’s Annual Conference Experience held last month. We discussed what the rule entailed and its legal implications for investment and wealth professionals. But what does this mean in practical terms? How might they need to change their practices and products to stay competitive under this new standard?

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At IMCA’s 2017 Annual Conference Experience, we heard from some of the premier voices in finance, psychology, marketing and business on how new disciplines and emerging trends can affect the investments and wealth management sector. One of those voices was Richard Thaler, Ph.D., a professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, on the history of behavioral economics and its impact on financial services professionals.

There has been much chatter in recent years about...

The Department of Labor’s (DOL) new fiduciary standard, as of last Friday, is officially in effect. We’ve already covered it in prior blog posts (Part 1 here; Part 2 here) the broad contours of the rule, as well as the ways it’s poised to impact the industry. But wholesalers are in a unique position to be affected by the rule—what are their responsibilities when working with advisors and their clients? Will they need to transition their compensation model to include more fee-based arrangements?