By Fiona Tait, Technical Director, Intelligent Pensions
I am not alone in this discovery and several commentators have speculated about whether financial services will – or in fact should – ever return to the pre- COVID world where a physical presence is always seen as the best way in which to deliver advice.
2020 BC (before COVID)
From an employer’s point of view, it is fair to say that the old-fashioned idea that if someone is not at their desk from 9 to 5 they are probably not working hard enough is still strong enough for working from home to be considered a perk, and only suitable in certain agreed circumstances. Field-based advisers fell into this category, everyone else was expected to not only do their work but to be seen doing it.
The push back against delivering on-line advice came largely from the clients themselves who were used to face to face meetings and the strong personal relationships this can deliver. As advisers we knew that on-line meetings would create cost savings, however we did not want to force our clients to move out of their comfort zone and we had a number of other concerns on top of this:
• It was felt that the income analysis and cashflow modelling we use was too detailed to carry out on-line
• Certain aspects of pensions planning were also thought to be too complicated to explain
• It is less easy to gauge client understanding and response to the information given to them
• Clients might find it less easy to ask questions and provide information
Some of these fears have proven to be valid however they are not unmanageable and there have been some unexpected upsides which have led me to the conclusion that a greater reliance on on-line working may well be here to stay even when it is no longer necessary.
What’s changed
I am not going to get into the different technology providers, but I will start by saying video conferencing is a game-changer. Prior to lockdown we used video conferencing occasionally with clients and an audio conference call facility whenever attending an internal face to face meeting was not possible, however it was considered as a fallback and very much inferior to the ubiquitous department meeting. Multiple callers all trying to put their point over at the same time coupled with natural tendency to ‘zone out’ when there is nothing to look at do not lead to an enjoyable or productive experience.
Lockdown has forced us to bite the bullet and invest in video systems and to our surprise it works very well. Being able to actually see the other person/people on the call allows you to gauge their reactions and anticipate when they want to speak. There have been some connection issues, but these have been fewer than expected and partly down to the fact that our systems, like many others, were never designed to accommodate the entire workforce at one time.
More importantly we’re all getting more used to the technology. Clients have seen or experienced their families using zoom or Facebook to maintain regular contact with each other, TikTok videos abound and TV programmes are being transmitted from the presenter’s living rooms. Situations which were awkward at first are becoming normal as people get used to keeping the children out of the background and muting themselves when they need to sneeze.
Doing hard sums
Far from being too difficult to run analysis on-line we have actually found that it can help to concentrate the client’s mind on the issues they need to know about. Using screen sharing means the cashflow model can be put right in front of them and it is more likely to be the only thing they are looking at.
Sitting next to a client with your laptop means attention can often be dragged away from the screen during the surrounding conversation, especially where there is only a side-on view. Being able to switch between screen sharing and a video view allow the adviser to focus the client’s attention on the relevant figures when it is most necessary. It also means we can use slides and charts to illustrate technical concepts such as the taxation of pension death benefits, and to help clients understand and compare the options they have available to them.
Ultimately there will still be a lot of clients, and employers, who prefer to deal in person with their advisers and staff but I very much hope that the experience and skills that we, and our clients’, have gained during lockdown may continue to be used.
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