Samenvatting

The financial advisory industry is constantly changing (KPMG International, 2013; Ernst & Young LLP., 2015; PWC, 2012; Seetharaman, 2015), therefore, there are a number of challenges that will require the attention of advisers in order to provide clients with the best financial advice. As Financial Service organizations cannot avoid these challenges, they must therefore adapt by addressing the challenges and changes and aligning with effective approaches for improving their financial advisory services. Wealth management and advisory firms possess the great opportunity for profit and growth in the investment advisory industry (Aguilar, 2013; PWC, 2012 p.1, p.20). Also, assets under management raised to a record $74 trillion in 2014. (Appendix B-1: Figure 1, 2,). However, only those firms that are able to best understand which changes are affecting the industry will succeed (PWC, 2012 p.1). Thus, they must improve their advisory processes to maximize their benefits.
Applicable research, via various white papers and journals have been made available by the leading financial firms including KPMG, E&Y and PWC to identify continuous changes and rising challenges in the financial advisory industry.
KPMG conducted interviews with more than 30 CEOs, from a range of investment management firms from Europe to discover which have the most impact on financial firms (KPMG International, 2013, p. 2). Ernst & Young wrote publications based on interviews with several CEOs and digital entrants to understand the innovations that the new digital entrants are offering, and to investigate how these firms are going to challenge the traditional wealth management industry and show how they can change the industry and what the traditional firms should do (Ernst & Young LLP, 2015, p.1).