For some, technical-support departments don’t support. And account statements don’t state the necessary information, are too infrequent and are often inaccurate. But officials from Canada’s national distributors say they’re working to solve some of the problems that plague their sales reps.

Those changes are eagerly awaited by the more than 400 advisors Investment Executive surveyed in our second annual Planners’ Report Card. Across the country, reps from 14 firms share mixed reviews of the package of head office support services that can be grouped under the technology banner.

Last year, for example, advisors at Financial Concepts Group gave the firm’s front office a 6.8, standing seventh in a field of 13. This year, that figure dropped to 6.1, the lowest of all 14 firms. A FCG planner from Ontario notes: “There is not enough training, especially for new advisors.” FCG colleagues across Canada echo this, suggesting they need more training, seminars and technical support for their front-office software. Even advisors at Saskatchewan’s TWC Financial – whose back office rated a 7.7 – says there is room for improvement in its front-office technology. “Sales and tech support for individuals needs improvement,” says a Calgary planner.

Burlington, Ont.-based Berkshire Investment Group Inc. has also had troubles with technology. It recently converted its back-office system to Dataphile Software Ltd. and has suffered “teething pains,” as a Manitoba planner puts it. An Ontario rep voices what many advisors are feeling: “Berkshire is in its growing phase and it is hard to keep up. We need more help.”

So just what type of help are planners looking for?

Technical help. Although planners may have top-notch tools at their fingertips, no one is showing them how to use them or taking their calls when software programs run amuck.

A Dundee Securities Corp. planner in Ontario says he hasn’t been trained to use the firm’s front-office software. “The firm has seminars but there is not enough support; there is not enough outlay of money on that.”

Training is a priority

Paul Stapleton, IT manager for Toronto-based Dundee, says that is about to change. “Education and training of the rep is a priority of the firm,” he says. “We will be focusing on providing the information and training to the reps to increase their knowledge of the product.”

Stapleton says the firm is working on online manuals and has agreements with independent vendors such as Star Data Systems Inc. for on-site training. However, there is no set budget for technical support and training at Dundee. Money is directed generally to technology and operations, and nothing is specifically allocated to tech training, he says.

Likewise, planners at Winnipeg-based Investors Group Inc. rave about their front-office software but shout for more technical help. IG has top ranking in the front-office (7.8) category yet some IG planners say they don’t know how to use their front-office software. “First-class – I’d give it a 10,” says an IG rep in Northern Ontario, “but I don’t know how to use it.” A planner in southwestern Ontario pats the company on the back for its “excellent” training, but feels IG can improve “the support level for software.”

IG acknowledges the situation. New recruits undergo a 10-week training program, says Shirley Babaluk, IG’s director of sales automation, and there are 12 permanent training sites across Canada. The training itself is free, but planners are charged a mandatory monthly fee of $225 to cover the cost of a laptop computer fully programmed with IG Advantage, Investors’ entire software package.

If planners do not live near the training centres, they attend the in-class sessions only for the first and last two weeks of the session. For the remaining six weeks, they return to their home offices and learn through a distance-education program. Babaluk says the next step is to develop programs that cater to planners at different career stages. “The focus now is on how we can provide remedial and ongoing training.”

Greg Duggan, a financial planner with IG in Cornwall, Ont., wants to do more work electronically. Now, Duggan switches back and forth between his client management and transfer software each time his clients want to move money to different accounts. He calls this “awkward and cumbersome.” Even more important is the ability to perform financial transactions with a few clicks on his laptop. “I’m looking for the capability to do account transactions online. It should be integral to the client management software package.”

Babaluk says the company is developing a software program that will let planners transfer money electronically.

Another thing that bothers planners is the fact that they have to pay for front- and back-office software.

For one Dundee planner in Ontario, it feels like “nickel and diming.” The advisor working for Dundee has no choice, says the planner. “We have to buy the [RPM International Trade] PowerRep system and it costs me $1,800 a year. They look like they are giving you something but they really aren’t.” There is also a one-time fee of $1,500 for the software, the planner explains, for a total bill of $3,300 for the first year with Dundee.

Account statements

RPM’s PowerRep does get some good reviews, however. Planners at TWC sing its praises and one planner says the program offers “consistent reporting.” This is reflected in TWC’s taking top spot in the back-office category, despite a full one-point drop in TWC’s front-office ranking to 7.6 .

As a result, TWC planners give high marks to their account statements. A TWC planner from Manitoba would still like to see more information, but says the company is working on it. Last year, TWC planners gave an 8.3 to their statements vs this year’s 7.2, the third highest, trailing IG’s 8 and CMG Worldsource’s 7.4.

Overall, account statements are another sore point. A West Coast planner worries that account statements that are not user-friendly will send clients elsewhere. If clients can’t understand their money matters, they might just find someone who can make it clearer, and that could be the banks.

On average, marks from all financial planners for front office and account statements dropped. Last year, front office averaged 7.5, but this year it slipped to 7.0 Account statements averaged 7.6 last year, while this year they received a 6.9.

There is no doubt technology is a big issue with advisors and many are concerned that their firms aren’t spending enough to keep technology up to date. A TWC planner in Western Canada says his firm is “very late” with a Web site that will give reps client information. Advisors at Manulife Financial Corp., however, say their company has an extensive Web site for its planners called RepSource. Its planners register and receive an identification code and gain access to client accounts and software updates.

Front office’s counterpart, the back office, is singing the blues. In Investment Executive’s second annual Planners’ Report Card the average back office score dropped to 7.0 from last year’s 7.5. And it seems a lot of the problems can be linked to growth.

According to an Investors Group Inc. planner in Alberta, the back office is “one of the worst aspects of the company. There’s room for lots of improvement in back office, especially during RRSP season.” IG came in fourth this year in the back-office category with 7.1. Last year it had 8.1.

A Berkshire Investment Group Inc. planner in Northern Ontario, attributes back-office problems to the firm’s expansion. “There’s been tremendous growth, and so the back office is being restructured to meet demands.”

While growth at Berkshire is tolerated, it is an entirely different story at the Assante Corp.-owned firms of Equion Group, Financial Planning Group and Financial Concept Group. For the past two years, Winnipeg-based Assante has been buying planning firms to boost its operations, but there are bumps along the road to consolidation.

Says an Equion planner in Calgary: “The client isn’t the focus for the back office, and keeping up with the paperwork has been overwhelming.” And the firm’s order execution system has really taken a beating this year.

Almost half of the Equion planners polled say the back office needs improvement, an area many think will come if the consolidation process is pushed along. The takeovers have caused confusion among the ranks, with a regrettable result, an Ontario FCG rep says. “The back office is the worst. There is no viable business plan.”

It’ s the same story with FPG. A Saskatchewan planner complains its back office is short-staffed, leading to errors and forcing the planner to follow up on orders.

Assante expects the consolidation process to be complete by September.