All quiet on the bank-branch front

That meant most of the banks’ IE ratings (the average of a bank’s category ratings) were higher than in 2023, albeit marginally. Also, the collective IE rating for all six banks was 8.1, similar to 8.2 a year ago. (See the results table for 2024.)

At Bank of Montreal (BMO; with an IE rating of 8.1, up from 7.9 a year ago), there were significantly higher ratings in five categories. Much of that improvement was among the technology categories, with BMO advisors more positive than in 2023 regarding “client onboarding tools” (rated 8.3, up from 7.6), “client relationship tools” (7.6, up from 7.1) and “advisor’s experience with back-office tools & services” (also 7.6, up from 7.1).

BMO’s advisors said the bank’s recent investments in their client onboarding and client data management systems have been a big help.

For example, “They have an onboarding system they’ve invested in that makes it easy for new clients to understand what our [bank’s] offerings are,” said a BMO advisor in Ontario. “I use e-signatures frequently and … it helps facilitate a lot of things,” they added.

BMO’s Salesforce system has been “realigned,” the bank said in an emailed statement, so the technology is overseen by one national leader who is a part of the specialized sales group. Continued investment in digital planning tools is important to the bank, the statement added.

For CIBC, where branch advisors work with CIBC Imperial Service, the bank’s IE rating also was slightly higher than in 2023 (9.0, up from 8.9).

CIBC was the only bank in the Report Card to see a significant year-over-year jump in its performance rating for the bonus structure category (9.1, up from 8.4), which was among the 10 areas rated most important to advisors in 2024.

CIBC’s bonus program was described by its advisors as “fair,” “clear” and “consistent.” One of the bank’s advisors in Ontario said branch employees were “compensated fairly for our efforts,” even though the workload can get “heavy.”

“We [have] made consistent investments over the past few years [in] both base salary and incentive opportunities,” said Rory Mitz, senior vice-president and head of CIBC Imperial Service, noting the focus was on advisors giving “quality advice.” He said the bank considers the rising cost of living and what other institutions pay.

Advisors with National Bank of Canada (NBC) also expressed satisfaction with their pay, giving a rating of 8.1 for “compensation structure” that was significantly higher than 7.2 a year ago. The bank saw significantly improved ratings in six areas year over year, and its IE rating was 8.5, up from 8.4 in 2023.

Nonetheless, NBC’s advisors offered mixed feedback on their compensation. A few respondents said the components were clear, but more advisors cited the complexity of NBC’s setup.

Tony Scalia, vice-president of investments with NBC, said the bank reviews pay “constantly,” adding in an emailed response that “employees have access to an internal application to better understand the different components of their compensation.” Questions can be addressed by their managers or an employee call centre.

Feedback from NBC advisors was more unified regarding their bank’s “financial planning support & technology” (rated 9.1, up from 8.6) and “support for tax planning, wills & estates” (8.6, up from 8.1). For 2024, NBC was the only bank with more than one significant year-over-year rating increase in the wealth-management tools categories.

“The bank has improved on this,” said an NBC advisor in Quebec, citing software changes. “We take into account the client’s projects [and] dreams in detail.” A separate NBC advisor in Quebec said their tax and estate resources “are improving. It’s still evolving [but the] tools have become more important.”

Scalia confirmed that enhancements are planned for 2025 for Advice Suite, the firm’s planning system, with the bank expecting advisors to use it to steer conversations with clients about life goals.

This year’s Report Card saw financial planning tools placed among the top three categories by importance to all advisors (9.5 average, unchanged from 2023).

For Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD), also among the four banks that posted general improvement this year, there were significant upward shifts compared with 2023 in six category ratings. That led to a marginal increase in TD’s IE rating, up to 8.1 from 7.8.

The area in which TD improved the most year over year was the client onboarding category (rated 7.9, up significantly from 6.3 in 2023). Many of its planners, who work under TD Wealth Financial Planning, cited improvement.

“[The bank] has introduced a new onboarding platform,” said one TD advisor in Ontario, adding that the bank also plans to improve its client relationship tools. “When launched, it had a lot of issues, but they’re working on fixing them. The new onboarding platform is much more user- and client-friendly, and [it] gets the job done,” they said.

“We continue to invest in tools to simplify processes and enhance the experience we offer our clients,” Ryan McNally, senior vice-president and head of wealth advice distribution with TD Wealth, said in an email. This investment includes developing secure programs that help planners and clients share sensitive documents.

Where advisors sought improvement

Advisors working in Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) branches shared ample criticism in the 2024 Report Card, with all but one of the bank’s category ratings dropping significantly. Its IE rating fell to 6.7 from 7.7 in 2023.

The ratings that dropped the most for BNS compared with a year ago were for “advisor education & development” (rated 6.2, down from 8.0) and “branch manager” (7.0, down from 8.8). The latter result is notable because the branch manager category was rated highest for importance by advisors this year, with a 9.5 average, unchanged from 2023.

Despite that decline, many BNS advisors said their branch managers were flexible and supportive. However, almost as many advisors described their managers as being too busy to help them or lacking knowledge.

Advisors who want “regular coaching and daily management” periodically find gaps in support, said a BNS advisor in Ontario, and those advisors “end up seeking help from everyone but the management team.”

Another BNS advisor in Ontario wanted investing and planning tips, and said, “I look to investment coaches more.”

In an emailed statement, BNS said its core priorities for branch-based advisors include “simplifying processes for our advisors and expanding our advisor teams,” and investing in digital tools. About advisor coaching, the bank said managers are trained to develop and mentor advisor teams, a “core” part of their role.

Royal Bank of Canada, where branch advisors work with RBC Financial Planning, also saw a drop in its IE rating compared with 2023. But the dip was marginal (8.5, from 8.7).

A key aspect for RBC advisors was the ability to earn autonomy throughout their career. One RBC advisor in B.C. called the bank “the best place” they’d worked, based on their day-to-day autonomy and their “ very supportive manager.”

This article appears in the October issue of Investment Executive. Subscribe to the print edition, read the digital edition or read the articles online.