Diary of an Adviser: Chris Knight

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Diary of an Adviser: Chris Knight

Monday

The annoying tone of my 6am alarm wakes me up and off to the gym I go.

I arrive at the office for a catch-up with the team, drop in last week’s paperwork and run though forthcoming review and new client meetings.

I spend the afternoon catching up on emails, running through paperwork and client phone calls.

Tuesday

I am up in London today attending a seminar on tax-efficient investing. It is not only a chance to obtain some vital CPD [continuing professional development], but also to refresh my knowledge and technical understanding of products are available in the marketplace. 

After the seminar I catch up with an old colleague over lunch. We discuss the pitfalls of our industry. We would like to be able to provide financial advice to more people. 

I then head off to a review meeting with a client to update his cash flow plan and run through the performance of his portfolio, some of which is invested in our own Beaufort discretionary fund manager.

He is pleased with the investment returns and the various retirement scenarios we have modelled for him. 

We leave this meeting with a clearer understanding of his plans for retirement. In the afternoon, I run through my reports and cash flows to ensure they are all up to date and book up my review meetings well ahead of schedule.

Wednesday

The morning starts with a 5km run, before meeting an existing client to discuss his tax situation and to talk through investments.

He is not making use of all his tax allowances. We agree on a strategy to even out his portfolios and establish a trust, which has been on his mind since the arrival of his first grandchild. 

After this, I drop the paperwork into the office along with the cheques, before heading to Henley, not far from our office, to meet a solicitor who introduces clients to us in the evening. The firm has moved into new offices and so it is a good chance to build on our professional relationship.

Thursday

I have a 9am client sign-up meeting with a lovely lady who has embarked on a new business venture after being employed for 15 years. She wants to discuss pension planning and is keen to explore her options for ethical investments. 

She is passionate about sustainability and this is something she is very keen to promote and invest in. Having left the client happy with my proposed solution and plan, I head off to my next meeting of the day with a new ‘introducing’ solicitor.

There are a number of solicitors who partner with us. They want to make sure their clients receive an ‘all-round’ approach to inheritance planning and some solid advice on pensions. The meeting goes very well.

Friday

Today I have a meeting with my boss and another team member.

At this time of the year we run through our annual business plan and it looks good for 2019.

We host a regular programme of seminars for both clients and introducers, as well as monthly informal breakfast meetings for the latter. They prove popular and fruitful and we plan ahead for these in the new year.

Now is the time to pause and reflect on the milestone achievements in 2018.

I check the diary for next week before signing off at 5pm, which means I am back at home early. This pleases my other half as we are off out for dinner, a great way to round off the week.

Chris Knight is a financial adviser at Beaufort Financial

If you would like to write a week in your life as an adviser, email Melanie Tringham at melanie.tringham@ft.com