The Complete Picture

Doctors see it all the time: a patient presents with a com- plaint, and after an investigation and some tests, ends up being treated for something much broader. Sometimes the initial symptom can paint an incomplete picture of the total underlying malady.

It happens to financial planners, too. Simon and Emma Willson (not their real names) initially presented to Woodbury Financial Services with a very specific issue.

But now, months down the track, the scope of the advice and guidance provided by Woodbury to the Willsons encompasses a much wider range of issues, including a comprehensive intergenerational wealth transfer plan. And the job is not yet finished – the plan and the solutions initially put forward continue to evolve to this day.

A key element of the Woodbury proposition is that it works on a fixed fee-for-service basis, with all product commissions rebated to clients. “The engagement appealed to the client as all

commission from product, including insurance and debt, is rebated,” says Dominic Cogger, a senior adviser with Woodbury.

First contact with the Willsons was through Simon’s corporate superannuation fund.

“Woodbury has for many years provided advice to senior executives across a section of industries,” Cogger says.

“We have done a lot of work with executives in the financial services industry, having spent years understanding their remuneration packages, and therefore this niche provided an opportunity to work with this particular corporate.

“There was a need, an education need, for the senior executives of this business.

“Trying to identify where we could assist, we had a meeting with the human resources people and identified a number of financial issues that their executives faced. As a result of these issues we prepared a white paper, education briefing and one-on-one sessions. As a result of this investigation and our research we became the experts on financial matters with this corporate.

“Simon attended the main session, and a one- on-one session, and then identified an issue that we were happy to assist with.”

Cogger says it’s wrong to assume that executives of financial services companies necessarily have all their financial affairs covered.

“Whilst their focus can be on wealth accumulation strategies – savings plans, debt repayment, maximising super contributions, investment properties and the like – wealth protection and distribution can sometimes be a second thought,” he says.

“Simon knew he had to do it, didn’t know who to go to, and needed someone to drive it.

“Our initial engagement was restricted to wealth protection and distribution issues – personal insurances and estate planning. But it was still [a huge] job because of Simon and Emma’s circumstances.”

Cogger says positioning Woodbury as a “project manager” for the Willsons’ financial needs took a lot of the pressure off the couple to find someone to help, and saved them the time it would take to do that.