The financial planning industry has quietly passed. Evidence is mounting that financial planning-oriented broker/dealers are turning from financial planners to wirehouse brokers.(Registered Rep., March 1991.)

You're all set for that TV news interview. You've prepped, you're pumped and you've told your friends to tune in. Then you get the dreaded call from compliance. The interview is off, they say. Your firm won't let you talk to the press. The...

Now that millions of shareholders have awoken from the bubble to realize they have been mugged by the stewards of the companies in which they had invested, corporate governance issues are suddenly hot topics at cocktail parties. It's also getting...

Despite repeated denials by UBS CEO Marcel Ospel, there is persistent speculation that the Zurich-based bank has been preparing a formal takeover bid for Merrill Lynch. Merrill's name has been bandied about in takeover talk for the past few years...

What does your business card say? I'll bet it doesn't say stockbroker, but financial consultant or financial advisor or some other permutation on that theme. If you're an independent advisor, that's an accurate description of your role and not a...

With arbitration cases on the rise, many brokers are shaking in their wingtips about the prospect of being dragged through a legal process that, because of the current environment, some believe is heavily slanted toward the client, in the words of...

When meeting with current or prospective clients who have young children, you can, by asking one simple question and two follow-ups, gain their trust, get them to disclose their entire financial picture and ingratiate yourself with a great source...

With total arbitrations expected to hit an all-time high this year, reps must be vigilant in client dealings or they may get hit where it hurts in the pocket. Through the first six months of the year, arbitration awards totaled $72 million, on...

In this market, it is no wonder that customers are looking to recover losses any way they can. Even clients responsible for their own lousy picks are trying to pick the deep pockets of brokerage firms, claiming that they never would have racked up...

Wouldn't it be nice to have someone, or a number of someones, who could help you stay focused on new ways to help existing clients and bring in new ones?