Develop a detailed process to maintain compliance

You’ve probably read numerous articles exhorting you to put a process in place to maintain compliance. The problem is, there are far fewer pieces about how you create a process. MDRT members recommend the following:

• Staff taskers. Have a systems manual for what every person in the office does. Start by having staff members write down every single step of all the tasks they do. The next time they do the task, have them work from the task tracker and modify or update as needed. Consider videotaping the processes to create a visual task manual.
• Check the box. Create checklists, down to the smallest detail, for everything you do with prospects and clients. Include the compliance requirements, and check off the items on the list. Develop checklists for what’s included in the first phone call, what should be in the prospect package, what documents should be signed when you meet, how follow-up is handled, what to do if a client files a complaint.
• Develop a service charter. Write down exactly what clients can expect, from how long it will be before you return emails to the maximum number of times the phone will ring before it’s answered.
• Write it down. Keep detailed notes on every client interaction — remember, if it isn’t written down, it didn’t happen. Use CopyTalk, DragonSpeak or a similar program after a client meeting. You can simply talk into your phone and your words are transcribed for the client’s files.
• Double-check everything. Before a case is finalized, have another staff member check the file to make sure everything is compliant. If you have junior advisors, periodically pull a file and discuss the steps they took working with the client. Make sure someone is checking on you too — it’s easy to miss a step!
• Integrate technology. Invest in client relationship management software, develop an app or adapt current software to meet your specific needs. “We have a compliance checklist that ‘talks’ to fields within our software system. As part of the advice and implementation process, we ensure the relevant aspects are ticked off,” said Adam Llewellyn Morse, CFP, a six-year member from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. “It allows us to easily identify things like whether we have a signed questionnaire on file and the date it was signed. We have based this off all of the compliance items that a dealer group looks for.”

See more strategies to work through regulatory change in the Round the Table cover story

Written by Liz DeCarlo, Round the Table editor