Investment adviser

Description

Investment advisers are professionals who offer transparent advice by recommending suitable solutions on financial matters to their clients. They advise on investing pension or free funds in securities such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds and exchange-traded funds to customers. Investment advisers serve individuals, households, families and owners of small companies.

Excludes people working with large companies or institutions.
Includes people working with individual clients and small companies.

Other titles

The following job titles also refer to investment adviser:

financial and investment adviser
investment advisor
investment consultant
corporate investment adviser
investing director
investment executive
investment manager
RIA

Minimum qualifications

Bachelor’s degree is generally required to work as investment adviser. However, this requirement may differ in some countries.

ISCO skill level

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

  • the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
  • the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
  • the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Investment adviser is a Skill level 4 occupation.

Investment adviser career path

Similar occupations

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to investment adviser.

investment analyst
corporate investment banker
actuarial consultant
securities analyst
dividend analyst

Long term prospects

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of investment adviser. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of investment adviser with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

Essential knowledge and skills

Essential knowledge

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of investment adviser.

Financial products: The different types of instruments that apply to the management of cash flow that are available on the market, such as shares, bonds, options or funds.
Funding methods: The financial possibilities for funding projects such as the traditional ones, namely loans, venture capital, public or private grants up to alternative methods such as crowdfunding.
Banking activities: The broad and continuously growing banking activities and financial products managed by banks ranging from personal banking, corporate banking, investment banking, private banking, up to insurance, foreign exchange trading, commodity trading, trading in equities, futures and options trading.
Securities: The financial instruments traded in financial markets representing both the right of property over the owner and at the same time, the obligation of payment over the issuer. The aim of securities which is raising capital and hedging risk in financial markets.
Financial markets: The financial infrastructure which permits trading securities offered by companies and individuals govern by regulatory financial frameworks.
Stock market: The market in which shares of publicly held companies are issued and traded.
Modern portfolio theory: The theory of finance that attempts to either maximise the profit of an investment equivalent to the risk taken or to reduce the risk for the expected profit of an investment by judiciously choosing the right combination of financial products.

Essential skills and competences

These skills are necessary for the role of investment adviser.

Explain financial technicalities to clients: Explain all details of financial products in plain words to clients, including financial terms and all costs.
Analyse market financial trends: Monitor and forecast the tendencies of a financial market to move in a particular direction over time.
Assess risks of clients’ assets: Identify, evaluate and determine the actual and potential risks of your clients’ assets, considering confidentiality standards.
Review investment portfolios: Meet with clients to review or update an investment portfolio and provide financial advice on investments.
Advise on investment: Assess the customer’s economic goals and advise on the possible financial investments or capital investments to promote wealth creation or safeguarding.
Synthesise financial information: Collect, revise and put together financial information coming from different sources or departments in order to create a document with unified financial accounts or plans.
Interpret financial statements: Read, understand, and interpret the key lines and indicators in financial statements. Extract the most important information from financial statements depending on the needs and integrate this information in the development of the department’s plans.
Provide support in financial calculation: Provide colleagues, clients or other parties with financial support for complex files or calculations.
Obtain financial information: Gather information on securities, market conditions, governmental regulations and the financial situation, goals and needs of clients or companies.
Advise on financial matters: Consult, advise, and propose solutions with regards to financial management such as acquiring new assets, incurring in investments, and tax efficiency methods.
Monitor stock market: Observe and analyse the stock market and its trends on a daily basis to gather up-to-date information in order to develop investment strategies.
Provide financial product information: Give the customer or client information about financial products, the financial market, insurances, loans or other types of financial data.
Assess financial viability: Revise and analyse financial information and requirements of projects such as their budget appraisal, expected turnover, and risk assessment for determining the benefits and costs of the project. Assess if the agreement or project will redeem its investment, and whether the potential profit is worth the financial risk.
Analyse financial risk: Identify and analyse risks that could impact an organisation or individual financially, such as credit and market risks, and propose solutions to cover against those risks.
Monitor bond market: Observe and analyse the bond or debt market and its trends on a daily basis to gather up-to-date information in order to develop investment strategies.

Optional knowledge and skills

Optional knowledge

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of investment adviser. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Business valuation techniques: The processes to valuate the worth of the assets of the company and the value of the business following techniques such as asset-based approach, business comparison, and past earnings.
Principles of insurance: Understand the principles of insurance, including third party liability, stock and facilities.
Credit control processes: The various techniques and procedures applied to ensure that credit is given to the suitable customers and that they pay on time.
 
Types of insurance: The various types of risk or loss transfer policies that exist and their characteristics, such as health insurance, car insurance or life insurance.

Optional skills and competences

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of investment adviser. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Apply credit risk policy: Implement company policies and procedures in the credit risk management process. Permanently keep company’s credit risk at a manageable level and take measures to avoid credit failure.
Perform stock valuation: Analyse, calculate and appraise the value of the stock of a company. Use mathematic and logarithm in order to determine the value in consideration of different variables.
Develop investment portfolio: Create an investment portfolio for a customer that includes an insurance policy or multiple policies to cover specific risks, such as financial risks, assistance, reinsurance, industrial risks or natural and technical disasters.
Create a financial plan: Develop a financial plan according to financial and client regulations, including an investor profile, financial advice, and negotiation and transaction plans.
Analyse business plans: Analyse the formal statements from businesses which outline their business goals and the strategies they set in place to meet them, in order to assess the feasibility of the plan and verify the business’ ability to meet external requirements such as the repayment of a loan or return of investments.
Communicate with banking professionals: Communicate with professionals in the field of banking in order to obtain information on a specific financial case or project for personal or business purposes, or on behalf of a client.
Identify customer’s needs: Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.
Examine credit ratings: Investigate and look for information on the creditworthiness of companies and corporations, provided by credit rating agencies in order to determine the likelihood of default by the debtor.
Prospect new customers: Initiate activities in order to attract new and interesting customers. Ask for recommendations and references, find places where potential customers can be located.
Analyse financial performance of a company: Based on accounts, records, financial statements and external information of the market, analyse the performance of the company in financial matters in order to identify improvement actions that could increase profit.
Promote financial products: Inform existing or potential customers about the various financial goods and services that are offered by the company.
Manage contracts: Negotiate the terms, conditions, costs and other specifications of a contract while making sure they comply with legal requirements and are legally enforceable. Oversee the execution of the contract, agree on and document any changes.
Perform clerical duties: Perform administrative tasks such as filing, typing up reports and maintaining mail correspondence.
Ensure proper document management: Guarantee that the tracking and recording standards and rules for document management are followed, such as ensuring that changes are identified, that documents remain readable and that obsoleted documents are not used.
Consult credit score: Analyse the credit files of an individual, such as credit reports which outlines a person’s credit history, in order to assess their creditworthiness and all the risks that would be involved in granting a person a loan.
Build business relationships: Establish a positive, long-term relationship between organisations and interested third parties such as suppliers, distributors, shareholders and other stakeholders in order to inform them of the organisation and its objectives.

ISCO group and title

2412 – Financial and investment advisers

 

 


 

 

References
  1. Investment adviser – ESCO
Last updated on August 8, 2022