Authored by Rob Macdonald, Independent Coach to Financial Advisers, this article examines the increasing role of AI and the continued importance of human qualities such as empathy, curiosity, judgement and trust.

Financial planners often face the question: “Should I invest everything now or phase it in?” There are two main approaches: Lump
Sum Investing (LSI), which invests all the money immediately, and Cost Averaging (CA)

There is a well-known story about Pablo Picasso at the height of his fame. While dining in a restaurant, a fan approached
him and asked if he would create a quick sketch on a napkin, offering to pay whatever price Picasso named. Picasso took a charcoal pencil from his pocket and quickly drew the image of a goat. H

Global tensions have been at the forefront of headlines in recent weeks, with investment markets inevitably responding to events like a thermometer measuring global economic health. Whenever something dramatic happens in the world,

Back in 1986, Brinson, Hood, and Beebower (BHB) shocked the investment world by studying ninety-one large
U.S. pension plans and concluding that asset allocation had the greatest impact on variability of returns.

Investor behaviour determines investment returns. The emergence of behavioural coaching as a key value-add from financial planners is a direct response to the potential that investors may sabotage their own outcomes.

We are living in a changing world, and the jury is still out on the full impact of technological transformation on financial advice. Increasingly, the question will be asked by consumers: Do I need to consult a human financial adviser when an AI model could be my adviser?