The questionnaire that has to be done again
A review is booked for next Thursday. The adviser wants an up to date risk questionnaire before the meeting, so the administrator logs into the risk profiling tool, creates the questionnaire for the client, copies the link into an email and sends it. For joint clients, two links. A few days later, one has completed, one has not.
When the result comes in, someone downloads the report PDF, renames it, saves it to the client folder and notes the score in the back office. If the client finishes it the morning of the meeting, the adviser may not see it at all.
Why this simple task keeps going wrong
The risk tool and the back office are separate, and the review calendar is a third thing. Nothing joins the three. So the administrator has to remember to send the questionnaire at the right time for each review, remember who has not finished, and remember to move the result across.
Firms also accumulate old results. Without a clear date on the latest questionnaire, it is hard to tell at a glance whether a client's profile on file is from last month or from three reviews ago.
The quiet cost of risk profiling admin
Reviews start without a current questionnaire, so the adviser either works through it in the meeting or reschedules. Results sit in the risk tool without reaching the file. And when a file is checked, the questionnaire date does not always line up with the advice date, which creates questions that take time to answer.
| Step | Manual today | Automated |
|---|---|---|
| Send before review | Remembered by administrator | Sent a set number of days before each booked review |
| Chase | Ad hoc emails | Scheduled reminders, then flagged to staff |
| Joint clients | Tracked separately by hand | Both tracked together, one status |
| Save result | Download, rename, file | Saved to the client record automatically |
| Currency check | Look up the last date | Flag when the latest result is older than your rule |
What we put in place
- We connect to your risk profiling tool through its API where it has one, or through its export route where it does not.
- When a review is booked, the right questionnaire is created and sent to each client automatically, at a time your firm chooses.
- Clients who have not completed get reminders, and after a set number the task moves to an administrator to call.
- Completed results, including the report PDF and the date, are saved to the client in your back office and document store.
- The adviser's review pack shows the latest result and the previous one side by side, if your firm wants that.
- A report lists clients whose latest questionnaire is older than your firm's own rule, so it can be refreshed at the next contact.
We do not change the questions, the scoring or the way your firm uses the result. The tool you chose does the profiling and your adviser does the talking.
What changes on review day
The adviser opens the pack and sees a current result, dated, with last year's for comparison. The administrator has stopped copying links and saving PDFs. Files carry a clear date on each questionnaire, so the question of which result applied to which advice is easy to answer.
For joint clients the status is shown together, so the one who has not finished is visible rather than hidden behind the partner who did.
Recognise this in your office?
- Questionnaire links are copied into emails by hand.
- Reviews start before the questionnaire is completed.
- Results are downloaded and filed manually.
- It is hard to tell how old a client's risk profile is.
- Joint clients' questionnaires are tracked separately.