For a business that was always focused on clients coming to you and presenting a professional office environment, it was quite a turning point when COVID hit in March 2020 and our entire team of 12 began working remotely from home.
Of course, we had no option at that point – being based in metropolitan Melbourne and not an essential service, we weren’t permitted to have our team working from an office nor to meet clients in person. So we had to adapt.
When our lease was up towards the end of 2020, though, we decided not to renew it. After surveying our key clients, we found that they were very comfortable with us staying virtual.
Our clients are predominantly pre/post retirees and business owners; they often have some degree of complexity in their financial situation. They’re also high-touch as our investment philosophy is built on direct investments rather than managed funds, SMAs or MDAs.
Transitioning to a virtual office required a decent amount of trial and error and we learned a lot throughout the process. We changed some of our team, too, as some just didn’t want to be working remotely 100% of the time.
Our practice now has five advisers, having brought two through the Professional Year. We have in-house paraplanning and an off-shore administration team. Our practice manager is in Mildura, I’m now in Torquay and our remaining advisers are scattered throughout metro Melbourne.
We have two advisers across every client, so there’s always someone who can jump in and help if the key adviser isn’t around. And within the team, we ensure everyone is supported via daily online huddles, regular training sessions and in-person catch ups.
These are the main lessons we’ve learned throughout the process:
- We had to ensure the JBS culture didn’t change even though we were no longer in the JBS office
- We had to ensure clients were comfortable, happy and there was no push-back
- Everyone’s “tools of the trade,” including laptops, multiple screens, quality printers, scanners, shredders and desk/chair were all supplied by JBS
- Excellent IT, internet, and software, including M365 and XPlan, was incredibly important
- Digital signing of documents was essential, including ensuring all our service providers allow this
- We maintain dedicated chats within teams for client work, groups etc
- Recording all meetings using Teams and summarising them with Co-Pilot saves us time across the board.
- Security was improved using Lastpass, with two-factor authentication on everything
- We also fully adopted our client portal – not just for portfolio valuations but file transfer as well
- We maintain a meeting structure for our team that includes weekly and daily support for our offshore team
- Communication, including surveying clients and asking for feedback, offering in-person meetings for clients who pay accordingly, and having a business coach
- We continued our established marketing program, including birthday presents for milestone birthdays, social media, an updated website, regular videos, team birthdays and anniversaries, special announcements and “I love you” calls
- We have prioritized flexibility, including formal work-from-home policies and allowances, cause and effect check-ins, mentoring and business coach growth plans
- We keep improving via continuous testing and measuring, checking in with both the team and our clients.
As to the benefits, one of the biggest ones was cost savings. Previously, we were spending more than $110,000 on rent and travel expenses; this money was re-deployed into salary increases, a new team bonus structure and improved IT.
Of course, we certainly faced challenges over this period as well, particularly in recruitment. We tried hiring a general manager/business manager, but both attempts failed. We realized that the virtual office is not for everyone and are now much clearer about it in the initial stages of the recruitment process. Since then, we’ve successfully recruited a practice manager in Mildura – one of our PY advisers who is now fully qualified.
Looking back, is there anything we would have done differently?
Honestly, I wish we’d transitioned to a virtual office sooner. I should have investigated my own thought process. Why, ultimately, did I think I needed an office to be a professional?
