Mercury Capital Advisors: Digital Wealth Management - Robo Advise is not just for Millennials any more

Lured by the presence of lower commissions and the absence of sometimes awkward sales pressure, investors of all stripes appear eager to embark on relationships with robo-advisors.

But fear not. That doesn’t mean investors will “unfriend” their professional financial advisors. Most still want the option of talking to a trusted financial confidante. For investment firms, the challenge is how best to combine digital, low-cost investment advisory services with the traditional approach.

It’s becoming clear that no single formula exists for how—and at what cost—traditional wealth managers should mix a digital experience into their designed client journey. Several brokerages have developed proprietary robo-advisory platforms in-house. Others have been acquiring existing robo-technology to build out their service, offering it as a white-label solution. Indeed, the sector has not lacked for deal-making activity as industry players hunt for the kind of technology they need to bag premium-paying procurers.

In February, for instance, Mercury Capital launched a pilot program in collaboration with Emotomy, leveraging the latter’s digital advice platform. That engagement is the latest of many industry marriages, which have also included RBC Wealth Management’s alliance with FutureAdvisor and Pershing’s partnership with Marstone, both of which are aimed at producing technology platforms for advisors. The commotion is not likely to stop there, as more and more incumbents sense the potential for automated advice-givers. The market can expect to see other asset management firms, as well as wealth advisors, find ways to get in on the robo-activity. Over the long term, such partnerships may expand to combine personal relationships and digital experiences customized for each client segment. While digital platforms will need time to scale, :

Robo-advisors have broad appeal. Such partnerships indicate that the emerging hybrid model is aimed squarely at addressing a demographic beyond millennials. Even high net-worth clients, whose complex needs typically require human intervention, will want the option of

interacting with a digital wealth experience that guides them on their route from prospect to client. The dreaded baby boomer cohort isn’t retreating at the sight of the millennials. In fact, as members of the older generation succumb to retirement, their needs will grow more complex.

Millennials will serve as early adopters.The next generation of investors has been quick to embrace new technologies and experiences, and this should apply to robo-advisors. Furthermore, millennials have a general mistrust of large financial institutions, particularly in the wake of the financial crisis of 2008. Unlike their parents, who forged close relationships with advisors—even using their phones to have conversations with them, as primitive as that sounds—millennials are equally comfortable with making digital connections. They’ve been conditioned to accept that technology can match the performance of its human predecessors, while offering reduced fees and providing greater convenience.

Robo-advisors will gain popularity across all client segments. As machine-learning algorithms continue to develop and produce an investment record, consumers are likely to use these services more and more to complement their existing investment methods. As millennials mature—and their assets increase—they could very well tilt the balance toward more automation, which would be augmented at higher asset levels with a personal relationship.

Typical to any disruptive innovation in financial services, the first to market addresses the underserved. Robo-advisors like Betterment, Wealthfront, and Personal Capital did just that. But automated digital advice has clearly attracted the attention of incumbents. Established players are deploying a quick follow strategy through acquisitions and creating “me too” experiences that emulate disruptors. Scale and distribution matter, and the quick followers don’t need to get it perfect. What’s next? Differentiation. The leaders will need to design a unique digital experience integrated into the fabric of how they serve their clients that combines personal relationships with a digital experience.

Pro Axia Consultants Business Consulting Group in Osaka, Tokyo, Nagoya, Japan: The Role of Management Accounting in Decision-making

The role of management accounting in decision-making is crucial. As a business owner, you are expected to face a lot of decisions every day, thus you need to improve your decision-making. You can do this by understanding the great importance of managerial accounting information, which provides data-driven input to those decisions. Businesses could be more successful if small business managers use this powerful tool and learn how management accounting can benefit common business decision contexts.

Management accounting can pave the way to relevant cost analysis. It entails the managerial accounting information used by the company management to determine what should be sold and how to sell them. One example is when an owner is uncertain on where to put his/her marketing efforts. Relevant cost analysis is a process that involves evaluating this decision through the accounting manager's assessment of the costs which differ between advertising alternatives for each product. This technique is taught in basic managerial accounting courses. Through the same process, adding product lines or discontinuing operations can also be determined.

Management accounting can also conclude activity-based costing techniques. The next step after finding what products to sell is deciding to whom to sell the products by determining which customer are more or less profitable. Such techniques can also help small business management to assess the required activities in producing and servicing a product line.

Make or buy analysis is achievable with management accounting. It allows you as the owner to decide whether to make or buy a component needed to manufacture your products. This analysis should only be considered as a factor in making your decision because there are possible non-financial metrics that were not part of the analysis that could be considered significant.

Management accounting can also bring forth data utilization. Managerial accounting information can help you acquire a data-driven look at how to develop a small business. Information on budgeting, financial statement projections and balance scorecards can help management guide the future of the business. Depending on the smart analysis of the company data, managers can aim for constant improvement.

Top 5 bizarre interview questions and how to answer them

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There’s an apocryphal story that has been bandied about for years, about an interview where the interviewer asked a candidate: “Do something to surprise me”. The interviewee got out his lighter and set fire to the interviewer’s newspaper. It’s not an action we would advise emulating, but very definitely comes under the heading of utterly incomprehensible interview questions.

Why do these questions get asked?

"Why do these questions get asked" is a tricky question to answer, but as it appears to have started in Silicon Valley during the tech boom its roots are likely to be found in the free-thinking, mould-breaking philosophy that many of the tech pioneers applied to their businesses. Ultimately for some interviewer it’s about unearthing someone who offers more than just “can you do the job”. Wall Street soon followed suit and the practice has become more commonplace. The question for most of us is not why are they asked but how do I answer them?

First and foremost you should remember there isn’t a right answer, depending on the nature of the question, which these questions are about your thought processes, your coolness under pressure, your personality and your approach to problem solving. What you don’t do is say, “I don’t know”, or “that’s a good question” and stare off into space. Let’s take the question: “How many cricket bats are there in the world?” You could either pluck an answer out of thin air: “Three million?”, or go about figuring out how to work it out. “Well, if the population of the sporting public in the UK is X, and a tenth of them play cricket, then that’s XX for the UK, plus another X for the cricketing population in India…” etc. This is the sort of approach the employer would be looking for.

Five types of questions you might encounter

  1. Lots of these questions fall along the lines of if you were a colour/an animal/a garden gnome/a car/a food/a computer application (yes, really) what one would you be and why? Try to think of the qualities of the object and how they might relate to your skills or character.
  1. What are all the different uses you can think of for a lemon? Apparently asked during an interview for an airline pilot, this type of question is designed to find out how much of a creative thinker you are.
  1. Who would you invite to a dinner party/what superhero/movie character would you be/who is your role model? In other words, what character traits do you most admire in other people and why? Think about what specific things they have achieved and what it is about those achievements that you admire so much.
  1. How many people will be on Facebook in New York on a Friday afternoon? There are a raft of questions that are much more technical in nature and much more aligned to the role you are seeking. This question was aimed at a marketing executive, and was probing how well they understand the use of social media around the world.
  1. Tell me a story. This is a firm favourite, and represents a golden opportunity for you to tell a work-related anecdote that is also relevant to the role in question and also illustrates how you see other people and the world around you.

Preparation, preparation, preparation

This is the key to a good interview. However, these questions are not something that you can easily prepare for. If your job is a technical one, brush up on your technical knowledge. If it’s a creative role, keep a clear head and try to analyse how you would approach some of these types of questions. Above all, expect the unexpected!

Human Capital Alliance Inc. Thailand, Singapore: The Winning Edge

Human Capital Alliance recently published “The Winning Edge-Two Decades of Asian Business Leadership”.

This year, we are celebrating our tenth anniversary at Human Capital Alliance. We are pleased to publish “The Winning Edge-Two Decades of Asian Business Leadership” as a tribute to our stakeholders, especially our clients throughout Asia.

We have been successful during the past decade because our leaders and consultants have melded their decades of business experience and knowledge of Asia and North America to deliver much-needed value-added advisory services.

During the past decade, we have continuously attempted to stay ahead-of-the curve to provide leading cutting-edge services to our customers and we hope to continue doing so in the up-coming decades.

We hope The Winning Edge will provide additional insight into how we viewed the past and how we consider the future sustainability of business in Asia.

Singapore Lawyer - Why Hire Us To Sue For Defamation?

Your current employer or the former employer can make a false report concerning you. When such a case occurs, you will be eligible to file for a defamation legal claim. In this case, you will be compensated for your financial losses, as well as emotional grief. Basically, a case is called a defamation, when a person makes a deliberate false report that hurts you. If the statement is written, it is called a libel, but if it is an oral statement, it is referred to as a slander.

 

There are a number of attorneys in Singapore, who are dedicated to helping clients for the sake of recovering their initial properties and rights. When you believe, and have proof that someone has insulted you, whether verbally or textually, in relation to a false report, you are eligible to sue them. When you need a lawyer to help you in the defamation legal claim process, we are there for you, and here is why you can consider us to help you in the process.

 

  • We Are Experienced

One thing that matters most in any professional job is the experience of the person taking care of the given job. For that, our lawyers have deep knowledge in the defamation cases, and any other related legal claim. In addition, they have relevant skills to carry out the given legal process. We have been in existence for quite a long time, and we have handled a number of complex cases. For that, you will be sure of leaving your case in professional hands.

 

The rate in which a person wins can determine their next case result. In comparison to our previous cases, we have had more wins than losses. In relation to the several cases that have been handled by our lawyers, most of our clients have always been content with our services. So basically, you are more likely to win when you choose to sue for defamation with our lawyers. In addition, the different cases that we have handled, which vary in complexity, proves that we can handle whichever case, and you will be sure of winning.

 

  • Readily Available

One of our principles is to ensure that the client is served, whenever, wherever. We understand that every person has a different schedule, and for that, the rate of needs will always fluctuate. There could be a situation where you have an emergency concerning the reports made by your employer. When that situation occurs, you shouldn’t hesitate, but contact us immediately. We have an online service that works 24 hours a day. So whether you are in a deep emergency, or you have a burning question, you can always contact us, and you will be served as expected. Our online crew will always be ready to assist in case of any emergency, usually done via live chats.

 

Another thing that scares clients away is a company that is not registered or licensed. Usually, an unregistered company or institution is more likely to have some devious activities. Conversely, our attorneys are licensed, and they operate freely on any legal claim. In your defamation case, you will be confident to leave the case in our hands, and we will take the necessary steps to help you complete your given quest. Whichever actions that will be taken by our lawyers, you will be sure of having a legal team, that is licensed and operate with authority in providing you with the right services.

 

Too many people tend to believe that lawyers are always expensive, and that to hire them, you will need to spend a whole lot of money. Conversely, we understand that our clients need the legal services, whether they have money or not. That is why it is affordable to hire us as your defamation legal claim lawyers. The low or affordable prices offered by our lawyers doesn’t mean that the service quality will decrease, rather, you will still enjoy a top quality job, but at a more affordable price.

 

When you are convinced that you have enough evidence to sue for defamation, then the next step is to commence the lawsuit process. It is always advised to start early enough, in order to avoid any tampering with the original statement that was made. In addition, whenever you are planning to sue, always ensure that you have enough evidence to support your case.

Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden Custom Furniture Review: What are the benefits of furniture restoration?

If you have your own house, you probably want your family and friends to see stylish and quality furniture in it. A collection of different and distinctive furniture could add color and life to your home, so be mindful about the brand, design, and style of each furniture piece because it should match your entire home decoration.

However, there will come a time where your favorite furniture can’t no longer serve its purpose to you since things are not meant to last forever. Are you planning to buy a new one instead? Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden wants you to think about it twice and simply consider restoring the furniture. Furniture restoration often happens when people are running out of budget and can't afford to buy a new one, or they don't want to get rid of the sentimental value their furniture has.

In order to preserve the original look and the functionality of a specific furniture, furniture restoration is needed wherein that particular piece will be carefully cleaned and repaired. Other than saving time and money, furniture restoration can also give you other significant benefits such as the following:

Enhanced design and style

Yes, this is possible even without spending a lot of money. Furniture restoration can give an improved design and style to your furniture. This way, you can also preserve its value and give a new life to your furniture.

Carbon-friendly

Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden finds out that it takes a thousand times more carbon dioxide to create a new furniture piece than restoring one. In order to minimize the effect of carbon on the environment, most people choose furniture restoration and refinishing. If you want to make a contribution to save the environment, then make an eco-friendly decision all the time.

Restored functionality

Being able to use a particular furniture once again is considered the greatest benefit furniture restoration can give to you. Some furniture these days are not made with the same high-quality wood as before, thus, Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden recommends that you should restore your old furniture than buy a new one. The organization is confident to say that your newly restored furniture will last for another 10 years.

The benefits of furniture restoration mentioned above are simply the basics. Be updated on Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden posts to see other in-depth posts related to antique furniture and restoration process. Eric Earl Hamilton Marsden can do an excellent job to your furniture without damaging it using their distinctive equipment, tools, and techniques. Check out good reviews of him to furniture fraud restorers online.

 

2016 Honda FourTrax Recon ES - Al Lamb's Dallas Honda

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Al Lamb's Dallas Honda 2016 Recon is the smaller, more convenient, utility ATV that is the smart choice for many riders. Sometimes the big, bulky, heavy, ATV isn’t the correct choice for your trail riding or work duties — that’s why Honda makes the FourTrax Recon. It is still a strong, versatile, powerful ATV, but it was built to maneuver through places and do work that other, larger, ATV’s are incapable of.

With its two-wheel drive 250–class engine, the Recon was built to work using abundant low-rpm torque and power. New to the 2016 model is a completely redone reverse lever and parking brake, to make it easier to use and more intuitive