Who Is A Fiduciary?
Fiduciary Best Practices for Guardians and other Legal Professionals as Stewards.
A fiduciary is any investment professional or financial advisor who is required by law and practice to act solely in their interests of and with undivided loyalty to their clients.
A fiduciary’s advice and recommendations must align with your specific objectives, timeframe and risk tolerance. When managing your assets, a fiduciary must strive for an optimal balance of risk and return.
That person must exercise care, skill, diligence, and objectivity in evaluating, recommending, and reviewing investment options.
TRUST BEGINS WITH UNDERSTANDING
Many investment stewards do not realize they are fiduciaries—and fewer still are truly aware of the full scope of their responsibilities—to act solely in the best interests of and with undivided loyalty to the plan or fund and its beneficiaries.
WHAT MAKES AN AIFA® DESIGNEE DIFFERENT FROM OTHER ADVISORS?
While the Practices are available to all advisors, only those who have earned the AIFA® Designation are formally recognized by the Center for demonstrating a full understanding of how to implement those processes to help institutional clients fulfill all their fiduciary obligations.
AIFA® Designees are able to use the knowledge and resources they have gained through their training to:
Evaluate your organization’s current fiduciary practices and recommend actions that address risk areas and help ensure compliance with applicable state and federal statutes and regulations
Create and maintain a comprehensive investment policy statement that documents all of the processes and procedures that will be used to manage your portfolio
Analyze and optimize your portfolio’s asset allocation strategy to better align with the plan or fund’s specific investment objective or the demographic needs to apply objective standards for evaluating and recommending appropriate investment options for your portfolio
Monitor and report the performance of your portfolio and its underlying investments on an ongoing basis and recommend changes, when necessary
Serve as a resource for education and assistance to help you understand and fulfill all your fiduciary obligations with greater confidence
In addition to providing fiduciary guidance and assistance, many AIFA® Designees also take on the fiduciary responsibility for managing assets in a retirement plan or endowment. That removes the burden of the day-to-day management of those assets from your shoulders.