AXA adds Jigsaw piece for back-office business
AXAhas joined the fray to win dealer groups’ back-office business with the launch of Jigsaw Support Services.
The company is talking to 10 dealer groups about using the service, although none have signed up yet, says AXA national compliance and advisory services manager Simon Wallace.
“We are talking to dealer groups with four to five planners and even up to one with more than 100 advisers,” he says.
“We are hoping to sign up between 30 to 50 dealer groups by the end of the first year, but we will be selective as to who we sell the service to.”
Wallace says the figure of 50 dealer groups is not a sales target, it is about building relationships with planning groups outside the existing AXA network.
He admits Jigsaw can also provide services to breakaway groups of advisers who previously might have left the AXA network completely.
The Jigsaw service is the same back-office service supplied to AXA’s own three dealer groups —Altus, AXA Financial Planning andCharter.
Wallace says while the core services to the AXA dealer groups generates a profit, the offering outside the organisation aims to build relationships, not more profits.
Jigsaw is being offered as a core service with a comprehensive range of back-office services. Dealer groups can pick the services they want from the menu.
There will be a fixed fee for the core service based on the number of proper authority holders in the dealer group, while the dealer group buying individual modules will be charged for what they use.
The core service will offer compliance, information and auditing services. There will also be a comprehensive product list that includes the Summit wrap. Technical support and a remuneration system, as well as product recognition payment, are also provided in the core system.
Additional services include paraplanners, training and DFP courses, product research and financial planning software.
Wallace says the difference between Jigsaw and competing products is its remuneration system. The system manages the payment of 100 per cent of life company and fund manager remuneration to the dealer for allocation to authorised representatives and practices.
“On behalf of dealer groups, Jigsaw can also establish and maintain all agency agreements with fund managers and life companies in its authorised product list,” he says.
A state relationship manager will be assigned to each dealer group to co-ordinate the use of the back-office services.
In addition, a practice manager may also be assigned to provide business coaching expertise for dealer groups to assist in improving business performance in a range of areas.
Wallace says with the problems dealer groups are facing in obtaining professional indemnity insurance cover, AXA is talking to an insurer about offering this as an additional service, but no deal has been struck yet.
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