A Look at the Top 10 Wealth Management Firms

A Look at the Top 10 Wealth Management FirmsA Look at the Top 10 Wealth Management FirmsWhen youre in the process of selecting the bestwealth management firmto work for, one reasonable way to narrow the field is to focus on the top firmsin terms of profitability. Wealth management traditionally offers a much more stable stream of revenues and profits than the rather volatile and cyclical investment banking and securities tradingfunctions.This listing of the top competitors in this field is ranked by the amount of pre-tax profit generated by their wealth management divisions. Although the definition of the wealth market is a highly elastic one and it can vary by firm, a generally accepted variant includes clients with at least $1 million in financial assets, but many firms set the bar lower at $250,000. 01UBSCharlotte Nation/Getty ImagesThe Wealth Management unit BNP Paribas is considered the top private bank in France and one of the best banks globally for philanthropic services.The firm reports nearly $300 million in pre-tax wealth management profits for about 3 percent of the company total.Influences on ProfitsThe profits ascribed to the wealth management divisions of these firms can be heavily influenced by internal transfer pricing policies and procedures. Odds are that transactions originating with wealth management clients may be contributing to significant profits ascribed to other divisions of these firms- such as investment banking and securities trading.

Make the Most of Every New Hire for Holiday Jobs

Make the Most of Every New Hire for Holiday JobsMake the Most of Every New Hire for Holiday JobsMake the Most of Every New Hire for Holiday Jobs Chinsky MatusonIts starting to look a lot like Christmas, even though it feels like fall has just arrived. With this years budgets in hand, employers will be checking their lists twice to get the fruchtwein of every new hire for their holiday jobs. Heres how to make every new hire count.Think beyond the holiday season If you want customers to return long after the holiday trim is gone, pay close attention to your hiring process.Begin by adjusting job descriptions and job requirementsto ensure that youre attracting candidates that can handle this years seasonal needs.Hire your hourly workers as if you were bringing on a year-round employee. This means casting your net wide to ensure you have an adequate pool of candidates and investing the time required to thoroughly screen candidates and conduct an interview. Dont forget to wrap up the hirin g process with reference checking before making an offer.Shop earlyA reduction in headcount means youll need to hire people who are willing and able to do more than whats required. Look for self-starters with a history of working independently.These candidates are best found early in the season, as they are the ones knocking on doors before the masses decide its time to find employment. Early October is the perfect time to begin searching for star performers. Youll get first dibs on candidates and have time to recover should a new hire need to be replaced.Over hirePeople with a host of experience are looking for work this holiday season. Go against the trend and add mature workers to your seasonal team. Many are more fit than their younger counterparts and fruchtwein know better than to text while talking with customers. Take advantage of the breadth of knowledge that experienced workers can bring to the table. Listen to their suggestions and implement those ideas that have merit.Sh op your aisles for seasonal hiresWho better to represent your products and services than someone who is a long-term customer or client? Keep your eyes and ears open for people who are passionate about your business and make them an offer they cant refuse. Offer current employees a referral bonus to encourage them to refer top-notch candidates who theyd be proud to work side-by-side with.Avoid job burnoutSeasonal workers are as prone to job burnout as regular full-time staff. Crazy holiday schedules combined with demanding customers make for a stressful workplace. One way to reduce the likelihood of job burnout is to ensure everyone on the team pulls his or her own weight.This means addressing employee performanceissues when they occur, rather than counting down the days until Christmas arrives.Pay attention to the staff schedule with your hourly workers.Avoid scheduling employees for late nights followed by early morning openings and provide employees with frequent breaks. Set aside a quiet place for employees to take breaks so they can decompress.Invest in trainingIt may sound counterintuitive to incur costs when the outlook for a strong holiday season is dim. But this is exactly what is needed to be a strong contender in the months that follow. Employees who lack training quickly frustrate customers and often become disgruntled as well. Keep in mind that comments regarding lousy service live on long after Ebenezer Scrooge has left the building. Put seasonal employees through as much training as any other hire.Dedicate resources to onboardingAsk anyone who has worked a seasonal job to describe their first week at work and most will say chaotic. That is if they make it through the first week. You wouldnt drop a new skier at the top of a mountain without proper instruction, yet companies do this all the time with their seasonal new hires. To best assimilate new hires into your workplace its important to have an onboarding processin place for their first few wee ks that includes detailed instruction and coaching.Manage your seasonal hiresManage the performance of seasonal hires as you would your regular staff. Provide them with a job description and details regarding how performance will be measured. Then do what you would do for any of your employees. Provide them with on-going feedback and a year-end performance review.The best way to make the most of every new hire this holiday season is to treat them as you would any of your regular staff with your hiring process.When you do this, dont be surprised when neither you nor your customers can easily discern which workers are here to stay and which are here only for the season.Author BioRoberta Chinsky Matuson is the President of Human Resource Solutionsand author of the highly acclaimed book Suddenly in Charge Managing Up, Managing Down, Succeeding All Around, a Washington Post Top-5 Leadership pick. Sign up to receive a complimentary subscription to Robertas monthly newsletter, HR Matters.

4 Times Its Important to Ask for Help at Work - The Muse

4 Times Its Important to Ask for Help at Work - The Muse4 Times Its Important to Ask for Help at WorkI get it- there are some people out there who would rather stroll into work completely naked than suck up their pride and ask for help. For some reasons, many of us perceive a request for assistance as a sign of weakness, when- in reality- I think its actually a sign of great strength. Hey, it means youre self-aware and self-askoranversd enough to know when its time to call in some reinforcements.But, that doesnt necessarily mean that asking for help is easy. Nope, approaching someone in your office to ask him or her to lend a hand can actually be pretty anxiety-inducing. So, here are four instances when its definitely time for you to bite the bullet and ask- along with a suggestion for what to say in each scenario. Because the last thing you want to do is muster up your courage only to stammer your way through a rambling and unclear request. 1. When You Have No Idea What Youre DoingO K, so this one should be pretty obvious. But, if you have absolutely no idea what youre supposed to be doing for a particular work project, its time to approach someone in your office for some clarification and assistance. Theres no use torturing yourself by trying to blindly navigate a challenging project that you dont understand. If you do that, chances are it wont turn out as expected, and youll have wasted your own (and everyone elses) time. Plus, youll look stubborn and incompetent. So, take a deep breath and approach your supervisor or one of your co-workers in order to get a better understanding of the particular task and goals.Try This Hey, Im feeling a little confused about the details of the XYZ project. Could we set a time to sit down, talk through the nuts and bolts of this assignment, and make sure were on the same page? 2. When You Have Too Much on Your PlateIt happens to the best of us. You kept enthusiastically answering Yes to every project that landed in your lap, and now youre completely buried under work. Youve reached your limit, and you know that theres absolutely no way youll finish everything by the deadline- even if you pulled all-nighters for the next three weeks.Whats your next step? Request some assistance from your other co-workers. You may feel like youre shirking responsibility. But, everyone has been in this situation at least once in his or her life. Just be sure to repay the favor the next time your co-worker is feeling overwhelmedTry this I hate feeling like Im trying to pass off work on other people, but Im totally swamped right now. If you have any extra time, would you mind helping me with the XYZ aspect of this project? I know thats your area of expertise, and Id really appreciate your help and insight3. When You Made a MistakeYoure human, so mistakes are pretty much inevitable. But, its not exactly about what you did, its about how you react to it. The worst thing you can do is attempt to sweep it under the rug without a nybody noticing. And, if you try to remedy your error by getting involved in areas or departments where you dont really belong, you could very well make your problem even worse.Sure, its embarrassing. But, if you need help fixing your slip-up, make sure to approach the appropriate people in your office immediately. Youre not the first person to make a mistake at work- and you certainly wont be the last. Try this Im so embarrassed, but I completely messed ABC up, and now I need XYZ done in order to fix it. Im so sorry for the confusion and extra work. I really appreciate your help 4. When You Need Additional Expertise or InsightEven if youre an extreme control freak, you already know that your focus should be placed on turning out the best work possible- not just something that has your name all over it.So, if youre working on a project you think could greatly benefit from the additional input of your co-workers, never hesitate to ask them to lend their advice and talents. It fosters collaboration among your team members, and also helps to make your project the very best it can be. Talk about a win-win. Try this Im working on XYZ project, and Id love your expert insight on this particular area. Can we set up a time when we can chat and bounce some ideas off of each other? I really think your input could take this project to the next levelAsking for help isnt always easy. But, sometimes its downright essential. If you find yourself in one of these scenarios, take a deep breath, swallow your pride, and approach others in your office for some much needed assistance. I promise- itll be better for you in the long run.