1. The Power of
Professional Alliances
Enhancing Your Professional Practice
With Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, a
World-Class Wealth Management Firm
2.
3. Professional Alliance Group
As trusted advisor to your clients, you know that the most important
role you play is helping your clients meet their goals and objectives
while continuing to search for ways to exceed their expectations.
More and more clients are seeking comprehensive strategies from
their professional advisors that extend beyond their advisor’s area
of knowledge and into the arena of financial advice and investing.
The Professional Alliance Group Program combines the solutions you
provide clients with the wealth management advice and investment
knowledge of a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Financial Advisor. This
alliance will not only help enhance your value proposition to clients,
but will also entitle you to receive a percentage of the investment
advisory fees paid by referred clients.
By creating an alliance with your Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Financial Advisor, your clients will gain access to comprehensive and
expansive investment strategies. In addition, you will be able to:
Expand the services available to your clients
Leverage the experience of an industry leader in wealth management
Increase potential of profitability through a net recurring revenue stream
Distinguish your firm from the competition
MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY/01
4. Professional Alliance Group
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Capabilities
We are an industry leader in wealth management.* In a financial world that’s
being remade, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney has the global presence, resources
and knowledge needed to fit the times.
We are specialists in financial and wealth management advice. We can deliver
the personal investment strategies to help your clients meet their retirement,
education, wealth transfer and other financial needs.
World-class advice. Morgan Stanley More than 50 manager research analysts and
Smith Barney Financial Advisors have access other investment professionals who comprise
to the professional asset allocation advice our Investment Advisor Research team routinely
provided by the Global Investment Committee examine, on average, 1,300 separately managed
at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, a group of accounts, mutual funds, exchange traded funds
senior professionals and noted authorities from and selected alternative-investment funds each
within and outside our firm. The investment quarter, selecting funds and managers from
strategy team, based on sophisticated research around the world.
techniques and comprehensive analysis of
economic and market conditions, provides advice Industry-leading managed-accounts business.
on asset allocation, opportunistic investments Our Consulting Group is consistently ranked
and the prospects for dozens of asset classes. as one of the nation’s leading providers of
investment advice and managed money
Objectivity. We are committed to complete programs.* Our investment programs are
objectivity in all areas of investment research and designed to help your clients build and protect
advice. That said, before we present financial their wealth and create lasting legacies for their
recommendations, we put significant resources families. Our cutting-edge advisory products and
into examining investment-management firms. services are supported by best-in-class research,
asset allocation and innovation.
* Cerulli Associates, April 2010.
02/ MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY
5. Comprehensive
Consulting Group Services
Our primary focus in working with clients is to help them
achieve their financial goals and objectives. Before making
any recommendations, a Financial Advisor will conduct a
thorough analysis of your client’s existing investment portfolio
and gain a solid understanding of their short- and long-term
goals and objectives. Then, the Financial Advisor will assist
your client by utilizing the following four-step process:
STEP 1: Set their financial objectives
STEP 2: Develop an asset allocation strategy
STEP 3: Identify appropriate investments for client selection
STEP 4: Monitor performance
Objective Advice
Your clients have access to a suite of professionally
managed programs. The investment programs include
separately managed accounts, mutual and exchange
traded funds, individual securities and selected alternative
investment strategies. Each program will be carefully
reviewed and recommended to your clients based on their
individual investment objectives.
An overarching feature of our managed account strategies
is the delivery of objective advice. Our Investment Advisor
Research team reviews and evaluates approximately
1,300 investment strategies every quarter. We believe that
our advisor research team is one of the largest in the
investment consulting industry and is a significant strength
of our organization.
When your clients invest in our managed account programs,
you receive a percentage of the advisory fee charged to the
client. This fee structure is fully disclosed to your client
and they are required to sign a disclosure document, which
informs them of this fee structure. Your clients do not incur
additional fees as a result of the referral.
In addition, our alliance program is non-exclusive, which
means that you and your firm are permitted to offer your
clients several managed account providers. We believe
this is yet another feature of our program, that helps you
maintain your objectivity and act in the best interests of
your clients at all times.
Our advisory programs are supported by
best-in-class investment research, professional
allocation advice and innovative financial strategies,
customized to your client’s needs.”
MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY/03
6. Professional Alliance Group
How to Begin
In a few easy steps, you can align with a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Financial Advisor:
1. Apply. Fill out the Professional Alliance Group Program application and authorization form your
Financial Advisor provides.
2. Due Diligence. Upon receipt of the forms, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney will conduct a basic
investigation and evaluation of your firm.
3. Register. Depending on your state’s registration requirements, your firm and participating
individuals may need to register as a Registered Investment Advisor (for the firm) and
Investment Advisor Representative (for individuals). Please consult with a registration specialist
or legal counsel for specific advice. Please note Morgan Stanley Smith Barney does not provide
registration advice.
4. Sign a Contract. Once approved, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney will provide your firm with
a contract.
5. Select Marketing Materials. Your Financial Advisor will work with you to provide your clients
with the appropriate marketing and educational materials to introduce the services available
from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.
6. Provide Client Disclosure Documentation. To ensure that our relationship is 100% transparent,
we provide disclosure documents for your clients to sign that outline the referral arrangement
your firm has with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.
04/ MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY
7. By creating an alliance
with a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Financial Advisor, you will:
Expand the breadth of services available to your clients
Leverage the experience of an industry leader in wealth management
Increase potential of profitability through a net recurring revenue stream
Distinguish your firm from the competition
MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY/05