AXA Wealth has unveiled what it calls "a new service model" with the aim of significantly increasing support for advisers but admits there will be some job losses.
AXA Wealth's new 'On your side' adviser partnership model - based on the multi-channel service approach of 'online, on-site and on call' - follows a series of pilots this year which focused on listening to what services advisers say matter most to them and their clients.
AXA says the move will mean a doubling of adviser support staff from 40 to 80 but there will be major changes with some teams merged and more use of online services. Some job roles may be made redundant but will be a small number, says the company.
The number of customer-facing roles available via remote support will be doubled, says the company, providing direct access to a much larger group of experts within our new Customer Support teams. As part of the changes some roles will no longer be required, however.
The changes focus on making improvements to the AXA Wealth adviser support network and the way the company services advisers, both for AXA Wealth Elevate and the wider AXA Wealth proposition, including its Specialist Products business.
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Mark Links, head of operations, AXA Wealth Elevate, said: "When it comes to adviser servicing our new dedicated client service teams are equipped to support all our partner firms. Accessibility is key, so we have designed some of the best support services in the market. Our aim is to ensure every one of our advisers can benefit from using the channel that best suits their needs, whether that is online, via our suite of digital and web services, on-site, with our team of face to face partnership managers, or on call via telephone support and channels like Twitter."
As part of AXA Wealth's strategy to be 'digital-ready' the company is looking to re-define the way advisers can choose to interact, developing technology to provide alternative communication channels like web chat, social media, video and mobile apps. AXA Wealth sees this as an emerging trend for partner firms . The online service support is live and will be enhanced with web chat, social media and mobile apps over the course of 2014.