Singing an assistant’s praises

This is a first-person, open letter of praise to Pat Fowler, who has been my assistant for 10 years.

Pat is the key to the efficiency of my practice. She came to us with some experience at a major insurance company, but Pat taught herself the securities business.

Earlier, she spent almost 10 years as an office manager for a doctor, and it was there that she learned about managing workflow, following up on pending issues and ensuring that the practice is in sync.

Pat also raised three boys, which I know contributes to her endless patience.

Having a degree in psychology, my skills translate into strength in working with clients — which is what I concentrate on. I often can tell immediately whether a prospect will be a good fit.

If they do a lot of online trading or pick up the phone whenever a stock moves up or down a penny, we aren’t going to work well together.

I am a long-term planner, not a trader, so I am interested in clients who want to work with someone who wants to help them.That is where Pat comes in — she takes care of everything after a prospect becomes a client: new account paperwork, following up with confirmations, tracking applications and everything else.

I admit it, I can’t place a trade. She is licensed and does all of that.

Pat tracks dates that clients are due for a quarterly review, schedules the meetings and contacts them about forms they should bring to the meeting.

Clients trust her, too, and most often ask to speak with her, not me, about everyday account questions. They trust that she will find the answers they need.

Pat is driven. If she doesn’t understand a procedure or an investment vehicle, she educates herself about it, calling fund companies or researching the product online.

I have subscriptions to many industry publications, but they hit my desk a few weeks late, dog-eared and covered with Pat’s highlighter marks. Believe me, she can hold her own in any room filled with advisers.

Other advisers might worry that with all her knowledge — and my customers — Pat might leave our practice to start her own. But I am confident that won’t happen.

Pat and I have talked about how she finds fulfillment in her position, and how knowing that I rely on her is very important to her.

“Every day, I walk through the doors and feel that I am a partner in this practice,” she said, noting that she takes pride in the well-being of the practice and in satisfying clients, and in “doing things right the first time.”

If you are looking for someone like Pat, make sure the person is precise, has good communications skills and is industrious. Boredom is Pat’s enemy.

I joke that I like to keep her busy because if I don’t, she will find more work for me to do. It isn’t out of character for her to review client files in her “free” time to ensure that the clients’ objectives still match their investments.

If Pat and I approached things differently, the relationship wouldn’t work. I can pop my head out the door of my office and she is right there.

I can walk by her desk on my way back from a meeting, and we can talk about what happened and what should happen next in a few seconds. She doesn’t waste time guessing my next move, and we don’t bother holding weekly meetings.

If I can make any suggestions about how to work with an assistant, identify your strengths and those of your assistant, and then strive for a balance. I think that my investment experience and strength with clients complement Pat’s diligence and organization.

While I maintain client relationships, she maintains order in my hectic schedule. Truth be told, she is the team captain.

A final suggestion: Look for an assistant who will make your practice more efficient and take care of the distractions that lead you away from doing what you do best, which probably is finding new clients and gathering assets.

Luckily, Pat promises that she won’t retire until she turns 70. I guess that is when I will have to retire, too.

Barry Dixon and Pat Fowler are registered representatives of Cadaret Grant & Co. Inc. of Syracuse, N.Y.

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