"Think about old sayings, or non-English by shortening the spelling of words or using symbols for letters such as '@,'" Mackensen says.
Advisors also should check the backgrounds of the outside people who have access to their office. Some advisors say they've scored points with FINRA examiners by double-checking office cleaners.
"Certainly, it's a good sign if a firm has vetted outside contractors such as cleaning crews, people who deliver office supplies or who do maintenance services--anyone who could have access to areas with computers and files," says a FINRA spokesman. "Under our rules, firms have an obligation to make sure their private information is secure."
Hybrid Brokerages Shine Light On New Space
(Dow Jones) A new brokerage model combining aspects of a big wirehouse and an independent registered investment advisory has caught the industry's attention as it tempts brokers looking for a new place to work.
While dwarfed in size by traditional brokerages, firms like SeaCrest Wealth Management and HighTower Advisors see their hybrid brokerage approach as a way to recruit advisors from bulge brackets.
"There are so many people watching these firms to see how they do, and they are doing well," says Bing Waldert, research director at Cerulli Associates. He says changes at the big traditional brokerages have made it easier to lure away advisors. "I think we'll see a lot more of these non-traditional options."
The two firms launched in mid- to late-2008, a period when the biggest companies were shaken by the market meltdown, and only four wirehouses were left in the mix: Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, Wells Fargo Advisors, UBS Wealth Management and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.
HighTower and SeaCrest executives believe their model is attractive to brokers who want less bureaucracy than they find at the four wirehouses, but who don't want all of the responsibilities of managing a business.
"From a regulatory perspective we are an RIA, in that we are fiduciaries, but from an infrastructure perspective, we look like a brokerage," says Elliot Weissbluth, chief executive of HighTower Advisors.
Many wirehouse advisors have a mix of fee-based and transaction-based business, but registered investment advisors, or RIAs, are typically only fee-based. SeaCrest and High-Tower cater to both types of business.