by matthew d. edward
jeff gollehon clu©, chfc©, president jg financial consulting
‘Stock Jockeys’
CAN’T HELP SERIOUS INVESTORS
R
Recent revelations that Wells Fargo sales teams created up to 3.5 million fake bank and credit accounts as they struggled to meet what the company now describes as “unrealistic quotas” have, once again highlighted how high-pressure financial services firms often fail to put clients first. The Wells Fargo scandal — originally thought to encompass 2.1 million fake accounts, a number that climbed higher as subsequent audits found more —
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ADVISORS MAGAZINE - SEPT 2017
prompted an apology from the company’s chief executive officer and a sharp rebuke from Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), a long-time Wells Fargo critic. And while Wells Fargo’s latest troubles stem from bank and credit card accounts, other financial products likely are not immune from the same high-pressure sales environments and quota systems. “My big complaint about the
industry has always been that most people in the industry are salesmen,” said Jeff Gollehon, CLU, ChFC, the president of JG Financial Consulting. “They’re not advisors. If you put somebody’s tax return in front of a, supposedly, financial advisor, most of them wouldn’t be able to interpret a simple tax return.” Based in Aberdeen, North Carolina, JG Financial Consulting provides retirement planning and wealth management for senior clients either in, or close, to retirement. The firm has no “hard and fast” minimum, but Gollehon prefers clients with $250,000 in investable assets. JG Financial Consulting holds itself to a fiduciary standard, meaning that clients’ interests come before commissions and firm profits, Gollehon told “Advisors Magazine,” adding that he takes his fiduciary responsibility seriously, and has developed a comprehensive knowledge of investing, estates, Social Security, and taxes, so that clients can receive tailored advice. “I am not an estate attorney or a CPA, but I have enough experience to be able to identify a potential problem and refer them to a local professional who is,” Gollehon said. “To work with someone who’s strictly a stock jockey, they aren’t doing those people any favors.” JG Financial Consulting has “two sides” to it, according to Gollehon. The first is the “low-risk, fixed” side that serves soon-to-be and current retirees with safer investment products such as fixed and indexed annuities; the goal there being to protect wealth and pass it on to the next generation. The second side of the business is the moderate-risk, moderatereturn AUM side, and JG Financial Consulting works with several wealth management firms who work to help clients manage their retirement savings and give them a better chance for successful results. Market collapses like the 2008 financial crisis pose the biggest threat to clients’ retirement funds, he added. That is especially true now that lifespans are growing, and many
