“The [chief compliance officer] is not there to fill out irrelevant paperwork or serve as a scapegoat for the firm’s failings,” says Peter Driscoll, director of the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations.
Since Merrill Lynch published the data, clients have become more comfortable talking about diversity efforts, according to Christopher Jay, a Black advisor at the wirehouse.
Whether broker-dealers conduct remote branch exams or catch up with on-site inspections post-pandemic, each scenario comes with its own set of challenges.
Identifying inefficiencies in work practices that cause longer hours is the first step in helping advisors manage their time and stress, one industry executive says.