Wealth management "manufacturing": Delivering more value?

Academic literature on wealth management is often devoted to portfolio optimization. It is important to remember, however, that wealth management exists as a way for financial institutions to cater to wealthy clients. The discipline of services marketing teaches us that a service will generate a profit if clients perceive it as sufficiently valuable that they are willing to pay for it. The business model of wealth management has long been grounded on "hidden fees." Increasingly stringent regulations have imposed greater transparency of these fees. Additionally, investors have become more sophisticated and expect sound expertise from wealth managers. This article conducts a thorough literature review related to the production aspects of wealth management. The authors then describe the investment process schematically as it has been adopted by most "industrialized" wealth management entities. They conclude with several arguments that could lead to new research directions in wealth management.