Investment adviser to stock broker
An investment adviser already meets 57% of what the stock broker role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
45.7/ 100
1 How much of what a stock broker is expected to do is already part of an investment adviser’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the stock broker role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A stock broker role treats 11 of its required skills as things an investment adviser already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on financial matters
- analyse financial risk
- analyse market financial trends
- assess risks of clients' assets
- asset management
- financial markets
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A stock broker role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an investment adviser background worth leading with.
- already held fundamental analysis business, administration and law
- already held assess risks of clients' assets information skills
- already held asset management business, administration and law
- already held perform stock valuation information skills
- already held examine credit ratings information skills
- already held provide financial product information communication, collaboration and creativity
All 20 carried skills, including the 11 the stock broker role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn apply technical communication skills required
- still to learn protect client interests required
- still to learn trade securities required
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- still to learn forecast economic trends required
- optional, not held create a financial report optional
- optional, not held maintain records of financial transactions optional
- optional, not held manage financial risk optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
- still to learn handle financial transactions required
- optional, not held operate financial instruments optional
- still to learn actuarial science required
- optional, not held statistics optional
- still to learn economics required
- optional, not held holding company activities optional
- optional, not held accounting optional
- optional, not held financial jurisdiction optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a stock broker role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 actuarial science study this
- 02 apply technical communication skills practise this
- 03 economics study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 20 skills that carry over
- already held advise on financial matters skill
- already held analyse financial risk skill
- already held analyse market financial trends skill
- already held assess risks of clients' assets skill
- already held asset management knowledge
- already held financial markets knowledge
- already held financial products knowledge
- already held modern portfolio theory knowledge
- already held review investment portfolios skill
- already held securities knowledge
- already held stock market knowledge
- already held banking activities knowledge
- already held build business relationships skill
- already held communicate with banking professionals skill
- already held examine credit ratings skill
- already held fundamental analysis knowledge
- already held obtain financial information skill
- already held perform stock valuation skill
- already held provide financial product information skill
- already held provide support in financial calculation skill
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held create a financial report optional
- optional, not held holding company activities optional
- optional, not held accounting optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held financial jurisdiction optional
- optional, not held maintain records of financial transactions optional
- optional, not held manage financial risk optional
- optional, not held operate financial instruments optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
28 held skills the stock broker role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on investment skill
- not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial performance of a company skill
- not needed by the target role apply credit risk policy skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role business valuation techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role consult credit score skill
- not needed by the target role create a financial plan skill
- not needed by the target role credit control processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop investment portfolio skill
- not needed by the target role ensure proper document management skill
- not needed by the target role explain financial jargon skill
- not needed by the target role funding methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role green bonds knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role impact investing knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret financial statements skill
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role monitor bond market skill
- not needed by the target role monitor stock market skill
- not needed by the target role perform clerical duties skill
- not needed by the target role principles of insurance knowledge
- not needed by the target role promote financial products skill
- not needed by the target role prospect new customers skill
- not needed by the target role social bonds knowledge
- not needed by the target role sustainable finance knowledge
- not needed by the target role synthesise financial information skill
- not needed by the target role types of insurance knowledge
7 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn actuarial science required
- still to learn economics required
- optional, not held holding company activities optional
- optional, not held accounting optional
- optional, not held financial jurisdiction optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
Common questions about this move
Can an investment adviser become a stock broker?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An investment adviser already covers 57% of what a stock broker is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 11 of which the stock broker role treats as required.
What skills does an investment adviser need to become a stock broker?
7 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is actuarial science.
How hard is the move from investment adviser to stock broker?
Its learning distance is 45.7 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.