That's the advice from the head of financial services giant Edward Jones Canada (one of Mississauga’s Top 100 employers) as he looks at the uncertain markets and the tumultuous road ahead.
“Any time you have the stock market up and down or news of recession out of the United States or potentially a Canadian recession, what we've said to our clients is to have a long-term investment plan,” said Gary Reamey, head of the Mississauga-headquartered company. “If nothing have changed in your life and nothing is wrong with a particular investment, we would say that maybe they don't need to make any changes. We're saying, 'stay calm, stay invested and make sure you are invested in good quality investments.'”
Diversifying your investments by making sure not all investments are in Canada alone is also a good way to lessen risk, he said.
“Twenty-five to 35 per cent of your investments should be outside of Canada,” he said. “And the easiest thing to own is a U.S. mutual fund. Look for opportunities. There's that old saying, 'don't put all of your eggs in one basket.'”
Ultimately, he said, quality never goes out of style when it comes to investments.
Reamey said it's hard to know where the markets will go in the coming year. “I don't know,” he said. “We don't try to predict. We just try to make sure we diversify so some money is keeping pace. We avoid aggressive investments.”
Clients sometimes need to be reminded that they shouldn't be making financial investment decisions based on what they read in the newspaper that morning, he said. “You should review your investments at least once a year and we find investments do well by not trying to guess at the market but by staying invested in quality markets,” he said.
Meanwhile, Edward Jones clients don't seem too rattled by news of uncertain markets, Reamey said. “As I talk to our investors right across the country they seem to be comfortable with the investments they are holding and over time will probably do well,” he said. “It's a bit like my mother and her house (in the United States). Just because there is a crazy real estate market, she's not selling (so it doesn't affect her).”
That mortgage crisis, meanwhile, has not impacted on investing on this side of the border too much, he said. “I don't think that affects our clients,” he said. “Other than that you might see some particular real estate stocks coming down in value, but then in some cases that creates opportunity.”
Soaring gas prices are causing prices for many things to skyrocket, but Reamey said ultimately people need to still invest for their futures. “It's not going to affect our decisions and our sitting down and creating long-term investment plans with our clients,” he said. “Obviously it affects all of us because we are paying more for everything. But at the end of the day, no matter what happens in the economy people still need to save for their retirement and still want to send their children and grandchildren to the best colleges and universities. So, life goes on.”
Edward Jones employs 1,500 people in 630 branches from coast to coast. The company is employee-owned, something Reamey said has been critical to its success. “We are 100 percent employee-owned,” he said. “One in three of our Canadian associates is an owner-partner of Edward Jones.”
And that doesn't just mean Edward Jones Canada. They are partners in the Edward Jones global operation, which has invested $500 billion on behalf of its seven million clients worldwide. “I don't care what currency you are talking about; that's a big number,” Reamey said.
The owner-partners know that servicing their clients well means success for themselves also, which has been critical to the growth of the company, he said.
“Everybody understands their part,” he said. “And they enjoy the environment they work in.” In fact, Edward Jones has been recognized time and again for its commitment to an employee-friendly workplace.
For the sixth consecutive year, the company was named one of the best employers in Canada based on a the annual listing in the Globe and Mails' Report on Business magazine and in La Presse. The company also ranked in the fifth place in the 50 Best Employers in Canada ranking in January 2008.
And for the eighth year, Edward Jones was named one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in America by FORTUNE magazine. The firm ranked in the 29th place overall.
Edward Jones was also the highest-ranking brokerage firm on BusinessWeek magazine's first-ever ranking of Customer Service Champs. The firm ranked in sixth place among 25 companies.
“We treat our associates the way we want to be treated,” Reamey said. “You get to be a partner by performing well over a long period of time. And then you buy into the partnership.”
Each owner-partner invests $25,000 into the company, putting 25 percent down and then the company helps them to get financing on the rest.
“We also take 24 percent of our profits and set that aside each year for our employee's retirement accounts,” he said. “Other things we do is that each associate has $5,000 for reimbursement to further their education. And we give $5,000 per adoption to help offset the costs of that. So these are some of the things we do to make sure our associates are excited and motivated and everybody knows what we are trying to do.”
