As we were celebrating our compliments the other day, I could not help but think about the different feedback we receive from clients!

At times, we also receive some complaints, which are also recorded and reported by our internal audit team to the internal audit committee and to the board of directors, and attention is given to how these complaints were resolved.

Then we receive verbal feedback from clients from different settings, such as on the side of or after a trustee meeting, during breakfast or lunch appointments with clients, etc.

From time to time, clients point out that they are extremely happy with our services, but the problem they have with us is that “RFS is inflexible”! It does not easily accommodate them, and things are only done the RFS way. There is some truth in this statement, though one has to add context to it. We state in our promotional material that “RFS offers rigid quality standards”. We also publicly acknowledge that “clients who prefer to do their business without following their fund rules and without paying attention to the law will experience our service as frustrating”.

However, we also say that “RFS is humble”. We recognise that we may sometimes come across as arrogant towards our clients in our insistence on things being done correctly. However,  given the appropriate perspective, clients will acknowledge that RFS always tries to accommodate their requirements. Where necessary, we would always offer an alternative to protect clients and their members against risks they often did not realise!

Clearly, it is often difficult to find a balance between what clients would like to achieve and what is in their best interests, and clients are bound sometimes to be frustrated in the first instance, but we are committed to maintaining the correct balance and going the extra mile!