Perspectives

By Deborah Aronson – There’s a battle for control taking place between big brokerage firms and the advisors who work for them—a battle that advisors are losing more of as each year goes by. Deferred compensation often serves as the firms’ ammunition – a way to control behavior and keep advisors in their seats – in an attempt to stave off attrition. The firms count on an advisor’s reluctance to make a move and leave money on the table. And with retention deals falling off and free agency status growing closer, it’s no surprise that wirehouse advisors have found more of their income being deferred—whether it be a percentage of their payout or for bonuses earned.

By Mindy Diamond – For most advisors, the thought of making a move is met with both excitement and a certain level of trepidation. The promise of being able to better serve your clients and grow your business provides the energy needed to juggle all the moving parts that come with such a major change—with concerns over client portability at the top of that list. But, if client relationships are strong and the move is being made for all the right reasons, clients are very likely to follow. Once the dust has settled, advisors and their clients are typically happy with the decision and life goes on.

By Wendy Leung – Succession planning has become a hot topic, driven by an aging advisor population and the anticipated wave of retirements coming in the next decade. Planning for one’s next chapter is the best way to ensure the legacy an advisor has worked so hard to build can continue well into the future.

By Mindy Diamond – It’s those things that happen when you least expect it. I was leaving a local diner after a nice dinner with friends, and the floor came right out from under me. As I landed, I instinctively reached down, breaking my fall – and my wrist – in the process.

By Mindy Diamond – Sadly, it’s a scenario that plays out quite often: A top-notch team meets with the hiring manager at a firm that has all the markings of a good fit: A culture and vision they could align with, great technology and a client-focused value proposition. The team describes their needs and goals in detail, and outlines their financial expectations. The manager nods in agreement. He’s enthusiastic about the team and gets them excited about the firm’s culture and how much better their professional lives would be if they joined.

By Debbie Wallen – Not that long ago, generating $1mm in revenue was a milestone worth celebrating: Those at this level were considered top of the food chain, and ardently pursued by all major firms. But, in today’s world, it’s the advisors in the “Billion Dollar AUM Club” who garner the lion’s share of attention from firms.

By Mindy Diamond – The value proposition of our firm is built upon being an objective source of knowledge designed to help advisors make sound decisions. Our goal is to serve as connectors to the industry at large, helping advisors through their exploration process without bias or expectation.

By Barbara Herman – Advisors constantly juggle between meeting the short-term demands of their businesses while working towards their longer-term goals. To complicate things further, short- and long-term views are frequently not aligned at a particular moment in time—creating a greater lack of clarity and frustration. While it’s important for all advisors to check-in with themselves regularly to assess the balance between the two, it’s even more important for those considering a move. While the “perfect opportunity” would solve for all goals equally, it’s unrealistic to expect that perfection actually exists in one single option.

By Mindy Diamond – There was a time in the not-too-distant past when advisors and firms alike thought independence was only for those whose clients were “regular folks” of average wealth—that is, with respectable assets, yet limited needs beyond “plain vanilla” financial management. And top advisors who served the ultra-wealthy would never have considered leaving behind the big brand name upon which they built their businesses to strike out on their own—certain that no firm but the biggest could support their clients’ unique needs.

By Louis Diamond – According to a 2017 Cerulli report, 39% of the financial advisor population is over 55 years of age—and of course, no one is getting any younger. Over the past decade, many quality brokerage firms responded to the strong outcry from advisors who had no tangible way to monetize their life’s work in place. As such, firms launched attractive sunset programs like UBS Alpha, Merrill Lynch CTP, and Morgan Stanley FFAP—each providing pathways for senior advisors to unlock liquidity before formally retiring and passing the business along to the next generation.