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A wake-up call for planners fresh out of college

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By Aaron Siegel

August 4, 2008 6:01 am ET

Many recent college graduates have found that adapting to the day-to-day rigors of working in a financial planning firm can be a stark change from their experiences in the classroom.

Handling the responsibilities of an adviser in the real world is very different than going over case studies and learning asset allocation at school.

Young advisers who attended the Denver-based Financial Planning Association's NexGen 2008 conference in Collegeville, Minn., last month reflected on the changes they have experienced since they started working at financial planning practices.

Darin Shebesta

Associate planner

Jackson Financial Advisors

Scottsdale, Ariz.

Assets under management: $100M

The biggest item I've noticed is the uniqueness of client situations. We go through case studies when studying the topics in an education setting, but no matter how many we cover, every real-life situation is different. Case studies are helpful to learn about how to take the input and turn it in to a value added output, but they are supplemental to the real-world client experience. "

Jerad Waggy

Financial planner The Enrichment Group Inc. Miami

Assets under management: $265M

After graduating Texas Tech University in Lubbock, I was [worried] about how prepared I was before entering the industry," Mr. Waggy said. "When I began working, a planner said that I had the right thought process. I was relieved that he acknowledged what I am doing."

J. Brent Beene Wealth manager

RegentAtlantic Capital LLC

Chatham, N.J.

Assets under management: $1.9B

When entering a financial planning firm, you wondered what it would be like working with people with millions of dollars in assets," Mr. Beene said. "When I started working with them, I realized that they were like your neighbor next door."

Katie Erickson

Assistant planner

Nancy C. Nelson & Associates Inc.

Olympia, Wash.

Assets under management: $40M

What you realize when you enter a financial planning firm is that there is more administrative work than you would have thought," Ms. Erickson said. "The day-to-day work is work, and there is less of a sparkle to it than there was in college. The really interesting client situations are not happening every day."

Jorge Padilla

Planning and financial associate

The Lubitz Financial Group

Miami

Assets under management: $145M

When you go to school, you have to learn theory," Mr. Padilla said. "But as an adviser, you have to learn how to deal with the personal lives of your clients, and that goes beyond what the textbooks teach you."

E-mail Aaron Siegel at asiegel@investmentnews.com.

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