Women and CPAs are in focus at RIA Choreo

Karen Lee of Choreo and industry consultant Suzanne Siracuse

"It's smart to align with a proven center of influence, CPAs," an industry consultant says.

With the wealth management industry looking to boost the number of women financial advisors, one large RIA, Choreo, said Wednesday it is starting a campaign focused on women advisors and clients. The firm, with $24.6 billion in client assets, firm intends to use its relationships with tax specialists and certified public accountants as part of that goal.

Women have long been underrepresented in the financial advice industry, which for decades has been considered a good old boys type of business.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, just 34 percent of personal financial advisers were women in 2020. Industry executives and recruiters have suggested that the portion of women advisers increased by a few percentage points in the past decade to about 25% of the total working right now.

The firm’s initiative, Choreo Momentum, targets growth by building networks and providing practice management and sales training for its women advisors. At the same time, the firm will use digital prospecting campaigns to accelerate client acquisition, focusing on women investors and business owners.

Participants will have the opportunity to attend networking and educational events, as well as joint CPA events with organizations in the tax professional community, according to a statement from Choreo.

“Wealth management continues to lag behind other sectors when it comes to recruiting and investing in women professionals, not to mention serving women clients,” Karen Lee, Choreo’s chief growth officer, said in the statement. “Making advancements in these areas has more urgency than ever, thanks in part to the great wealth transfer, which studies have found will result in women inheriting trillions of dollars from their parents and grandparents.”

“Most women want to participate in community building initiatives, networking opportunities and professional development and training programs,” said Suzanne Siracuse, an industry consultant. “Kudos to Choreo for helping to facilitate those areas for its advisors. And it is smart to align with a proven center of influence, CPAs.”

Chicago-based Choreo announced last fall that it was acquiring the wealth management business of accounting firm BDO USA, which oversees roughly $8.1 billion in assets. One of the firm’s goals is to work with the tax professional community, Larry Miles, CEO of Choreo, said at the time.