Cetera’s Erinn Ford: My unlikely path into the financial services industry

Twenty-five years ago, I walked into a Series 24 prep class. I was the only female among a sea of men. Within minutes of sitting down, one of them passed me a note that said, “You’ll never make it in here.”
The irony is that at the time, when I was about to graduate from college, I had no intention of entering the financial services industry. But the labor market in my hometown was soft, so when my dad mentioned there was a position available at the family-owned broker-dealer and RIA firm, Pacific West Securities, I was open to the idea. However, this wasn’t a job offer, he explained — it was an invitation to submit my résumé for consideration. Though I was his daughter, I had to earn the right to serve.
That’s a lesson I never forgot, one of many I would learn from my parents over the years. My dad had a gift for seeing the big picture, a thirst for knowledge and was consumed by the power of positive thinking. Thanks to him, I learned the importance of setting goals and always being accountable, even in the toughest of times.
My mother, meanwhile, is a huge role model and a true inspiration. She was a financial services industry pioneer, having earned the title of president in a male-dominated industry, as well as a breast cancer survivor. Her work ethic was strong and she was results oriented. Through it all, she never lost sight of the firm’s commitment to its advisers and their clients. She cared about them as people, first and foremost, and this approach — which I have tried to emulate — drove so many of my parents’ personal and professional successes.
In 1999, my parents were diagnosed with cancer within six months of one another. My husband and I, along with our business partner, took over the firm and provided strong leadership for another decade, achieving growth and winning multiple industry awards for excellence.
As a small regional firm, we didn’t have elaborate technology platforms or many of the other bells and whistles that some of the larger B-Ds offered. Instead, we established a culture of trust between the advisers and the home office, and because of that our recruiting and retention efforts were successful.
However, the strains of the Great Recession were too much for us to endure. Like many small-to-medium-sized firms, compressed margins and a challenging regulatory environment took its toll. We closed our doors in 2011 after 40 years and entered into an “introduction agreement” with Cetera Financial Group. In terms of percentage of advisers recruited, it was one of the most successful recruiting deals in industry history.
When I joined Cetera, I quickly realized that many of the lessons I learned operating a small firm were applicable to a much larger organization, including a passion for your line of work; putting people first; being relentless in serving advisers; establishing trust and having the discipline to get things done.
In 2014, I was promoted to president of Cetera Advisors. I am appreciative to Cetera for embracing me and providing opportunities to grow and lead. At 45, I feel like I still have many years ahead of me and look forward to continuing to earn the right to serve our advisers, my colleagues, the industry and, ultimately, the end client.
Erinn Ford is president of Cetera Advisors, an independent broker-dealer within Cetera Financial Group.