Orion CEO Eric Clarke announces retirement plans

Orion Advisor Solutions CEO Eric Clarke is retiring from the company he founded nearly a quarter century ago.

Clarke informed the company's board of directors that he plans to step down at the end of 2023. He'll continue as CEO until a successor is in place, the company said in a statement.

What began as a portfolio reporting software in 1999 has since grown into one of the wealth management industry’s largest providers of technology and outsourced investment management. Orion Technology includes financial planning, client risk assessment and customer relationship management software, while its turnkey asset management product oversees $61.7 billion in assets. Orion services a combined total of $3.6 trillion across its products, 5 million technology accounts and thousands of independent advisory firms.

“As Orion approaches our 25-year anniversary in 2024, I’ve recognized this as the right time for me to retire from the CEO role while remaining an active member of the board of directors,” Clarke said in the statement. “I am humbled and grateful to be part of what we’ve built together over the past two-and-a-half decades.”

The company didn't give any reason for his departure, Orion didn't respond to an additional request for comment.

Sources familiar with the company believe Clarke is stepping down for personal reasons related to his family. Clarke was scheduled to give a keynote address at the Technology Tools for Today (T3) conference in March before a family emergency required him to cancel at short notice, a source said.

Orion’s acquisition of Redtail CRM in 2022 marked a significant step toward Clarke’s eventual succession, one source familiar with the company said. Former Redtail CEO Brian McLaughlin was named president of Orion’s technology division as part of corporate reorganization in September.

Charles Goldman, the former head of Charles Schwab Advisor Services and CEO of AssetMark, who was named chairman of Orion’s board earlier in May, will lead the search for a new CEO.

“The selection will be thorough and thoughtful, ensuring that we find the right individual to lead Orion into the future,” Goldman said in the statement. “Eric’s retiring at a high point in Orion’s journey, and we will now capitalize on his wealth of knowledge and experience while enabling fresh perspectives and ideas to shape our future.”

While the announcement is significant for the wealth management industry and filling his shoes will be a “massive challenge” for Orion, Clarke’s decision is not surprising, said co-founder and CEO of consulting group F2 Strategy Doug Fritz. Orion’s executive has been moving in this direction for a number of years, Fritz said.

“It’s a reflection on his emotional intelligence to know when the firm needs someone to lead who has experience with the size and complexity Orion now has,” Fritz said. “Quite candidly, it’s refreshing to see an executive like Eric depart with the company on strong footing and not due to any negative circumstances.”

While Goldman can provide invaluable guidance in finding a replacement, Fritz wonders if his experience with AssetMark will tilt Orion further toward asset servicing rather than advisor fintech.

“Eric Clarke represented a unique skill set who could manage and lead both,” he added. “I don’t know that they will find one individual capable of being great across the two focus areas.”