Letters to the Editor

“The trend in managing an advisory practice is all about collaboration … with peers, home office associates, [centers of influence] and, most importantly, clients. Younger advisers will be driving their senior partners to adopt new technologies, particularly at the “point of sale’ and in reviews. There will be greater use of virtual interaction, but, if done right, with no degradation of the client relationship.”
David Patchen

Senior vice president of private client group education and practice management, Raymond James Financial Inc.

“We’ll see substantial separation between advisers who embrace technology in all facets of their practice and those who do not. Consumers are increasingly leveraging technology to manage their finances — including finding the right adviser — and advisers who rely on old-line marketing and practice management techniques will be challenged to attract and connect with clients who view them as behind the times.”
Kristin C. Harad

Marketing trainer, Next10Clients, and president and co-founder, The Mercato Advisor Marketplace

“Baby boomer advisers will be scrambling to identify the best succession path and finding, because of procrastination, there are few optimal choices left.”
Kirk J. Hulett

Executive vice president of strategy and practice management, Securities America Inc.

“Running an advisory firm in the future will require a greater dependency on technology. Successful advisers will build stronger relationships that are no longer exclusively face-to-face, but cultivated and maintained using social media and other virtual channels. Firms that leverage the latest technology will also attract and retain the best people, and fuel loyalty by creating a company culture that appeals to tech-savvy Gen X and Gen Y associates. [And] the most successful firms will be those that use technology in as many areas as possible to create a highly efficient business that is profitable, can scale for growth and has the capacity to handle the rising demand for professional advice.”
Jim Dario

Managing director for product management, TD Ameritrade Institutional

“The independent channel will be strong but with fewer, larger, CEO-led firms that have multiple generations of advisers. Comprehensive wealth management will be the core service, while commoditized inv estment management will be delivered predominately via firm-sponsored technology. Technology will also impact the delivery of services, with in-person client meetings decreasing among all age groups.”
Joni Youngwirth

Managing principal for practice management Commonwealth Financial Network

“The greatest changes we’ll see in advisory practices over the next decade will be how we engage younger clients. From how we communicate with them, to structuring services and fees aligned with their needs and expectations — which are quite different from the baby boomers many of us work with now — is likely to cause an evolution in practices that want to position themselves for future growth.”
Valerie L. Porter

Director of the Research and Practice Institute, Financial Planning Association

“We have seen the advice profession, and the broader industry, undergo incredible change, expanding advisers’ choices for how they run their practices — from the advent of strategic acquirers and functional outsourcers to serving the emerging affluent and digitizing advice. The next five years will bring more change and likely present even more solutions and, at an increasingly rapid pace, bring greater efficiencies and higher margins to many advisers’ practices.”
David Canter

Executive vice president for practice management and consulting, Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services

“The up-and-coming generation of investors (today’s 35-year-olds) has a different mindset, and their social club is the web. To keep clients engaged and to attract prospects you’ll need great, dynamic content and digital marketing with the right marketing automation.”
Gail Graham

Chief marketing officer United Capital

Related Topics: Practice Management