Inclusion Awards Practice Management
Full name of company Type of organization If other, please describe City State Year firm was founded Please…
| Full name of company | Type of organization | If other, please describe | City | State | Year firm was founded | Please provide a detailed description of the service or technology and how it enhances the way advisers execute in such key areas as strategic planning, human capital, financial management and practice operations. Please include an explanation of how the idea was conceived and implemented. | Please provide quantitative evidence of its success in improving operations and/or communications with clients, along with other metrics that show enhanced client service. | Computed Score |
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| pershing | Custodian | jersey city | nj | 2008 | BNY Mellon | Pershing has created a proprietary tool that helps RIA clients to address the complexities of growing their business, seize opportunities and realize their full potential. The Business Metrics tool is the only hands-on interactive tool that allows RIAs to compare their firm’s performance to other RIAs similar in size, to help define and establish their firm’s evolutionary vision and goals. It is designed for the management team and executives of RIAs tracks key performance indicators (KPIs) such as productivity, profitability and client ratios. It provides clients with invaluable insights into historical trends, allowing for hands-on benchmarking. The tool allows firms to: • Track important KPIs and key ratios to assess a firm’s trends • Benchmark their firm against where they are today versus plan, or versus industry benchmarks • Design customized management reports to help gauge trends and measure progress | The tool enhances the way RIAs execute in the financial management of their business. It helps RIAs to: • Better understand their business fundamentals • Reduce business risk and measure capacity to insure healthy growth • Capture, distribute and discuss quantitative data across their firm to help drive change and profitable growth • Gauge trends, assess business tradeoffs and measure results • Strengthen and improve their business performance The tool was developed in an effort to help our clients make informed decisions. Our clients can manipulate the data to model various scenarios and to help them drive a better outcome, so Relationship Managers and Consultants offer business insights and support to help RIA clients achieve the goals they seek. All BNY Mellon | Pershing relationship management and consulting teams are trained to use this tool, ensuring clients consistently high quality business consulting. The tool is fueled by the Investment News benchmarking data and powered by ActiFi. | 5 | |
| XY Planning Network | Other | Network of fee-only financial advisors | Bozeman | Montana | 2014 | For years, the financial services industry has both obsessed over the need to move beyond Baby Boomer retirees and reach next generation clients, and lamented the nigh impossibility of serving them profitably. Since its founding in 2014, XY Planning Network (XYPN) has proven the industry wrong and demonstrated that next generation clients can be served profitably. But it takes both innovation in the business model to reach those clients and innovation in the practice management support infrastructure for financial advisors themselves. XYPN’s two key innovations are the championing of a new “monthly retainer” business model to serve next generation clients, about which XYPN published a book, and the creation of a new “Turnkey Financial Planning Platform” (TFPP) to provide the necessary practice management support independent financial advisors need to start, run, and grow successful financial planning firms that serve next generation clients. Through membership, advisors gain access to compliance support, a versatile and highly-rated technology stack, customized practice management coaching, facilitated study groups, lead generation opportunities, and a strong sense of community that is often absent from the life of an independent advisor entrepreneur… at a fraction of the support cost of a traditional broker-dealer. Today, XYPN has quickly grown to more than 860 financial advisors, making XYPN larger than any other advisor network and of comparable size to a top-30 broker-dealer by advisor headcount, and continues to recruit an average of more than 30 new advisors every month. Ultimately, though, XYPN is innovatively disrupting both the financial advisor business model with a new fiduciary fee-for-service model for next generation clients that is not reliant on the delivery of insurance or investment products and disrupting the broker-dealer business model itself as a next generation platform that supports a financial advisor’s practice management needs. | It is XYPN’s belief that every advisor has the capacity to serve 100 clients—what we call the “100x impact” of being a successful TFPP. This means the 860+ advisors who are members of XYPN have the ability to serve 86,000+ underserved Gen X and Gen Y clients who under a traditional service model would not have access to financial planning. This also means XYPN has helped more than 860 advisors—an advisor headcount on par with the size of a top-30 broker-dealer and comprising nearly 5% of all state-registered RIAs delivering financial planning services—launch, run, and grow successful fee-for-service financial planning firms over the past five years. And while the industry has historically struggled with 70% of new financial advisors not surviving their first three years, XYPN’s new advisor failure rate is only ~4.5% in the first year. In fact, XYPN advisors are not only surviving, but thriving. XYPN’s 2018 Annual Benchmarking Study found that the average member who launched and built their firm from the ground up in the year XYPN was founded was generating $170,286 in financial planning fees after just four years (and is projected to continue compounding higher from here!). Overall, business growth for the average XYPN member over the past three years (2015-2017) has averaged nearly 22% per year, and members are finding such success in the innovative monthly subscription model that XYPN champions that 100% of XYPN members have raised their fees over the past three years (despite industry fears of financial advisor fee compression). In the meantime, XYPN’s innovations have been financially successful enough to fully reinvest for its own growth from free cash flow, allowing the organization to scale its services for financial advisors without the need for outside capital. | 4.5 |
| Moneta | Registered Investment Adviser | St. Louis | Missouri | 1989 | Moneta’s centralized “Enterprise Service Team” (EST) features nearly 70 people serving all 22 of the firm’s advisory teams. The platform leverages strategic planning and operational efficiencies in practice management: human resources, talent acquisition, talent development, technology, cybersecurity, IT support, legal, compliance, investments, accounting, business intelligence, data analytics, tax consulting and bookkeeping, estate planning, and marketing. The EST delivers more than just back- or mid-office support. It also delivers strategic planning in each area to help teams operate more efficiently while sharing best practices. The idea for Moneta’s EST was conceived through our continual pursuit of what is best for clients. The EST’s practice management services empower Moneta’s Partners and Advisors to spend less time running their business and more time serving clients with personal financial planning and advice. Building businesses requires advisors to wear an increasing number of hats as they manage an increasing number of team members and complexities associated with owning a business. Moneta’s EST shoulders the burden of these many administrative duties and simplifies the associated complexities. Moneta leadership realized that taking all of this off their plate would free Moneta Partners and Advisors to focus their time and energy doing what they do best and love most: proactively planning the achievement of their clients’ financial goals. The idea was implemented by putting talented individuals in place to serve our advisory teams. Our current President and COO, Keith Bowles, started in 2016 as the director of business systems and went right into building the EST. In this role, he asked many questions about the configuration of our systems and convincingly communicated a totally different approach to our technology solutions. He listened and fulfilled needs one by one – building the EST with advancement potential that attracted top talent in each respective specialty. | Enhanced client service and increased operational efficiency resulted in Moneta outperforming its internal financial forecast by a wide margin. Happier clients resulted in more referrals and increased revenue well beyond what was anticipated. Increased operational efficiency resulted in much lower expenses and much greater cash flow than what was budgeted. Moneta surpassed $20 billion in AUM in 2018 for the first time in firm history. New client growth was solid with the addition of 413 new households with annualized revenue of $4,375,000. Moneta ended 2018 with total client revenue of $88,311,000, which was $1.2M above budget and a 11.52% ($9.1M) increase from 2017. Moneta’s management fee income was 11.6% higher than initially budgeted. On the expense side, Moneta ended under budget by 1.6%, or $240k. Cash flow from operations was 21.1% of total management fee income compared to a budgeted 7.3%. This allowed Moneta to not only cover a projected cash shortfall entering the year, but create a $382k cash surplus. | 4 | |
| RBC Correspondent & Advisor Services | Custodian | Minneapolis | Minnesota | 1979 | Following the launch of RBC MarketPlace, a network of over 100 technology solutions and service providers, we built RBC BLACK to provide five integrated and business-critical investment solutions. RBC BLACK is exclusive to RBC Correspondent & Advisor Services, and is the first platform to integrate and offer world-class solutions from five leading wealth technology providers: account aggregation from CircleBlack; client relationship management from Redtail; risk analysis from Riskalyze; goals-based financial planning from MoneyGuidePro; and trading and rebalancing from Vestmark. Advisors can access RBC BLACK with a single password, from any device. The cost for BLACK is over 80% less than the sum cost of purchasing each of these technologies separately and there are added benefits with having a primary dashboard, curated content and an investor mobile app advisors can use with their clients. Through a primary dashboard, the updates and metrics from each system can be accessed. Since its introduction in May 2017, RBC BLACK is being used by over 20% of our client firms and over 20 trade publications have featured BLACK in the news. RBC BLACK received the 2018 Family Wealth Award for Technology – Innovative Client Solution. We recently solicited feedback from several users; the following are a few raving comments: “The way BLACK programs are coordinated gives me the ability to show clients, in a way they can easily understand, why investment decisions are being made.” “BLACK brings a level of organization and automation to my practice that I never had before.” “These programs have significantly increased the level of communication with my clients.” “The best thing I’ve seen in 30 years in the industry.” Ultimately, we identified a complex need among the advisors we serve, created a simple solution, and are achieving successful results. | Key metrics: • Experienced an increase of 74% of end users activated on RBC BLACK platform from 2017 to December 2018. • The cost for BLACK is over 80% less than the sum cost of purchasing each of these technologies separately and there are added benefits with having a primary dashboard, curated content and an investor mobile app advisors can use with their clients. • Nearly 20,000 accounts have a risk analysis through the BLACK platform. • Advisors have the ability to advise and bill on held away assets in one place. Through the aggregation, there is no need to enter the data manually. | 4 | |
| Resources Investment Advisors | Registered Investment Adviser | Leawood | KS | 1987 | Resources Investment Advisors (“Resources”) operates like a cooperative, allowing advisors to share resources for the benefit of their clients. Resources partner firms are independently managed and maintain their own local brands, but are connected through shared ideas, tools and talent allowing advisors to collaborate, innovate and grow. Resources provides a culture of communication where advisors exchange best practices and collaborate on future initiatives for the firm. With some of the top minds in the industry, ideas and innovation often come naturally. That’s where Resources steps in. With more than 20 full-time team-members dedicated to supporting the partner firms, the Resources team leads, with collaborations from the advisors, the review and implementation of the builds out so Advisors can focus on their strengths and for many, the reason they became advisors in the first place – building relationships with their clients. With expertise on both the wealth management and retirement plan businesses, our model capitalizes on the synergies between the two. The tools often utilized by affiliated firms are researched, developed and supported by Resources staff. Removing the bias from selection of the tools and supporting these systems, processes and technologies at the enterprise level gives advisors economies of scale and best-in-class solutions, uniquely incorporating wealth management and retirement plan advisory. Freedom and flexibility is offered for affiliates to utilize their own systems, independent of the enterprise. The talent shared by the 160+ independent advisors includes the RIA staff who run the operations of the back office, provide compliance and legal oversight, oversee development and implementation of strategic initiatives, develop and manage comprehensive marketing solutions, process account transitions, transactions, client billing, accounting and payroll services, advisor recruiting and succession planning. | Since affiliating its first partner firm in 2013, Resources has grown from $1.4 billion in AUA and 16 investment advisor representatives to now approximately $39 billion in AUA and 160 investment advisor representatives, nationwide. More than 20 independent advisory firms have affiliated with the RIA and many have doubled their revenue. By utilizing proven systems and processes, Resources can scale the operations and introduce new services. For example, an affiliated firm in Orlando added $400,000 of new revenue through the implementation of wealth management services in a retirement plan focused organization within the first year of affiliation. The compliance staff, who become familiar with each affiliates’ business, can handle issues more effectively than out-sourced compliance and function as another member of the team. In-house attorneys and compliance staff work alongside the advisor to customize agreements and communicate with clients. Resources has the scale to develop customized tools, when the marketplace did not provide a solution that fit the business. For example, the RIA staff which includes full-time technology support and development, designed a unique compensation engine which integrates directly to the affiliates’ accounting system and allows advisors to see fees and compensation in great detail. By customizing an off-the-shelf CRM, we decreased user costs by 60% and increased user adoption by 58.5%. In lieu of each firm hiring and managing internal marketing staff or outsourcing their branding, social media and event planning initiatives, Resources provides the staff, leveraged by technology. The technology solutions enable the RIA to scale the solutions while maintaining each affiliate’s unique identity and brand. Resources employs a full-time, in-house investment management team to support the affiliated advisors. Whether or not an affiliate utilizes the centralized investment portfolios, they are provided with timely market commentary and quarterly market newsletters which are private labeled and shared with clients. | 4 | |
| CBXmarket | Fintech company | New York | NY | 2014 | Fixed income investing has not kept up with the rapid pace of technological change across the rest of the financial services industry. At CBXmarket, we identified a substantial opportunity to deploy innovative technology and drive transformational change by addressing areas of deficiency within the bond markets. Our OASIS platform provides a new suite of features that streamline workflows and automate tedious business functions, freeing up investment professionals to focus on high value work. The fully-integrated OMS module transitions clients from idea generation to execution and improves transparency across the organization. We provide custodial integrations for straight-through-processing of transactions, mitigating the risks caused by fragmented software. Direct connection to OMS’s ensures that the front- and back-office are accessing the same reporting and are working off real-time data, removing the need for manual reconciliation. Users can also record and store trade authorizations and guideline waivers on an auditable operational log to maintain compliance and transparency. This provides improved collaboration between front-, middle- and back-office with a unified real-time view of portfolio activity, minimizing human error from manual data transfers. While OASIS operates as a front-to-back portfolio management platform, we ensure easy integrations with any other complementary system. Our open architecture APIs enable connections with myriad data providers we rely on to provide the depth of coverage across the U.S. bond universe. We provide clients with an unbiased point of view on 1.1 million securities. OASIS is ever-evolving, built based on direct feedback from investment managers. As such, CBXmarket’s client-centric approach for development provides for constant roll-out of new tools and features. With our use of DevOps cloud deployments, as soon as we understand our clients’ operational requirements, we are able to begin introducing custom tools and solutions within days. | Throughout 2018, we worked with a new client’s Fixed Income Desk ($100B asset manager, $20B in fixed income assets) to overhaul their portfolio management operations. Prior to the engagement, our client was maintaining a half-dozen applications to facilitate the portfolio reporting, order entry, rebalancing and trade allocation functions. This painstaking process was performed manually across thousands of portfolios. In the client’s old system, each allocation required portfolio managers to review portfolios individually, to recognize which portfolios needed particular exposure and to ensure trades met each portfolio’s unique guidelines. Our team conceived a portfolio optimization module that could identify which portfolios would benefit most from a potential trade, while automating compliance reviews. We actively cultivated feedback from the entire desk and through a series of iterations, we built out a fully automated workflow solution which included several core functions: • Mass rebalancing: For each strategy, the system maps the positioning of individual portfolios relative to an optimal efficient frontier, and proposes trades to enhance their positioning • Identifying and correcting strategy violations: In case of a breach of compliance guidelines, the system alerts the PM and suggests how to move the portfolio back within its investment guidelines • Automatic deployment of cash: The system proposes trades to deploy excess cash to Treasuries on a daily basis, automating a previously manual task In three months, we built out a fully functional, cloud-based desktop solution they could integrate with their OMS and portfolio accounting systems, while eliminating their need for the myriad of other programs on which they previously relied. | 4 | |
| Yeske Buie Inc. | Registered Investment Adviser | San Francisco | CA | 2008 | Yeske Buie should be considered for this award for their innovative Financial Planning Resident Program. Established in 2014, the program was born from a desire to leverage their financial planning team, and to contribute to the pipeline of new planners entering the profession. In role, Yeske Buie Residents work directly with Clients (under the supervision of a CFP professional) from the discovery process through implementation and ongoing support of a Client’s financial plan. This work provides them with the experience needed to qualify as a CFP licensee and to be prepared to join an established financial planning firm or start their own practice at the conclusion of the three-year program. With each class of Residents, the firm has adapted the program in light of feedback received. For example, the first class of Residents requested more defined role expectations as the work was much more intense than they had expected. For the second class of Residents, the management team provided too much support and lowered the intensity. This still didn’t feel like the right balance, and the Residents worked with the management team to redesign the role and create a “boot-camp” style training schedule focused on effective repetition, a role mastery document to track development, and a detailed resident timeline to set expectations which now play an integral role in a Resident’s success at Yeske Buie. Lastly, the team has addressed the effectiveness of its recruiting and hiring process, developing a robust interview process utilizing project management software to help make the time-consuming process more efficient. With these changes, the program meets its goals of adding another layer of support for Clients, providing more capacity for the firm’s experienced Financial Planners, pursuing the firm’s mission with fresh perspective, and mentoring the next generation of Financial Planners. | Below is quantitative evidence highlighting the success of the program based on the goals listed above: – Client Support: Each Resident works directly with a CFP professional to support 50 – 75 Clients. They provide general support by preparing for Client meetings, analytical support by preparing reports and presentations and taking notes, and client service support by assisting with Client requests and completing paperwork. Residents complete an average of 180 – 200 tasks per month. – Firm Capacity: With the Residents’ support, the firm’s experienced Financial Planners are able to pursue higher level responsibilities. In 2018, the firm’s Senior Financial Planners each lead over 100 Client relationships, on-boarded 38 new Clients, hosted bi-monthly meetings with centers of influence to enhance business development, attended monthly events/conferences to gain insights on personal and team development strategies, and lead small teams in strategic planning work related to storytelling as a method of generating Client referrals. – Fresh Perspective: Residents frequently provide the team with feedback for improving their processes and services; not unlike the feedback that developed the program itself. In January 2019, Residents played a critical role in a firm-wide goal planning exercise, identifying two areas of opportunity – communication and technology – to focus on in 2019. – Mentoring the Next Generation: A total of 10 Residents have been a part of Yeske Buie’s program and the firm will welcome its sixth class of Residents in June. One Resident has started his own firm, three are working at finance or financial planning firms, two became permanent members of the Yeske Buie team, and four are currently employed as Residents. Additionally, other financial planning firms have contacted Yeske Buie with interest in hiring their graduates; a testament to the profession’s opinion of the quality of the program and the graduates. | 4 | |
| NFP | Insurance firm | New York | New York | 1998 | In 2018, NFP focused on providing structure, process, support tools, guidance and incentives to engage employees, rethink our business processes, modernize our technology and provide new product and service offerings for clients. We call it Innovation Lab. Over 100 people within and without NFP have engaged in pitch sessions and due diligence to develop and support Innovation Lab, and we’re looking for even more engagement and interaction opportunities in 2019. Our goal has been to start from within our organization, engaging as many employees as possible. They’re our thought leaders: they drive successes with direct relationships to client data and expertise in pinpointing opportunities to innovate. In the past year we’ve formed an entire innovation department comprised of leaders and ambassadors from staff, clients and startups passionate about crafting an ecosystem to provide a common platform for conversations to occur across NFP. Each applicant has a profile on Tech Direct, the doorway into Innovation Lab for vendors. Tech Direct is an always-growing directory of vendors that’s keyword searchable and houses over 200 vetted products our employees can use to better service client needs. We conduct preliminary reviews of products, interview select ones for potential collaboration, engage SMEs and provide weekly feedback to vendors. This gives us new solutions to help our clients and assists our enterprise architecture effort to identify gaps and transform burdensome, labor-intensive work into tech-enabled processes that optimize cost, time, results and overall stakeholder satisfaction. With Innovation Lab, we’re already seeing growth in engagement with startups in areas like chronic disease management and mental health and with platforms that’ll help streamline our business process. We’re continuing to improve ease of use and efficacy, starting with adding a ranking and commenting functionality to Tech Direct to empower employees to review products with their own and their clients’ experiences. | NFP’s Innovation Lab exists to redesign how we conduct business to create efficiencies, cost savings and new service offerings so our advisors can better serve their clients. Since inception, Innovation Lab has invited over 250 new and active platforms into the Innovation Lab, providing services, offerings, ideas and solutions previously unavailable to our clients and advisors alike. We’ve directly engaged over 100 of NFP’s top advisors from all across employee benefits, property and casualty, retirement, life, and individual wealth solutions with Innovation Lab’s Tech Direct, which enables advisors to search through over 200 vetted new products. We’ve completed over 50 pitch sessions to gain in-depth insights and formulate feedback on startup offerings while determining which products to emphasize for our advisors’ empowerment. We’re creating a tech-forward, people-first ethos of engagement with our advisors and our clients, reaching them in-person to evangelize Innovation Lab and online with our “Innovation Conversations with NFP” podcast series. We’ve showcased across 20+ regional and industry conference speaking engagements, totaling a combined conference reach of 8500+ attendees, and our podcast is currently sitting at 9 sessions with over 1400 total plays. Meanwhile, we’ve launched a social media campaign with over 25,000 impressions in Q4 2018 alone, and we’ll be in person with a live podcast at 2019’s SXSW Entrepreneurship & Startups Panel, providing exposure to over 75,000 attendees. As we continue to engage with NFP at large and in the field, we’re developing an ecosystem of innovative thinkers that will be an engine for further engagement and the creation of a culture that encourages fresh development. Currently, these thinkers are focusing on organizing internal regional training days, client-focused innovation days and HR tech focus groups. With Innovation Lab, we’re improving the way we conduct business and interact with each other, our vendor partners, and our clients. | 4 | |
| RBC Wealth Management | Broker-dealer | Minneapolis | MN | 1906 | With the goal of enhancing and digitizing practice management to best meet the needs of advisors at all points of the FA lifecycle, RBC’s Practice Management & Teams group collaborated with several financial advisors to determine resources needed to take their practices to the next level and brainstormed strategies to improve the firm’s practice management capabilities. The goal was not to launch a couple of quick fixes, but instead to create a holistic, integrated and seamless process designed to enhance advisors’ practices. The team wanted to ensure that the tools developed were flexible, personalized and unique to meet each advisor’s needs. In 2018, the team built the following: Practice Management Assessment, which assesses an advisor’s practice health to identify strengths and opportunities for growth. One of the key differentiators of this assessment is the fact that it is dynamic and customized based on how the questions are answered. This tool also automatically generates an online customized action plan that is directly tied to the assessment results and can be modified by the practice and consultant; Team Assessment, which assesses a team’s health holistically by aggregating the individual responses from each team member into a team analysis and includes topics such as roles, goals, expectations, processes and accountability; and RBC MatchBook, which is like a dating app for advisors – an advanced algorithm that connects advisors based on select business development needs, whether they are interested in buying/selling a book or looking to join/add to a team. In addition to these tools, the team also created MyResources app, a mobile and web-based solution that provides instant access to the internal teams, consultants and experts who support each branch office location. The team digitized all of their coaching materials and made these resources easily accessible for advisors through a new online portal. | As a result of the Practice Management Assessment, advisors now have a jump-start in the coaching program by providing their consultant with a comprehensive picture of their practice. One the customized action plan is generated, consultants can adjust the action items to best meet each advisor’s unique needs – saving a considerable amount of time. In just six months, 15% of our advisors have taken the assessment and 81 action plans have been developed. The Team Assessment, taken by 263 individuals, has resulted in an increased awareness of key factors that contribute to team health and maximize a team’s potential – including deeper team members’ engagement, improved communication and accountability and defined goals. For example, one team that worked with our coaches reported record growth. Another team reported that they are finally enjoying work again and refocused on helping clients. The consultants are now coaching 20% of the advisor population. Advisors with at least 12 months of coaching with our team show 4% more productivity growth than compared to our top financial advisors. The MyResources app enables advisors to be just one-click away from immediate access to all the internal resources. This simple tool has provided advisors with more time to focus on clients. A process that could take over 10 frustrating minutes previously, now takes less than one minute. We have seen a high level of adoption for this new tool, with 25% of our advisors downloading the MyResources app in the past four months. The new Practice Management webpage sees up to 185 daily views. This site contains more than 170 pieces of content and 16 blog posts. This one-stop-shop has increased efficiency and gives advisors access to a library of materials and resources to take their practice to the next level. | 4 | |
| LPL Financial | Broker-dealer | Fort Mill | SC | 1989 | LPL launched Virtual Services in 2018 to help advisors focus on their clients, and not waste time on many of the routine, complex tasks of running their business. LPL’s virtual services provide real people in real time to help manage elements of the advisor’s practice and allows them the freedom to focus on what truly matters, while generating revenue and growing their business. Virtual Admin Virtual Admin pairs advisors with an experienced LPL professional to serve as their administrative assistant. Their intimate access to LPL systems and people empowers them to complete account and client management tasks better and faster, dramatically reducing NIGOs and service center calls, and gives advisors room to grow. Virtual Chief Marketing Officer (VCMO) VCMO is the dedicated resource at LPL headquarters to unleash digital marketing for advisors. Their personal VCMO will create and execute digital marketing strategy: blogging, website updates, SEO, social media, email, and the tracking of results. They strengthen current relationships, generate high-quality leads, and nurture prospects. Virtual Chief Financial Officer (VCFO) VCFO can help tackle the big strategic challenges in advisor’s practices. The dedicated VCFO will deliver valuation services, including a tailored action plan focused on increasing the value of the advisor’s business, cash flow and financial modeling, merger and acquisition support, succession planning, and capital solutions including access to lines of credit and more favorable terms. Virtual Chief Technology Officer (VCTO) As a business owner in a highly regulated industry, managing day-to-day office technology can become a distraction that steals time from focusing on clients. VCTO is the one stop shop for technology: we provide the hardware, software, service, and support to run the practice with our secure, compliant, and efficient solution. | LPL’s virtual services did not all roll out at the same time, therefore some have metrics based on a year, while others are newer offerings in 2018. Below is a snapshot of the success of each program and their added benefits. Offices who utilized Virtual Admin averaged: • 70% decrease in rejected paperwork • 50% decrease in calls to the service center • 11% growth in net new assets Offices who utilized VCMO see: • 399% increase in total website page views • 739% increase in website users • 281% increase in organic search results • 256% increase in Twitter followers • A tailored structured marketing calendar • Expanded social media presence • Improved client communication, especially during volatile markets • Streamlined digital marketing ecosystem Offices who utilized VCFO averaged: • $25,000 profit increase via expense savings and greater revenue (repricing, platform utilization, etc.), based on VCFO recommendations • 2X greater net new asset growth compared to similar advisors not in the program” Offices who utilized VCTO received: • Compliance assurance and Branch Exam bypass • LPL security operations monitoring • Secure, compliant cloud data storage, and data backups • Built-in productivity tools | 4 | |
| BMO Global Asset Management | Asset manager | Chicago | IL | 1817 | Conversations are the cornerstone of any advisory business – starting from the initial meeting to the ongoing reviews and with each life transition. And many of these conversations occur at the intersection of money and emotions, creating challenging and sometimes awkward situations for advisors and their clients. To help advisors have more meaningful conversations that get to the heart of these challenges – with more rewarding outcomes – BMO Global Asset Management launched a podcast series titled, “Better conversations. Better outcomes.” Each episode provides actionable ideas for advisors to enhance these conversations and build their practice. The podcast provides access to industry experts and peers – complimented by easy-to-use tools and supporting content. The episodes explore topics relevant to today’s trusted advisors, including overcoming client objections, cybersecurity tips to protect a practice, discussing fees with clients, the best time to claim social security and managing wealth for same sex couples. In addition, a four-part series focuses on the mindsets of some of the unique groups that advisors serve such as millennials, those that have become suddenly single, and clients experiencing cognitive decline. The podcast also covers topics relevant across the globe including the impact of the MiFID II European regulations and CRM2 in Canada. Lastly, each year the podcast records an episode live at the Schwab IMPACT conference. The Better Conversations podcast is delivered on iTunes and other podcast players, posted on the Viewpoints website, social media, email promotion and media outreach. Listeners can also opt-in to receive our monthly newsletter featuring additional tips discussed in the episodes. | Launched in the fall of 2016, the Better Conversations podcast series currently has 80 episodes, with nearly 100,000 downloads, and a worldwide audience of listeners in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and many more. As a result, growing a following of listeners and subscribers is great for business opportunities. The monthly newsletter has over 600 subscribers that receive additional ideas to power their practice and additional behind-the-scenes content. The podcast has received over 20 reviews on iTunes with each one receiving 5 stars. Some of the comments received include: A great resource for any advisor! “As an advisor, I have found everything on this podcast to be incredibly interesting and valuable.” Very helpful information “Very helpful information for financial advisors and clients. The discussion about the DOL Fiduciary Rule and its implications for the future gave much food for thought.” Excellent Resource “This is a great new resource for advisors. Keep up the good work!” Actionable advice and show notes “As someone who is always looking to enhance my practice, this podcast delivers actionable insights in an effective way…and respectful of my time. The show notes have great takeaways that I’m looking forward to sharing with my clients.” Insightful “I have not come across a podcast so well geared towards FAs.” | 4 | |
| ECHELON Partners | Other | Investment Bank, Strategic Consultancy, Valuation Services | Manhattan Beach | California | 2001 | RIA Successions Solutions: In 2018, ECHELON identified a critical industry need for a succession planning solution that would better help advisors navigate the challenges and pitfalls associated with founders’ retirement and their firms’ transitions. Despite widespread discussions regarding succession planning, the lack of documented plans could cause a crisis for the advisory industry at large. This need drove ECHELON to develop a new program to better serve advisors, and launch the new RIA Successions Solutions (“RSS”) initiative – a comprehensive succession planning solution that provides highly customized advice and strategies to prepare for and implement a succession transition. The cornerstone of RSS is a financial analysis framework utilizing ECHELON Partners’ proprietary Dynamic Equity Glide Path Model. Designed to implement a schedule of internal or external ownership transfers within an advisory firm, the analysis entails financial performance and valuation projections as a structuring tool to optimize the succession. Accompanying feasibility analysis gives stakeholders insight into after-tax total compensation, profit distributions, implications of different financing scenarios, and deal proceeds. Advisors receive a highly customizable approach to planning the transfer of equity in the context of strategic succession planning. The RIA Successions Solutions program is a seven-step process, beginning with a preparation and education phase for management, and ending in implementation of a framework dynamic enough to grow with a firm from generation to generation (G1, G2, G3, and beyond). Many advisors view succession as simply the sale of equity to succeeding partners, when in fact, there are a host of other facets that need to be addressed, including, but not limited to: Strategic planning, Psychology of change, Human Capital concerns, Performance evaluation and reward systems, and Internal and external communication plans. A great succession plan can be a strong growth catalyst and ensure that incentives are aligned to improve firm efficiencies. | While many of our clients’ names and results are confidential, the data track record of our RIA Successions Solutions initiative speaks volumes to its successes: -As an industry leader, ECHELON anchors its service offerings with experience from over 1,500+ valuation engagements, 400+ investment opportunity advisory engagements, 300+ investment banking engagements, and experience with 200+ firms having over $1BN in AUM. -In 2018, RIA Successions’ Succession Planning Solutions accepted dozens of new firms to participate and had numerous previous clients return to participate in the new program. Satisfied clients returned to ECHELON to update their succession planning solution based on personnel changes. For example: a satisfied client retained RIA Successions to implement a Partnership track involving equity sharing and profit sharing to its next generation of partners. The plan was unanimously accepted by the existing partners and went into effect January 1, 2019. -Also in 2018, RIA Successions implemented a tax-advantaged succession strategy that is projected to save a satisfied client over $1.5MM in taxes over the lifetime of the plan, as compared to the previously proposed plan by the client’s management. -RIA Valuations, RIA Successions’ sister company, received a patent in 2018 for its proprietary “Valuation Scorecard,” which is implemented in the initial stages of RIA Successions’ quantitative analysis. -RIA Successions is backed by ECHELON Partners’ award-winning research, which includes over 20 published reports focused on Wealth Management M&A, Management Consulting, and Valuation. -One CEO (anonymous for the purposes of this submission) was quoted in 2018 as stating, “To transition my business, and life’s work, I am grateful to have engaged and trusted ECHELON [and RIA Successions]. I was impressed by the level of expertise and thoughtful communication, and I could not have asked for a better outcome.” | 4 |
| FP Transitions | Other | M&A Consulting Firm | Lake Oswego | Oregon | 1999 | Since our founding in 1999, FP Transitions has focused on helping advisers prepare for and execute a smooth transition. From that beginning, we have expanded in both expertise and offering to advisers. Now, FP Transitions includes legal, valuation, and financial consultants who can offer an integrated approach to each consulting engagement, as directed by the client. This allows the client to develop a holistic, efficient strategy for growth, succession, acquisition or enterprise development. Our non-advocacy, mediation-style model for M&A consulting results in a high transaction success rate – likely the highest in the industry compared to published data. Our Comprehensive Valuation Report was the first of its kind to offer a market-based opinion of value and continues to be the model for an emerging field of valuation consultants. While opining on value, we aim to educate advisers on how to build value and to create enduring businesses. We are prepared to help advisers acquire practices, recruit and retain the next generation of talent, optimize their business and team structure to better serve their clients, or implement a succession plan to pass leadership from founders to a team of successors. Our clients span the spectrum of independent financial professionals and the institutions who support them. We integrate with broker dealers and custodians, providing leverage (and sometimes validation) to over-extended practice management staff. Our clients’ practices range from $25MM to $2B in assets under management. We aim to provide appropriate guidance and insight for each client, regardless of where they are in their development. Every adviser can build a successful practice on their own terms, with a growth strategy that is based on their goals and experienced coaching. | In the last 8 years, FP Transitions has valued over 10,000 financial practices, mostly through the Equity Management System (EMS). EMS is a practice management membership program that helps advisers not only understand business value, but uses custom benchmarking data to look deeper into their practices to illuminate what is working well and what could be improved compared to their peers. For many clients, this benchmarking is the most detailed analysis they have done on their practice. The actionable insight on how to improve operations, communication, marketing or technology is unique to each client. The firm has also issued over 2,500 continuity plans through the EMS program. Continuity planning gives peace of mind to adviser’s employees and clients, as they have a written action plan for what will happen to the business if the principle adviser dies or becomes deceased. EMS is offered in addition to “home office” resources, and is offered directly through institutions like LPL, TD Ameritrade, Securities America, ProEquities, The Investment Center, and others. Further, FP Transitions has created over 700 next generation owners of independent wealth management firms through our internal succession planning process. Our succession planning strategies provide an investment and career opportunity to younger professionals, while creating a gradual transition to retirement for business founders. We are most proud of our work on the succession front as we believe that an invested, empowered, rewarded next generation of talent is essential to providing longevity and sustainability to the investing public. | 4 |
| Kestra Financial | Other | Broker-Dealer and Registered Investment Adviser | Austin | Texas | 2000 | Kestra Financial partners with advisors to help them face challenges and find opportunities to maximize their business value. Our Business Consultants utilize an industry-leading, scalable platform called SuccessPro by ActiFi. Inclusive to one tool, SuccesspPro creates private-labeled, advisor-driven Business Assessments across business-critical disciplines: Strategy Planning, Financial Management, Growth & Marketing, People & Performance (human capital), Wealth Management, and Operational Efficiency (practice operations). In addition to creating customized assessments, our consultants use SuccessPro to lead engagements that focus on effective follow-through by developing Business Goals based on an advisor’s responses or an expressed need or interest. These Business Goals are defined using the S.M.A.R.T. approach and are reviewed regularly (monthly, quarterly, etc.) to overcome the common issue of advisors not being able to execute and complete their goals. We have become business partners with our advisors through a combination of expertise, persistence, and white-glove service. Below outlines our differentiated process: 1. A business consultant engages (or re-engages) with the advisor through a high-level assessment. 2. The advisor and their consultant review the results of the assessment, which contains a personalized scorecard and suggested opportunities for improvement. 3. The advisor and their consultant agree to specific SMART goals from the assessment and establish a meeting schedule and engagement style. 4. The consultant helps the advisor achieve their goals by aligning both Kestra Financial and third-party resources to the advisor and acting as an accountability coach. 5. Specialists within Kestra Financial are brought into the relationship and integrate areas such as Wealth Management, Marketing, Technology, and Human Capital into the process. 6. The advisor and the consultant celebrate the completion of goals, pivot as necessary, track the impact on the advisor’s business, and repeat the process. The entire process is orchestrated and tracked in SuccessPro with integration to our CRM and data warehouse. | Since 2017, we have engaged more than 94% of our top advisors with the business assessment and topic-specific deep dives. These assessments have led to the establishment of nearly 1,000 goals with the following results: – 90% of advisor goals are being worked or completed. A goal can take 3 to 12 months to complete. We are on track to migrate approximately 650 goals to complete in 2019. – 10% of goals were canceled or placed on hold. Although our ultimate goal is zero, a 10% rate is much lower than it would be without a consultant acting as an accountability coach. We are on track to have a 90% success rate for goal completion. We feel our in-depth, proactive approach differentiates us from our peers who typically provide “light” or “packaged” practice management programs. Our advisors have told us that helping them execute on their goals has been incredibly valuable compared to the traditional “drive-by” practice management where a consultant simply drops off a report. Our evolution to being viewed as business partners by our advisors has required significant proactive effort from our business and performance consultants, as the following statistics since 2017 illustrate: – 750 meetings between a business consultant and an advisor, with most being in-person. – Over 1,100 progress updates to SMART goals established. Each goal requires on average three touchpoints to keep the advisor and their staff on track. – 51 targeted webinars and workshops focused on Financial Ratios, Marketing, People & Performance, Process & Technology, Succession Planning, and Wealth Management with 1,530 attendees. – A Net Promoter Score of 82% relating to engagement with Business Consulting. In 2019, we intend to create a comprehensive Kestra Engagement Score that will synthesize data across the organization into a single indicator of engagement. | 4 |
| Carson Group | Registered Investment Adviser | Omaha | NE | 1983 | Designed to help advisors optimize their firms, Carson Coaching’s Digital Fortress platform serves as a go-to place for content resources from subject matter experts on key topics: business management, client experience, events, human capital, marketing, operations, personal development, productivity, prospecting, and wealth management. Developed in 2013 and updated on a weekly basis, the platform has over 700 pieces of content. Advisors who subscribe to Carson Coaching’s content offering have access to downloadable resources on all aforementioned topics, as well as three other key features: lessons, weekly market commentary and advisor forum. Lessons divides the 10 key topics into individual lessons including a video from a subject matter expert, a “Quick Start Guide” resource, and downloadable content, like spreadsheets, presentations, invitations, and more. Second, the platform has the ability to automatically distribute weekly market commentary to clients. By simply filling in contact information for a distribution list, the platform allows advisors a weekly touch point with clients. Beyond this weekly touch point, the resources section is updated with suggested email content for each holiday or timely market event. The advisor forum has about 1200 advisors currently utilizing the platform and can post questions and engage in discussion on an array of topics. Carson’s Executive Business Coaches can also pose questions in the forum. On any given day, you can find advisors asking about broker dealer systems, financial courses, utilizing Facebook live – any burning questions that help their businesses run more effectively! What began as a hub for practice management content to eliminate over-searching online has turned into a system over 12,000 advisors have utilized. The Digital Fortress platform has resources that an advisor can find immediately to run their businesses more effectively and efficiently. | Members of Carson Coaching grow two times faster than the industry average over a two-year period. The tested system gives advisors immediate access to resources to help them run their businesses more effectively and efficiently. Operations are improved by giving advisors the resources and tools they need to manage systems – whether it be finding an example letter about an address change, changing fees, or just simple voicemail scripts, the resources section of the platform has everything one could need to get started. When it comes to client communications, many advisors are not hitting the mark with touch points and think an annual review and a birthday card is enough. Digital Fortress gives them the capability to automatically distribute a weekly market commentary, as well as the scripts for holiday email blasts. The platform even has a section for events, with over 300 resources including invitations, presentations, follow-up scripts, and videos that explain hosting events in detail (passion prospecting, client appreciation, and educational events). Worrying about engaging with current clients is never an issue if one follows the guidance provided by the platform. Most importantly, the platform is easy to search – advisors can filter by any category or type and download resources immediately to integrate into their practice. If you’d like to test out the system, login here using the email [email protected] and the password “1234”. | 4 | |
| Advisor Group | Broker-dealer | Phoenix | Arizona | 1988 | My Succession Plan not only brings together advisors seeking to buy/sell/establish a business continuity plan for their practice, it also delivers all the resources needed to execute a deal — all in one easy-to-navigate, online platform. Advisor Group, one of the nation’s largest networks of independent wealth management firms, launched My Succession Plan in 2017 in response to advisor feedback and to address concerning succession/continuity planning trends in our industry. The platform increases connectivity between advisors, provides industry-leading practice valuation and consulting services to members, creates a repository of educational materials and useful document templates – including contracts and client transition letters – and provides financing information. The platform’s high-powered matching capabilities operate within the construct of an intimate community of like-minded professionals. This paradigm gives advisors both broad access to candidates and focuses their selection process – creating efficiencies in what is a multi-faceted transaction. The platform removes the need to seek out a match; detailed candidate profile information housed on the site allows members to vet an existing pool of candidates – anonymously. Our existing advisors who, in the past, would have one or two suitors to review, now can consider a number of advisors before deciding. My Succession Plan puts control of the transaction back into the hands of advisors. Advisor Group’s Succession & Acquisition Team also provides expert consultations for each deal and coordinates the transition of clients between advisors post-transaction. This one-stop shop approach is key to allowing for a smooth transition, which translates to client retention. The platform has also been made available to sellers outside of the Advisor Group network. This means that advisors across the country, regardless of affiliation, can join My Succession Plan to ensure the longevity of their business and safety of their clients. | The goal of the My Succession Plan platform is to create a community for our advisors to connect with one another for succession, acquisition, continuity and business planning. There are currently 250 members representing over $14 billion in assets. However, our goal is quality, not quantity. We measure success by the vibrancy of our pool of candidates, the scale of offerings we deliver to our active, engaged members, and the customized support we provide. There have been several connections that would not have transpired without the team’s personalized coaching and matching assistance. Just as interesting is how many people, already acquainted, but not aware the other person’s position within the succession continuum, have connected through the site. In 2018, My Succession Plan facilitated 10 deals among members; each of these deals was initiated through the platform and subsequently carried out by the Advisor Group Succession and Acquisition team. Through this marriage of technology and human capital, Advisor Group can offer an unparalleled service to advisors, while minimizing each advisor’s time investment. Through this streamlined process, advisors can work on this incredibly important aspect of their business, without compromising their client relations efforts. This platform also significantly reduces the administrative time advisors spend managing their practice. Through this online networking community, advisors do not need to go through complex referral networks or pay costly finders’ fees in order to ensure the safety of their clients’ assets. Advisors may also save time and money utilizing other resources, such as the valuation tool and templated contracts. | 4 | |
| Clarity 2 Prosperity | Other | Financial Planning Training, Coaching & IP Development Organization | Westlake | OH | 2011 | One of the biggest challenges that advisers face is bringing another rainmaker into their business. Even with the best technical skills and tools, a lack of internal processes and training make it hard to attract and retain top talent. Advisers who do not have a documented, repeatable and trainable planning process will find it extremely difficult to multiply themselves, their time and their profits. However, if an adviser is plugging into a planning process that has a complete procedure manual, documented tools, common language, e-Learning training, as well as experiential live training, it becomes much easier to scale a business. Clarity 2 Prosperity was built by top advisers as a membership organization to provide this robust, turnkey and product-agnostic platform featuring 21 turnkey proven processes for advisers to grow, automate and enhance their firms. The idea was initially conceived when founder Jason L Smith faced a diagnosis and open-heart surgery at the age of 29 that required him to rethink how he was running his own practice—needing it to run without his daily involvement. Every process has been innovated by advisers for advisers, tested, refined, clearly packaged and presented for immediate implementation. Additionally, C2P provides a range of coaching support to ensure success and ongoing innovation, including: 1) Live large-group training events to brainstorm and learn new processes 2) A small group coaching program with a set curriculum and professional accountability for executing the processes 3) An on-demand e-Learning center with all documented process steps, recordings and resources to brush-up on processes or cross-train staff 4) One-on-one coaching through MENTORCONNECT, an exclusive platform built to schedule individual calls directly with an assortment of highly-successful advisers and accomplished experts. These thirty-minute sessions provide unparalleled access to help advisers through business-building, financial planning, practice management and other specific business challenges. | C2P focuses on providing diverse and in-depth experiential learning opportunities that guarantee successful implementation of each of its processes for advisers. From delivering a documented best-interest financial planning experience compliant with all the latest legislative developments to successfully bringing on an associate adviser and profitable new business lines—here are just a few highlights of how their processes are enhancing client service and advisory operations nationwide: “The Bucket Plan® 2.0 Holistic Planning Process has been a game changer in my practice. With this unique four-step process, I have increased my revenue by three times. It has allowed me to be very meticulous and consistent, and it is easy for both myself and my staff to understand and implement.” “The Family Estate OrganizerTM dramatically accelerates the trust-building process with our clients. Using this process allows everyone to benefit. The client’s life becomes more organized; we are able to give better financial advice due to a more accurate financial picture, and we are providing a tangible service that cannot be duplicated online.” “With The Cash Flow Analyzer, I have been able to create detailed year-over-year projections, as well as five-year projections to make accurate and informed choices for my business to reach short- and longer-term goals.” “The Tax Practice Builder® is a step-by-step road map that clearly outlines the path to a more rewarding financial advisory practice. In 28 short months, we have created over 200 new relationships. Our client acquisition costs are down, our referrals are up and The Tax Practice Builder® has truly enhanced our tax and wealth advisory services.” A white paper with an additional overview of each of the 21 processes as well as metrics and feedback from additional advisers using them nationwide can be found here: https://c2p.box.com/shared/static/ag0at5v5djkgr5uepvs0za4xw9cdvaom.pdf | 4 |
| TD Ameritrade Institutional | Custodian | Jersey City | NJ | 1975 | Traditionally, custodians delivered practice management expertise through workshops, webcasts and on-demand learning. Advisors looking to benchmark their performance had to pour through hefty research papers and pull business metrics from myriad systems. Now, with the power of technology-driven analytics combined with 15 years of industry data from FA Insight, TD Ameritrade Institutional has developed an innovative way to deliver data and benchmarking insights to advisors. Introducing the Veo One Analytics & Insights Dashboard. When advisors are looking for sustained growth, they first should securte a clear picture of what their business looks like today and what’s going on inside their firm. Advisors need timely and efficient access to the right analytics that will tell them what they need to know. The Veo One Analytics & Insights Dashboard gathers data from an ever expanding range of sources, including research from FA Insight, the advisory firm benchmarking firm acquired by TD Ameritrade in 2016. The dashboard then delivers rich, granular business insights that can help RIAs make better informed decisions to enhance business performance. The dashboard modules include key performance indicators such as assets under management, net new assets, and fund flows. It facilitates client segmentation based on different types of criteria, including rep codes, total assets, account type and demographics. Advisors can establish an NNA goal or generate a list of recently opened accounts. ACATs reports let advisors track of money flowing in and out. Better still, the Veo One Analytics and Insights Dashboard can be customized to spotlight the metrics and indicators that are most important to each advisor. And these insights are delivered straight to the advisor’s desktop through Veo One. And then these tools help advisors take action, highlighting key areas for improvement and directing firms to TD Ameritrade resources that can help them improve their firm’s practices. | Every single Veo One user has a dashboard created for them, which means TD Ameritrade is processing insights for nearly 6,000 firms. Each day, our systems analyze close to 4 million accounts and 2 terabytes of data Video Link: http://www.brainshark.com/tdameritrade/VeoOneAnalytics | 4 | |
| Fidelity Investments | Custodian | Boston | MA | 1946 | With more RIAs pursuing a client segmentation strategy each year, it’s clear that firms understand the importance of identifying which clients drive the most profitability. But after traditional segmentation exercises that simply identify client tiers, RIAs often find themselves asking “now what?” Fidelity’s Book Analysis Tool dives deep into a firm’s book of business, going beyond segmentation to deliver a list of actions to immediately increase firm profitability and create a business that sustains and grows over time. After a discovery session with Fidelity’s consulting team, key data points for end investors, the advisory firm, and its defined client segments are fed into the tool. This is analyzed alongside data from millions of Fidelity households to assess your firm against potential benchmarks, like the revenue sustainability of your client demographics. Following the analysis, actionable steps are defined immediately and delivered in a follow up consultation. What started as a manual consultative process in Excel has grown to a scalable offering, available free of additional charge for most clients who custody assets with Fidelity. Within tableau, Fidelity’s practice management team is able to demonstrate the outliers and opportunities, clicking into data points and providing a truly dynamic experience. Scenarios can be played out in real time. Some of the algorithms developed for the tool have been incorporated in client-facing platforms like Fidelity’s Wealthscape. Slide 2 in the sample analysis is where most client segmentation projects end. Fidelity’s Book Analysis Tool goes beyond tiering clients to deliver data-driven, actionable recommendations to advisory firms. | The Book Analysis Tool offers firms insight into many facets of their business. A particularly powerful component projects the “death date” of the firm—i.e. when its current client base will stop being profitable. It revealed that if client and pricing remained as-is, the firm’s revenue would peak within 5 years and then begin a dramatic, unsustainable decline. For another firm, the tool revealed that 75% of the firms’ clients were unprofitable, and being subsidized by the top 25%. Client in the fourth tier— 158 households— were costing the firm $730K annually. Their only profitable segment of clients, tier one, was 151 households. The firm quickly realized incremental revenue could be driven if time spent on the 158 unprofitable households was decreased, and the focus shifted to profitable clients. The tool takes a similar look at advisors. By analyzing clients’ ages, it revealed that all advisors at one firm were producing similar revenue, but that one was on the cusp of a rapid decline due to his clients’ ages. This easily identified which advisors most-needed to engage the next generation. Fidelity’s Book Analysis Tool can project the impact of recommended business decisions, like the implementation of a minimum fee. For example, the tool identified that instituting a $5,000 minimum fee would deliver a total of $1.59M to a firm’s bottom line. The tool also looks at discounting practices for each segment, revealing that firms often offer the greatest discounts to their least profitable clients. Well-intentioned, yet undisciplined discounting practices were brought to light for several firms. Fidelity’s consultants then recommended a re-pricing process for those outliers. Lastly, the Book Analysis Tool helps firms build their future by exposing client relationships where engaging other family members, like the next generation or the non-financial spouse, can provide the highest revenue increases. | 4 | |
| eMoney Advisor, LLC | Fintech company | Radnor | Pa | 2000 | The eMoney Voice Assistant is one of the first solutions for advisors that utilizes conversational artificial intelligence (AI). Available to all eMoney clients, the Voice Assistant provides a seamless, efficient and hands-off way to search for client information and data. Advisors can navigate to areas of the platform that conventionally take a few clicks in just one step, using simple voice commands. eMoney partnered with Microsoft to infuse Microsoft Azure Cognitive Services, a collection of intelligent APIs that allow systems to see, hear, speak and understand people’s needs by using natural methods of communications, to develop its Voice Assistant. eMoney’s Voice Assistant uses Azure’s Bot Service, Language Understanding, Translator and Custom Speech Service. | The eMoney Voice Assistant, available to all eMoney clients at no added cost, helps expand advisors’ interactions with the platform in a more natural way, not only with voice but also with natural language. The product has been met with overwhelmingly positive reviews from our clients as it enables them to serve their clients better and speed up process elements that would normally take more time. | 4 | |
| Lincoln Financial Network | Broker-dealer | Philadelphia | PA | 1969 | Lincoln Financial Network (LFN) has put its full force behind its AdviceNext technology initiative, a multi-year integration of over thirty deliverables to enhance advisor productivity. AdviceNext leverages technology to drive efficiency within advisor’s practices and deepen the advisor-client relationship. One deliverable within AdviceNext that has enabled our advisors to become more efficient in their practices is the client relationship management system (CRM). Rolling out CRM systems through AdviceNext has enabled LFN advisors to track their daily activities, segment their client base, launch email campaigns, track opportunities and link centers of influence. Taking CRM to the next level, advisors are able to build work flows within their CRM for staff, which has been critical in establishing a process driven practice which helps when training and bringing on new staff. Incorporating practice assessments has allowed LFN to assist our advisors and their staff in customizing their CRMs, and to build personalized workflows that enable them to work as a team and communicate remotely, creating more time for advisors to spend with clients. The largest deliverable to date as part of AdviceNext is Automated Account Opening (AAO). AAO allows advisors to open accounts electronically yielding a better and faster experience for the client and advisor and empowering advisors and their clients to move seamlessly from planning to action. One thing we have learned in LFN is that regardless of how efficient tools can be for a practice, having resources available to support these rollouts is critical to the success. LFN has dedicated AdviceNext consultants available to the field to assist with hands on training, integrations and implementation, as well as providing and sharing best practices. In addition to both the AdviceNext and Practice Management Consultants a call center has also been instituted to help assist advisors and staff with their immediate concerns. | Driving efficiency in advisor practices is paramount to LFN. A great example of this is seen through our Automated Account Opening (AAO) platform which enables advisors to open brokerage accounts instantly, when it used to take 2-3 business days. Advisors also have the ability to utilize eSignature, allowing the client to sign documents remotely, saving time and allowing money to be invested quickly. A newly created Practice Management team has been conducting Practice Assessments with many of LFNs top advisors. With an understanding that technology drives actions that can increase production, the Practice Management team has doubled-down on its efforts to ensure LFN advisors know how to operate the systems in an efficient manner, saving their staff time and allowing the advisors to spend more time with clients. The team consists of dedicated consultants that travel to our advisors’ offices, lead training sessions and customize their technology platforms in a manner that fits their practice. A recent Practice Assessment and implementation enabled one of our advisors to grow his production 15% over last year. Through the use of technology, we were able to help his staff create work flows and processes, streamlining the practice and allowing the advisor to spend more time with clients. The Practice Management team has also extended their efforts to new advisors joining LFN. Working with our recruiting team the consultants meet with new recruits to review all of the technology available and their resources. Once an advisor joins they will be assigned a consultant to assess their technology needs and help customize their training program. The consultant will work hand-in-hand with both the advisor and staff throughout their training and on an ongoing basis to ensure we are implementing what is most valuable for the advisor’s practice. | 4 | |
| Raymond James Financial | Broker-dealer | St. Petersburg | Florida | 1962 | Our constantly changing industry demands that we adapt or face irrelevance. Best practices and solutions exist, but simply creating awareness of these typically results in low rates of implementation. Just as every lock requires a unique key, every practice is unique requiring specifically keyed solutions. Raymond James’ Elite Practice Intelligence Coaching (EPIC) is an advisory team coaching program designed to create a customized developmental plan (EPIC plan) to dramatically improve the team’s chances of success as they work to continuously improve. By evaluating the practice’s history, team member personalities and unique skill sets, the EPIC team seeks to understand the lock and open the door to achievement. Beyond the personalization and comprehensive nature of the program, EPIC utilizes a formula designed to refine the practice’s foundation, organizational culture and growth plan. It starts with a 2-month discovery process including: •Gap Analysis – A 70-point assessment taken by each advisor to identify strengths, weaknesses and differences of perspective among team members in each of our “Practice Intelligence” business model zones: -Marketing and Connection -Planning and Investment -Optimizing Client Experience -Practice Foundation – Team Structure & Systems •Behavioral Analysis- A DiSC assessment for every team member to understand how workplace behavior drives performance and engagement with colleagues and clients. •Team Interviews- Personalized conversations with branch professionals for a 360⁰ team review. •Onsite Office Visit- In-person meeting at the team’s office with their coach to conduct an S.W.O.T. analysis, client segmentation, productivity review, and marketing plan review. The team works with their coach for at least 2 hours monthly to drive the necessary changes in their business until plan completion. This combination of custom-keyed plans, commitments, deadlines and accountability converts good ideas and intentions into great results and lasting change. | The EPIC program began in January 2018. We now we have 23 advisory teams which include 118 participants. The average team has 5 members and T12 revenue of $2M when they start. Beyond future revenue goals, this holistic program is designed to improve overall practice management strength. In response, we have taken a two-prong approach to measuring success. We qualitatively score practice functionality in 20 practice management areas and quantitatively evaluate progress by measuring trailing 12-month revenue and average revenue per client relationship. Qualitative Results: • Practice functionality areas are scored ‘Unsatisfactory’, ‘Opportunity to improve’, or ‘Satisfactory’ by the Gap Analysis and EPIC discovery process. • Every team that has been in the program at least 6 months has moved up at least one level within two or more of the areas measured. • Teams often begin seeing monumental shifts in their businesses and share comments like: “Our single greatest accomplishment is the shift in our attitudes towards working together. It has opened doors to growth that were previously off-limits or out of the scope of our viewfinder. It has changed the way we create solutions to keep up with client needs. It creates opportunity for growth and change to facilitate that growth.” – Active EPIC Client. “We took a non-linear business and created processes around it. We now have an efficient and manageable business model.” –EPIC Alumni Quantitative Results: • For clients engaged for at least 3 months, T12 revenue on average has increase by 9%, up to 33% (even through market corrections). • For clients engaged for at least 6 months, average T12 revenue per relationship has increase by 10%. We expect these results to continue as these teams realize their newfound capacity and efficiency in driving lasting growth. | 4 | |
| Schwab Advisor Services | Custodian | San Francisco | CA | 1975 | Executive Leadership Program The Schwab Advisor Services Executive Leadership Program launched in 2014 to help RIA firms prepare the next generation of leaders. The program is designed to help develop promising leaders to manage and grow RIA firms into the future. The annual, one-year program is part of a suite of offerings from Schwab’s Business Consulting & Education that provides guidance and counsel to advisors and helps address the most pressing business issues they face in the lifecycles of their firms from business management consulting, to technology and operations consulting to educational insight. The Executive Leadership Program combines industry-leading academic curricula from top graduate schools in the U.S., including Wharton, Harvard, and MIT, along with the deep industry experience of Charles Schwab. Program curriculum covers five key areas: Positive Leadership; Innovation; Talent Management; Marketing; and Entrepreneurship. Each area of competency emphasizes relationship building and real-world application. Participants in the program are nominated by their firm leadership based on their demonstrated leadership potential. While these emerging firm leaders are best-in-class advisors, the program helps them develop and refine leadership and entrepreneurial skills that will allow them to propel their firms through the next phase of development by focusing on specific capabilities required for effective firm management. Insights, case studies, and discussion topics relate specifically to RIA firms, reinforcing lectures and ensuring real-world relevance. The curriculum is delivered through online courses, in-person meetings and executive coaching sessions. The program maintains a collaborative setting, with weekly discussions and group assignments that allow participants the opportunity to build deep relationships with other future leaders. In addition to fast-tracking their path to leadership within their firms, several participants from the 2014 program have formed independent study groups allowing them to continue networking and sharing best practices as they assume the leadership of their firms. | Since the 2014 launch, more than 170 different firms have sent a future leader through the program (2014-2019), and those firms represent over $400 billion in AUM. | 4 |
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