LPL launches consulting group for large independent advisers

LPL Financial LLC today announced that it is launching a consulting group designed to help large affiliated advisory firms become more strategic and attain higher profitability. The biggest independent broker-dealer in the country, LPL has comprises 13,400 financial advisers and 700 financial institutions. It has established the Enterprise Management Consulting program to help its so-called “large enterprises” — collections of independent advisory practices that generate at least $5 million in annual revenue — manage their practices, and formulate and execute business strategy. The consulting team, led by Sal Zambito, LPL's senior vice president of business consulting, will work with executives of the affiliated firms to increase growth by improving financial management, operational efficiency and organizational design. In a statement, Mr. Zambito said that the initiative will “add maximum value to [affiliated firms'] underlying advisers' practices, and to do so in a scalable fashion.” LPL's Enterprise Management Consulting group will operate in partnership with The Ensemble Practice, a management consulting firm specializing in the investment advice sector. The LPL initiative will help its affiliated advisory firms set strategic goals, according to Derek Bruton, LPL's managing director. “Our large enterprise consulting model allows them the opportunity to truly focus on important C-level thinking and decision making in order to achieve the highest potential for their firms and the advisory practices they support,” Mr. Bruton said in a statement.