Sluggish start, but recruiting moves heating up to close 2011

While some aspects of recruiting activity in the brokerage industry appears to have slowed a bit in 2011, things have started to heat up as of late -- with a number of large teams recently changing place, according to data tracked by InvestmentNews. Through today, the InvestmentNews. Advisers on the Move database has tracked a total of 230 teams or individual adviser moves that have taken place in 2011, with a combined $53 billion in assets. That's a slightly higher number of moves than in 2010 when it logged 201 transitions - but last year's activity involved advisers with a total of $71 billion in total client assets. Despite the smaller asset numbers, however, in recent weeks a number of large teams have changed firms. In fact, four of the six largest moves of 2011, based on client assets at the time of their departure, have taken place in the last six weeks alone. See the chart below: (For more on these major recent teams, click here for InvestmentNews scoop on billion-dollar brokers on the Move.) In addition to these notable moves, just today, Wells Fargo revealed that it has recruited a team of high-producers from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in Melville, N.Y. The team, which includes Richard Ranieri, David Roberts, Michael Rosenberg, Tonia Dillon, had $545 million in client assets at Morgan Stanley - and generated roughly $3.5 million in annual production. Also today, Washington Wealth Management, LLC revealed that it recruited Morgan's Stanley's Mitchell and Jessica Horst to lead its Las Vegas office. That duo generated $550,000 annually in production, according to Washington Wealth Management. So despite the sluggish start to 2011 - just five of the 25 largest moves of the year, ranked by assets, took place in the first have of the year, according to our data - the year appears to be closing at a considerable clip. What's the underlying story here? Of course, the large recruiting bonuses that wirehouses are using to lure top talent is a factor – these bonuses can be up to three times an adviser's annual production. But there are other issues in play. Danny Sarch, a longtime industry recruiter and blogger for InvestmentNews described this period as a “Golden Age” for $1 million producers in a post last month. Simply put: Demand for talent and clients is high, supply is short, most advisers are closer to the end of their career than the beginning – and top talent now has more options to explore. If you're a $1M producer, it appears you're able to play a pretty good hand right now and get the right deal — and perhaps most importantly, the right fit at a different firm. How will this play out over the remainder of 2011 and into 2012? Only time will tell, but early indications suggest to expect more of the types of activity we've seen in the last several months.--M.B. A note about Advisers on the Move: The data gathered by InvestmentNews for the Advisers on the Move database is only a representative sample of recruiting activity in the financial advisory industry. It is not intended to serve as a summary of all recruiting activity in the industry. Our information is based on InvestmentNews reporting, direct submissions to our database from recruiting firms, and reports that have been published on other credible news sites.