Beverly Flaxington is a practice management consultant. She answers questions from advisors facing human resource issues. To submit yours, email us here.
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Dear Bev,
Our firm keeps increasing the level of experience and credentials new advisors need. We expect enrollment in either a CFA or CFP program even for fairly entry-level positions and then progress in completing the credentials. This is important because our clients are very sophisticated and turn to us for whole-life planning and investing. The problem is that newer advisors – while credentialed – are not experienced. We can’t put them in front of our large clients. But because they have credentials behind them, they think that doing analysis or behind-the-scenes client work is beneath them. How do we explain that doing the time in analysis is important and does require a high level of expertise on its own? Their experience and schooling is not wasted; it is just applied differently than it might be with a senior member of our team.
Donnie T.
Dear Donnie,
It’s not enough to tell younger staff what to do anymore and expect them to happily do it. It’s important to explain to them why they are doing it and how it contributes to the overall business. I understand that from your perspective, the academic learning isn’t enough. You want the practical experience too. But, from their perspective, they can’t get that practical experience without exposure to the clients and to the real world. So, it’s a dilemma for both parties.
It’s important to provide two things to these newer advisors: Context about why they are doing what they are doing, which includes making the connection with the duties they have been assigned and the client situation or the overall business outcomes, and a clear path forward for what success looks like and how they can move from one level to the next. Share the picture of what success looks like and specifically what they can and need to do for their own career success.
We co-created research last year that showed the younger advisors aren’t content just doing tasks without a connection to what the task means to the overall. They say they want to make a bigger impact, but they are searching for ways to do so.
Those individuals who have spent a lot of time and probably money to get additional credentials are going to want to know where the ladder is, how to get from one rung to another and how they can reach the top eventually! The more you can share, the more engaged they will be.
Dear Bev,
We have a successful marketing strategy. We know our niche, and we stick to it. Everyone on the team has roles clearly defined and a strategy mapped out to work together and help with growth. Our firm owner is very talented and driven, but new revenue still comes mostly from him. How do we spread the proverbial wealth so that more people are rainmaker and contributors?
Hank R.
Dear Hank,
Are the roles clearly defined? Do they include a requirement for finding new revenue? Does your culture support a sales focus for everyone? Is the “driven” nature of your owner so strong that others feel they can take a back seat and just let him manage new revenue?
There are three areas I would look at to try and shift the current dynamic:
- Make it known that you expect each person to find new revenue, but then provide support to do so. Have them fill out an individual sales plan. Give them a business building template so they can create a strategy and identify the steps to take for success.
- Create a sales culture that includes regular meetings on pipeline, increasing referrals, working with COIs etc. If you keep talking about this and people have to report on progress, it becomes a focus for everyone.
- Have your owner share his secrets to success. While behaviorally and experientially, he will have his own style and his own story, and you don’t want others to mimic this, you do want his expertise spread throughout the organization. Many successful salespeople are “lone ranger” types, so see if you can get him to be more involved with helping others.
Not everyone wants to sell or is comfortable selling, so we’ve also learned sometimes you need to use softer terms like “business building” or contributing to the revenue base. Don’t push people to become salespeople, but see if you can cultivate their natural skills to be more adept at finding opportunities wherever they may be.
Beverly Flaxington co-founded The Collaborative, a consulting firm devoted to business building for the financial services industry in 1995. In 2008, she co-founded Advisors Trusted Advisor to offer dedicated practice management resources to advisors, planners and wealth managers. She is currently an adjunct professor at Suffolk University teaching undergraduate students Leadership & Social Responsibility. Beverly is a Certified Professional Behavioral Analyst (CPBA) and Certified Professional Values Analyst (CPVA).
She has spent over 25 years in the investment industry and has been featured in Selling Power Magazine and quoted in hundreds of media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC.com, Investment News and Solutions Magazine for the FPA. She speaks frequently at investment industry conferences and is a speaker for the CFA Institute.
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Beverly Flaxington is a practice management consultant. She answers questions from advisors facing human resource issues. To submit yours, email us here. 
