Tag: Financial

Feature Image
11. Brian Hamburger on The Advisor Transition Game

11. Brian Hamburger on The Advisor Transition Game

By |

Brian Hamburger is the founder of Hamburger Law Firm and Marketcounsel, providing legal and regulatory support to financial advisory firms.

In this episode, David Armstrong talks to Brian about the pioneering work his firm did helping wirehouse brokers “break away” and establish their own RIAs, and how his firm’s services have evolved alongside the growth of the RIA industry. 

David and Brian discusses:

  • The newest regulatory challenges to RIAs
  • How advisor transitions have changed from the early days of the “breakaway broker.”
  • What the erosion of the broker protocol means for advisors moving firms
  • The potential troubles brewing as asset managers and outside investors buy their way into the RIA channel
  • How Brian learned about the industry from his father, a financial advisor, and why he chose not to be an advisor himself. 

Connect With Brian Hamburger:

Connect With David Armstrong:

About Our Guest:

Brian is the Founder, President and CEO of MarketCounsel Consulting, the leading business and regulatory compliance consulting firm to the country’s preeminent entrepreneurial independent investment advisers. He is also the founder and managing member of the Hamburger Law Firm, a boutique law firm with its practice in virtually all areas related to the investment and securities industry, entrepreneurial and employment matters. MarketCounsel Consulting and the Hamburger Law Firm are the result of an incessant entrepreneurial spirit and genuine desire to provide an unexpected level of value and service. Together, the consulting and law firms represent an unparalleled combination of preeminent counsel and uncompromising service to participants in the retail securities industry.

Brian is an entrepreneur, attorney, columnist, and outspoken industry advocate for independent investment advisers.  For the past 19 years, he has served at the helm of the MarketCounsel companies and the Hamburger Law Firm. Brian was named an Innovator in InvestmentNews’ 2020 class of Icons & Innovators and included in “The IA25: Investment Advisor Magazine’s Annual List of the Top Influential People in the Industry” in 2020.  In 2015, Wealth Management named Brian as one of the top thought leaders in wealth management saying, “Over the past decade, Hamburger has been the architect behind almost all of the highest-profile breakaway deals in the industry, helping advisors navigate the legal thicket of transitioning away from brokerages and into independent business models. As such he’s been a central, but often unheralded, force in the evolution of the RIA industry.” In 2014, REP. Magazine featured Brian on its cover as “The Engineer” of the RIA evolution.

Brian is often called upon to speak at regional and national conferences, not to mention his own annual gathering of the industry’s top advisers and thought leaders. While he has delivered the keynote address to the country’s state securities regulators and met with members of Congress on proposed legislation, he is more comfortable addressing school-age children. He is currently a regular contributor for CNBC and has been quoted by The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Dow Jones, and Reuters as well as every investment industry publication.

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS | More

Feature Image
10. Rick Ferri on His Career, Mistakes He Has Made and Why He Thinks Most Advisors are Overcompensated.

10. Rick Ferri on His Career, Mistakes He Has Made and Why He Thinks Most Advisors are Overcompensated.

By |

Rick Ferri has been an outspoken critic of many standard practices in the investment advisory industry. He was an early advocate of John Bogle and index-based investing, claiming most clients were better off with passive investment portfolios over using active, and more expensive, investment managers. More recently, he’s argued that advisors who give investment advice and still charge fees based on a percentage of the assets managed are in the wrong—fees for advice should be divorced from fees for portfolio management—and why many advisors are paid too much for the work they do.

In this episode, David Armstrong speaks with Ferri about how he got his start in the industry, how his thinking has evolved around Wall Street, and whether or not a fee structure that charges clients for investment advice based on assets under management can really exist in a fiduciary framework.  

Rick discusses:

  • His background in the financial industry, including his transition from Wall Street to investment advisory services.
  • Why Rick decided to sell his first $1.5 billion company—and the lessons he learned about what can go wrong.
  • The need to charge separate fees for asset management and financial advice, and why many advisors are charging too much for what they do.
  • How he decided on his hourly rate for advice.
  • The possibility of a AUM based fee existing inside a fiduciary framework
  • Whether ESG investing for most clients is a real trend, or just another way for asset managers to charge more.  

Resources:

Bogle’s Mutual Funds Perspectives Intelligent by John Bogle 

Connect With Rick Ferri:

Connect With David Armstrong:

About Our Guest:

Rick Ferri, CFA, is an hourly-fee adviser for cost-conscious do-it-yourself investors. Visit RickFerri.com for details. Rick has over 30 years experience in the investment industry including ten years as a financial consultant at two major Wall Street firms and the founder and former owner of a large portfolio management firm. Rick is a financial analyst, author, mentor for young advisers. Rick graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a B.S. degree in business and an M.S. in Financial degree from Walsh College in Michigan. Rick has published extensively including several books on index funds, ETFs and asset allocation. Major Ferri is also a retired Marine Corps veteran and flew fighter aircraft.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS | More

Feature Image
9. Greg Friedman and Cynthia Greenfield on Why Culture Matters in RIA Mergers or Acquisitions

9. Greg Friedman and Cynthia Greenfield on Why Culture Matters in RIA Mergers or Acquisitions

By |

Mergers and acquisitions can be a rewarding path to growth for an RIA firm, but also complicated for the companies involved. Often, the most overlooked, but most important, component to making the transaction a success is the firms’ “culture.”  But what is culture, how is it formed and reinforced throughout an organization, and how can culture be maintained through a merger?  

In this episode, David Armstrong sits down with Greg Friedman, chief executive officer & founder of Private Ocean Wealth Management and Cynthia Greenfield, chief experience officer at Private Ocean Wealth Management to talk about their most recent book, Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions, and their own experiences—both good and bad—maintaining their company’s culture during a merger or acquisition. 

This podcast is an opportunity to hear Greg and Cynthia’s expert advice, and some tips and tricks to make the transition easier for everyone involved, as well as increase your chances of a successful merger. 

Greg and Cynthia discuss:

  • What “culture” in the RIA industry means to them
  • Greg and Cynthia’s own personal experience with mergers and acquisitions 
  • A view into why most RIA firms get culture wrong when they are approaching M&A
  • How to read unspoken signals coming from potential partners
  • Where the most common conflicts happen during a merger or acquisition and what firm leaders can to do to mitigate them
  • How the size of the acquiring firm may change the culture equation 
  • Maintaining the culture in the pandemic, and what they see happening in a post-pandemic world.

Resources:

Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions by Greg Friedman and Cynthia Greenfield

Connect With Greg and Cynthia:

Connect With Adam Holt:

About Greg Friedman: Greg Friedman is the CEO of Private Ocean, an innovative West Coast wealth management firm, and the founder of Junxure, a CRM platform that defined technology for financial advisors. In 2007, Charles Schwab honored him with its prestigious IMPACT Award® for “Best in Tech.” In 2008, Financial Planning Magazine included Greg in its elite list of financial “Movers and Shakers”. Greg was also recognized in InvestmentNews’ 2017 Class of Icons and Innovators for his contribution to the advancement of the financial advice profession and for conceiving new ideas and tools that have propelled the industry forward. In 2018, Greg was named CEO of the Year at the WealthManagement.com Industry Awards.

About Cynthia Greenfield: Chief Experience Officer, Leadership Coach and Author. Cynthia develops strategies that deliver on a company’s mission and enhances the employee and client experience through organization, communication and engagement. She combines over a decade of experience in the financial services and technology industries with life coaching techniques to help build people stronger relationships that lead to successful partnerships. She is a community liaison who strives to partner firms with non-profit organizations and external vendors and she spearheads the event strategy for a $2B+ RIA firm. An advocate of healthy company culture, she helps drive cultural integration efforts during times of growth and transition and is responsible for developing and training staff on how to deliver a consistent client experience. In 2021, Cynthia co-authored the book, Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions, aimed toward business leaders within the financial services industry.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS | More

Feature Image
8. Matthew Enyedi on Business Solutions for the Modern Advisor

8. Matthew Enyedi on Business Solutions for the Modern Advisor

By |

The modern advisor is not just a financial advisor to their clients, they are also business owners.  LPL, with their Business Solutions Suite, helps advisors with everything from office administration to real estate needs. 

How comfortable are you with hiring new staff or handling all the office administration within your practice? 

In this episode, David Armstrong speaks with Matthew Enyedi, managing director at LPL Financial, about the many ways in which LPL assists their advisors to run their businesses more efficiently.

David and Matt discusses:

  • A deep dive into LPL’s business support services for advisors
  • How hundreds of LPL advisors are using LPL employees as administrative assistants.
  • The assistance LPL gives advisors when it comes to mergers and acquisitions
  • An explanation of the business service support subscription fees
  • How LPL’s support for advisors will evolve in the future

Connect With Matthew Enyedi:

Connect With David Armstrong:

About Our Guest:

Matthew Enyedi has served as managing director, business solutions of LPL Financial since November 2020. He is responsible for developing and deploying a suite of automated professional services to LPL advisors, and aligning them with the firm’s other programs that support advisors as business owners.  Prior to his promotion to managing director, Matt served as executive vice president, national sales from March 2015 to January 2020. In that role, he led the firm’s data analytics and business intelligence efforts, and oversaw a team focused on providing front‐ and middle‐office capabilities to help advisors grow their businesses and reach new segments of clients.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS | More

Feature Image
7. Gavin Spitzner on What Advisors Get Wrong Around Technology

7. Gavin Spitzner on What Advisors Get Wrong Around Technology

By |

Clients aren’t leaving their financial advisors because of performance issues.  They’re leaving because of communication and service issues with their current advisors. 

What are you doing to prevent your clients from switching advisors? 

In this episode, David Armstrong talks with Gavin Spitzner, president of Wealth Consulting Partners, about the many ways in which financial technology is growing and changing the financial world. They also discuss what you can do to ensure you aren’t underutilizing what strategies and technology is available to you as an advisor. 

David and Gavin discusses:

  • How most advisors are underutilizing the technology they have.
  • How the long-term bull market in equities has made many advisors complacent and masks problems around organic growth and client expectations.
  • Why advisors should expect companies like Amazon or Apple to enter the wealth management industry, and how to prepare..
  • When every aspect of wealth planning is built around algorithms, what’s left for the human advisor?

Connect With Gavin Spitzner:

Connect With David Armstrong:

About Our Guest:

Gavin Spitzner founded his company Wealth Consulting Partners six years ago. They help wealth managers (banks, RIAs, broker dealers) design and execute profitable revenue growth strategies based on enhancing client and internal associate experiences and leveraging modern, integrated technology, professional development and process re-engineering. Some areas of focus include digital advice, portfolio management, reporting and CRM systems, client portals, data aggregation tools and other systems of engagement capabilities as well as emerging AI/machine learning capabilities. 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS | More

Archives

Categories