"Think about those future goals."
"Hold steady and don't react to the market."
"Remember, we have a plan and it's still well on track."
Throughout the market roller coaster of the Pandemic and now with 2022 rearing its head, advisors are getting used to coaching clients through market volatility. What matters most in these scenarios are two things: first, a trusted relationship between advisor and client, and second, preparation and education to navigate these emerging challenges.
Topics: Succession Planning, Selling Your Practice, Business Value, Sustainability, Trends
.png?width=1200&name=Blog%20Header%20Image%20(1).png)
Designing a sustainable firm is something that requires intentionality. For most advisors, this is always the goal, but having time to monitor your progress and course-correct is simply overwhelming. It gets shelved in the back of our brains, and its not until something unexpected crops up when we realize its time to revisit our goals.
Topics: Continuity Planning, Organizational Structure, Entity Structure, Sustainability, Business Operations
Our summary of the independent advisory M&A market, including a look at real transaction data, context to help advisors understand what's driving the data, and an unbiased look at what's really going on out there.
Topics: Commentary, FP Transitions, M&A, Trends
Business growth is a never-ending, and ever-changing objective of all business owners; financial planners included. While the lingering social effects of the pandemic and the challenges of upscaling during the Great Resignation/ Reshuffle can make the task-at-hand seem insurmountable, there are still tangible ways that you can steer the course of your enterprise. Here are a few tips to help grow your financial planning business.
1. Invest in Human Capital
Most advisors have built their business from nothing into their single most valuable asset. Finding talent can be a challenge these days, especially with unemployment settling into lows not seen in over 50 years. Data from FP Transition's Valuation Database has indicated that businesses with multiple professionals accumulate assets at a higher rate than sole practitioners. As your business matures, it is imperative to invest in the next generation of talent, to keep the engine running while you begin to enjoy the reward for what you’ve built.
Topics: Acquisition, Multi-Generational Ownership, Business Growth, Tip of the Week, Revenue Strength, Enterprise Strength, Business Value, Buying & Selling, Next Generation, Talent Recruitment, Building Your Team, Client Trust, Business Operations, Trends
Succession planning is a critical, foundational element in building a sustainable business. Incorporating new talent into your ownership structure is a process that takes continuous planning, evolution, and monitoring. When done correctly, succession planning ensures incredible employee culture, firm growth, and enduring business value. When the brunt of the planning is complete and documented with the help of partners like FP Transitions, firms have to stay focused as they begin executing their plan. Owners and next generation leaders must engage in transparent communication to navigate the inevitable bumps that can occur throughout the planning and execution of a succession strategy. The reality is, we’re all human. Life presents curves, and personal and professional goals can change. These anticipated bumps can necessitate larger course corrections in order to keep your plan on track.
Typically there are three areas where succession plans may need course corrections: if founder/owner plans change, if successor plans change, and if Plan B needs to be activated.
Topics: Succession Planning, Selling Your Practice, Sustainability
Enhancing Your Successor Traits as a Woman in Wealth
Written by Jess Flynn, Communications Director at FP Transitions
Recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data details that women comprise 47% of the workforce, but just 29% of senior management positions. While more women are entering the financial planning profession, they are joining in marketing, administrative, or other staff roles within financial planning firms and related organizations. There is still a large gender inequity between females in leadership at these firms, and it becomes especially apparent as we look at the number of female owners in the financial advisory space.
As advisory firms continue to build profitable, transferrable and enduring businesses, one critical gap in this process has been around attracting and retaining diverse talent. While many firms have openly committed to embracing diversity, equity and inclusion within their firm, the effects of this are yet to be seen in the broader financial services community.
Topics: Succession Planning, Culture, Next Generation, Sustainability, Women in Wealth
/Blog%20Banner%20-%20LLC%20vs%20Corp.png?width=1200&height=628&name=Blog%20Banner%20-%20LLC%20vs%20Corp.png)
LLC vs. Corporation. Which entity structure fits your goals?
Building a solid foundation for your business begins with selecting a legal entity and tax structure that will be most beneficial for your circumstances. When choosing the right entity for your business, it is important to identify both your short- and long-term personal and professional goals and consider the pros and cons of each option. Ultimately, a properly structured entity is foundational for growth and prosperity because cash flow and value are directly linked through a practice’s organizational and compensation structure.
Topics: Succession Planning, Organizational Structure, Business Growth, Tip of the Week, State of the Market, Exit Planning, Next Generation, Sustainability, Wealth Management, Valuation & Appraisal, Business Operations
/Continuity%20Partner%20Matching%2c%20a%20Benefit%20of%20EMS%20Professional.jpg?width=620&height=325&name=Continuity%20Partner%20Matching%2c%20a%20Benefit%20of%20EMS%20Professional.jpg)
Recently, a client told us that since she had implemented a formal continuity plan, her clients have felt more comfortable adding assets to their portfolios now that their tenure with her business is protected. This stability of continuity is an important cornerstone for continued business growth and client retention.
Currently, FINRA requires that member firms have a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) that is written and can be made available upon request. But it isn't just compliance; having a clear and written continuity plan reassures your clients' concerns about the security of their investments at your practice.
FP Transitions has been helping financial advisors document, implement, and annually update their formal continuity plans for well over a decade. Now through our EMS™ Professional program, we are able to leverage our extensive network of advisors to help connect you to the right continuity partner for your unique business.
Single owner practices without written, actionable continuity plans and identified continuity partners, are at a disadvantage to larger businesses and firms with built-in succession plans.
As the owner and person that has built a trusting relationship with your clients, you know that it is crucial to protect their wealth as well as your business as a whole. The most challenging aspect of developing a continuity plan, however, is finding the right partner. Of course you want to be discerning when it comes to the person who is going to care for the business you’ve built when you no longer can. Fit is always the foremost consideration.
Introducing Continuity Partner Matching!
Searching for the right continuity partner within your immediate community and professional networks can force you into a partnership that isn’t the best match for your clients, or worse, can result in no partnership at all! Now FP Transitions is offering the ability to leverage the most extensive network of advisors in the industry, to help connect you to the right continuity partner for your unique situation.
The Continuity Partner Matching service, available to EMS™ Professional members, allows you to tap into our team of professional coaches and our network of over 30,000 advisors. We’ll guide you through the selection of interested continuity partner candidates based on specific time-tested criteria as well as your specific requirements.
Once you have identified the right person, business or firm, we’ll help you get the proper documentation and agreements in place to ensure the continuity of service for your clients in the event of death or disability, and help you to protect the value of the business you’ve built.
Please let us know if we can assist you in this vital step of growth in your business, and reassurance to your clients. If you are already an EMS™ Member, reach out to your representative to see how we can help. And if yo are not an EMS™ Member, you can find out more about the program HERE.
Topics: Continuity Planning, FP Transitions, Continuity Partner Matching, Enterprise
/Sustainability%20Blog%20Image%203-01.png?width=512&name=Sustainability%20Blog%20Image%203-01.png)
Topics: Continuity Planning, Webcasts, Multi-Generational Ownership, Organizational Structure, Business Growth, Tip of the Week, Business Value, Client Success, Sustainability, Client Relationships, Business Operations
Everyone has a unique vision of their future; we’re all trying to forge a path with our careers to that end goal where we can take a big breath and simply enjoy the life we’ve earned. While we might have an idea of the specific journey we will take, it’s important to remain open to alternate routes and unexpected shortcuts along the way. The hardest step on this journey for most is that which takes them out of the professional world they’ve been a part of for many years.
Unique goals and unique journeys require a creative strategy. For financial advisors, the Sell and Stay® path offers flexibility and freedom for an exit from the industry. There are advisors in the industry who have built a team of advisors with next generation owners and have built an internal transition into the sustainability of their business. The majority of our industry, however, is still made up of single-owner practices. Luckily, Sell and Stay® offers them the option of a similar exit path.
Topics: Succession Planning, Selling Your Practice, Exit Planning, Sell and Stay™