Barron's Advisor: Recent Episodes
Barron's Advisor
The Way Forward: insights from top advisors and industry standouts on managing wealth, leading through crisis and planning for the future.
The dynamics surrounding generational change, longevity, and an evolving society require a rethinking of what it means to be a financial advisor. Host: Steve Sanduski.
Mercer Capital's CEO offers a candid insider's perspective on the RIA M&A playbook and what’s really driving deals. Host: Steve Sanduski.
The Emmy Award-winning television journalist and coach explains how advisors can grow their practices by improving their communication skills. Host: Greg Bartalos.
Step beyond standard referral methods to learn how "sphere of influence" marketing is redefining client acquisition for the modern age. Host: Steve Sanduski.
The Ameriprise private wealth advisor explains why she sees a bright future for women in the industry. Host: Greg Bartalos.
Growth is coming from a strategic focus on employee engagement, business development, client retention, and operational excellence and efficiency. Host: Steve Sanduski
The principal advisor at family-owned Altfest Personal Wealth Management has spent four decades advocating for women. Host: Greg Bartalos.
Advisor capacity, compensation, culture, blasting through the “messy middle,” differentiating your firm, and growth, the Gottfried & Somberg co-founder covers it all. Host: Steve Sanduski.
Long dedicated to driving awareness of the profession to attract younger and more diverse applicants, Healy offers practical tips for advisors looking to hire new talent. Host: Greg Bartalos.
Barron’s Hall of Fame advisor Kimberlee Orth describes how to get the most out of your team.
Rather than constantly striving for more, we can transform our relationship with money by deepening our experience with what we already have, says author Lynne Twist.
“The answers are not going to come from investing,” says the head of Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management. “They're going to come from financial planning.”
Yes, we’re in a relationship business. And what better way to create a sense of trust, connection, and belonging than through building client communities.
Uncannily accurate with his recent stock market calls, the founder of Stack Financial Management offers a bittersweet forecast.
Our relationship to money is complicated, especially for women who have an added cultural history layered on top. Sarah Carlson untangles this challenge.
The women who have been disrupting industries often share key commonalities that make them uniquely equipped to lead, grow businesses, and navigate crises. Here’s their story.
Scott Wilson and Crystal Ho of the Atlas Group discuss the importance of hiring employees who match well in terms of chemistry, dedication, and a willingness to learn.
Your company’s success rises or falls based on your leadership ability. Here’s the playbook for leading in a post-pandemic world with Antonia Hock.
More advisors are getting serious about the future, says Ray Sclafani, the CEO and founder of ClientWise, a coaching and training company.
Social psychologist and scientist Dr. Emily Balcetis explains how to use vision and brain science to overcome challenges and achieve our most important goals.
Jeff Bradanini, financial advisor and director of marketing for Beirne Wealth Consulting, explains how advisors can best use social media and digital marketing to gain new clients.
Podcasting makes you a better advisor. It deepens your client relationships. You’ll meet new people and make intriguing connections. And it helps with client prospecting and recruiting new team members.
Advisors should leverage technology to grow their business or risk falling behind, says Mike Byrnes, founder and president of Byrnes Consulting.
Far from “soft,” empathy is an important business skill that fuels great businesses and brands, increases retention, drives profits, and supports employees’ wellbeing.
Allison Felix, who rose from executive assistant to chief operating officer at Cassaday & Co., describes what it takes to succeed in the role.
Employee experience drives customer experience and that leads to faster sales growth. Bova shares the core elements of employee experience you should focus on to drive that growth.
David Armstrong and Jessica Gibbs of Monument Wealth Management describe how their firm helps employees advance and why it embraces “opinionated” content.
Andy Crestodina, Orbit Media co-founder, has built more than 1,000 websites. He lays out what it takes to design one that attracts and converts the right prospects.
Kevin Myeroff and Elizabeth Scheiderer of Sequoia Financial Group discuss the success of their long-running internship program.
One reason why the big advisory firms keep getting bigger is they do a better job of creating a culture that attracts and retains top talent. Gartner's Brian Kropp shows how.
David Lau, founder and CEO of DPL Financial Partners, explains why RIAs should consider commission-free annuities.
Dr. Joy Lere discusses how the mind works, how our beliefs are formed, and the tools and techniques we can use to guide positive behavior change for our clients.
The chairman and portfolio manager of Davis Advisors stresses the importance of long-term investing and buying "durable, growing businesses at value prices."
David Novak distills decades of success into practical "dynasty drivers" that led to double-digit growth for 13 consecutive years.
Dynasty Financial Partners' CEO discusses the importance of creative client engagement, establishing a five-year plan for your brand, and hiring a chief of staff.
Love, the most powerful of human emotions, has been systematically drained from our lives - our work, teams, and classrooms. Marcus Buckingham says it's time we brought love back in.
"We donate roughly 20% of our profit every year to our community and other places," says Charles Zhang, founder and president of Zhang Financial.
Eric Pliner, who counsels top CEOs on how to make difficult decisions, says that you won't please everyone but there is a framework to help you make informed, effective decisions.
Valerie Newell, principal and senior wealth advisor of Mariner Wealth Advisors, describes how advisors should work with multigenerational families.
Mission Wealth founder Seth Streeter ran his $4.8 billion AUM firm as CEO for more than 20 years. Now, still in his early 50s, he put his ego aside, gave up the reins, and is focusing on other company initiatives.
"Deals win or lose based upon their structure," says the president and CEO of MarketCounsel.
"It's conceivable that the blue chip indexes could drop 35 to 40%," says the founder of Stack Financial Management.
After just three years at Abacus Wealth Partners, Mary Beth Storjohann was promoted into the co-CEO role of this $4 billion RIA. Here's the story of how she hit the ground running.
The founder of Canvas discusses how technology has powered the evolution of the index fund to direct indexing and now custom indexing.
McKinsey & Company Senior Partners Scott Keller and Vik Malhotra discuss the six responsibilities of the CEO role and the associated mindsets that distinguish the best leaders from the rest.
"The vast majority of this demographic wants to feel more in control," says David Snider, founder and CEO of Harness Wealth.
Performance coach Denise Shull says don't fight the feeling. Instead, your performance will soar when you effectively answer, "What am I feeling and why am I feeling it?"
Dasarte Yarnway and Emlen Miles-Mattingly explain how they're helping underrepresented advisors.
Many of today's popular ideas around generational differences are superficial stereotypes that miss the majority of what's actually happening among generations.
"This is a field that's going to give you a lot of emotional satisfaction when you know you've really helped a family," says Ken Van Leeuwen, founder of Van Leeuwen & Co.
Cash compensation is just one of many factors that you have to get right if you want to attract and retain the best talent in the industry.
"Clients are looking at their money in a much more digital environment and looking to get information at their fingertips whenever they want it."
Dr. Maria Nemeth discusses how to develop a healthy and powerful relationship with money that ultimately leads to living a fulfilling life as a hero's journey.
Advisors are missing out on an opportunity to help themselves, their firms, and their clients, argues Howard Epstein, a wealth management advisor and sports memorabilia expert.
Steve Sanduski shares key insights from Season 1 of The Way Forward: Actionable Intelligence podcast and how you can apply them to your practice.
The co-founder of the XY Planning Network says the growth trend for registered investment advisor firms is "almost inevitable."
Historically, advisors were routinely asked "why are you recommending Bitcoin?" says the founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals. "The question is now becoming, why aren't you?"
Rohit Bhargava, founder of the Non-Obvious Company and Ideapress Publishing, also discusses how to host and participate in events that exemplify diversity and inclusion.
"You have to figure out who you are, who you are meant to serve, why you want to serve them and everything else will flow out of that," says Patrick Brewer, president and CMO of WealthSource.
"If I've got a client with very low emotional intelligence, this is going to make my job as an advisor much more challenging," says Beverly Flaxington, cofounder of The Collaborative, who explains how advisors should engage with these clients.
Influence is a byproduct of who we are connected to, how much our connections trust us, and the sense of community that we share, according to author and behaviorist Jon Levy.
"Advisors are in a way in a therapeutic sort of relationship that requires staying with curiosity longer than maybe they'd like to," says author and management consultant Beverly Flaxington, who champions the importance of EQ and active listening.
Dane Jensen, CEO of Third Factor, says pressure, when understood correctly, can be a catalyst for peak performance. He details how to turn pressure into your ally using the "Pressure Equation."
The managing director of Kayne Anderson Rudnick also discusses alternative investments and the firm's defensive market posture.
Only by facing fear head-on is it possible to quiet your "impending doom generator" and realize your full potential, says Victoria Song, author and leadership advisor to successful founders and CEOs.
"You've got to figure out how to grow organically. And we've done it largely by overwhelming our clients with service," says Andy Berg, cofounder of Homrich Berg.
Allen Darby, CEO of Alaris Acquisitions, on M&A and how to analyze your profit and loss statement to uncover ways to enhance your firm's worth.
The pandemic is making people recognize that "life is not forever and they want to bring more purpose and intentionality to it," says Julie Kelly, a financial advisor with Edward Jones.
Valorie Kondos Field, who never was an athlete, led the UCLA Bruins gymnastics team to seven national titles. "A coach's job isn't to dictate change in someone. It's to motivate them to want to make consistent change."
Sometimes high-touch service means helping clients buy a Kentucky Derby-caliber racehorse, says GenTrust co-founder George Perez.
Building trust happens over time yet "it doesn't take a lot to destroy that trust," says David Sears who retired from the Navy after serving for 20 years.
"All of wealth management and banking is trying to wrap their head around" the ecosystem of non-fungible tokens and digital art, says Evan Beard, who runs the art services group at Bank of America Private Bank.
"People have increasingly lost faith in the models, frameworks, and moral codes that they grew up with," says the host of a popular podcast.
Brighton Jones CEO Jon Jones, who took a year off to visit 35 countries with his family, insists that his employees also find balance in their lives.
"Assets that you can't touch or feel are been becoming more and more important," says Stian Westlake, coauthor of Capitalism Without Capital.
Some of the firm's fastest-growing teams and products are emphasizing ESG investing, she says.
"One of the key elements in a trusted advisor relationship is the willingness to challenge the client," management consultant John Hagel says.
There's new attention on the power of shareholder voting, says the firm's ETF lead, Yasmin Dahya Bilger.
Ask questions, be patient, and embrace incrementalism, says Wharton School Professor Jonah Berger.
The top-ranked advisor says enabling all of her team to share in her firm's success has powered results.
One key is listening to the stories clients tell about money and determining whether they see themselves as personally in control of their finances, says Sarah Newcomb, Morningstar's behavioral economist.
The best athletes in the world have coaches, and the top advisors should as well, says Wells' head of wealth management business development.
Emphasizing the cohesive role of each member of an advisory team should enhance meetings with clients, Kelly Leonard says.
A private market real estate deal-plans to convert a New York City apartment tower to a homeless shelter-appealed to clients because the results could be seen locally and also offered outsized yield.
Old concepts must be disrupted to create "new solutions in the marketplace," says Mark Casady, who's now running a venture capital firm.
Many small advisory firms will fare well, but Kestra Financial CEO James Poer says those resistant to affiliation or acquisition will struggle.
An effective financial advisor needs to be a good psychotherapist, says NPR social science correspondent Shankar Vedantam.
Perseverance helps improve the odds of success and makes setbacks easier to handle, says financial advisor and former Olympian Lauryn Williams.
Families often achieve better outcomes by shifting the focus away from dollars, says Matt Wesley of Merrill Lynch's Center for Family Wealth, Dynamics and Governance.
Cryptocurrencies are worthy alternatives to investments like bonds and gold, as well as real estate and art, says Bitcoin entrepreneur Dan Held.
As industrial use grows, medicinal use expands, and laws are changed, the investment potential for cannabis merits serious attention, says Arcview Group CEO Kim Kovacs.
When you're speaking to an audience, "It's not about what you want to say. It's about what they need," says communications expert Matt Abrahams.
Chris Cordaro of RegentAtlantic identifies the choices he's recommending to clients amid growing momentum in the economy.
More is accomplished by focusing on outcomes rather than simply vanquishing problems, says organizational and management consultant Robert Fritz.
Decisions might come more slowly, but consensus building creates a stronger company, says Jack Petersen of Summit Trail Advisors.
Best practices learned while working with Amazon's CEO can be adopted at many firms, says former Amazon executive Bill Carr.
Unlike investment returns or interest rates, advisors can fully control the quality of service they provide to clients, says Cassaday & Co. CEO Stephan Cassaday.
"It's very tough to get through just with information," says journalist and author Trish Hall.
UBS advisors Rachel Gottlieb and Will Rose weren't interested initially in becoming business partners, but then recruited a new client together.
Developing better skills centered on awareness and concentration can lead to high performance, psychologist Michael Gervais says.
Prospects like professional athletes should be wary of advisory firms with short track records, says Rockefeller Capital Management's Michael Bapis.
Advisors who are successful at recruiting have a strong sense of how to talk about themselves, author Annette Simmons says.
"Every meeting that we go to, it's the same type of narrative," says Ben Harrison, the head of Pershing's RIA custody business.
Author Stephanie Kelton says the nation should reject "myths" about government deficits and spend even more aggressively to bolster the economy.
Goldman Sachs financial planning executives Joe Duran and Larry Restieri discuss whether sustaining an advisory practice by growing independently is realistic.
Longevity expert Andrew Scott says financial advisors should focus on helping clients invest in their future selves.
In our new podcast series, coaching expert Tim Kight explains how average performers can become elite performers.
Advisors will benefit by offering "more meaningful remote-first experiences," Fidelity Institutional's Mike Durbin says.
Raymond James is considering how to remake its office space, particularly for a post-Covid world, Raymond James & Associates President and CEO Tash Elwyn says.
Drew Freides of UBS tells Sterling Shea how he's maximizing growth in his ultra high-net-worth practice during the pandemic, and what will change once it's behind us.
In an acrid political climate, it's vital to keep clients' family ties from fraying, say Michael Tiedemann and Jill Shipley of Tiedemann Advisors.
Sterling Shea interviews Tim Gerend and Aditi Javeri Gokhale, from Northwestern Mutual, on their response to the pandemic, hiring, reinvesting in technology and helping advisors improve their practices in order to serve an increasingly anxious public.
The pandemic has accelerated many changes, but some of the most vital go beyond technology, says Colony Group Chairman Michael Nathanson.
Jennifer Hatch, President of Christopher Street Financial, discusses how she's handling client relations, volatility and onboarding clients.
With the routines and expectations of advisors everywhere upended, Merrill Private Wealth Advisor Peter Rohr says it's an unparalleled time to review your business inside and out.
The best method to make flexible work arrangements a success is defining "Who will do What by When," says leadership consultant Fran Skinner.
Aspiriant CEO Rob Francais explains how his firm avoids work-from-home burnout through new engagement strategies with colleagues and clients.
MIT AgeLab's Joe Coughlin explains how Covid has sharply accelerated changes in retirement planning and retirement itself.
Balentine's Brittain Prigge says her firm has prioritized different ways of getting to know people.
Katy Knox, president of Bank of America Private Bank, says this period is an opportunity to work differently.
RIA executive David Armstrong elaborates on how to ensure your firm's digital media efforts generate real value.
Clinical psychologist Melissa Milanak, who specializes in stress, anxiety and sleep disorders, offers ideas on prioritizing self-care.
Bill Crager, CEO of Envestnet, discusses how the pandemic has fueled tech disruption of the advisory industry.
D.A. Abrams, managing director of the CFP Board's Center for Financial Planning, discusses how teams of the future will be more representative and what advisors can do now to promote diversity.
Kimberlee Orth, Barron's top-ranked woman advisor, tells me that her business is about much more than asset allocation. Find out why she's wearing office clothes every day, what she says to every client, and why she's not worried about the election.
Frank Marzano & Steve Raneri, GM Advisory Group, discuss why you should invest in your business now, take a hard look at gold, and protect clients from themselves.
Spuds Powell, Barron's top-rated RIA, shares his view on the market, when to turn away a client and the importance of keeping work/life balance.
Jim Hays, President of Wells Fargo Advisors, discusses the evolution of advisory teams, the impact of RegBI and how to tackle the industry's diversity challenge.
Marty Bicknell, founder of $28b national RIA firm Mariner, discusses diversity, what he's telling clients and why his firm is onboarding new clients at a record pace.
TD Ameritrade's Kate Healy discusses the lack of diversity in financial services, how advisors can attract young talent and engage young clients.
Colleen O'Callaghan from JP Morgan Securities, whose team manages $2b in assets, thinks volatility is a learning opportunity for the next generation.
Beacon Pointe's Shannon Eusey and Matt Cooper discuss the M&A landscape, the value of face to face connection, and the fundamental change facing the industry.
Morgan Stanley's Lyon Polk and partner Deborah Montaperto talk about a Covid close call, lending for HNW clients, the municipal-bond selloff and recent rally.
Jeff Concepcion, Founder and CEO of Stratos Wealth Partners, on why the challenges from the coronavirus can only be solved by strengthening relationships.
Andy Saperstein, Head of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management discusses the value of advice and how the pandemic will change the industry for the better.
Josh Brown, CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management, discusses portfolio construction, his anxiety around managing a team, and how he got a million Twitter followers.
Louise Gunderson whose UBS team manages about $1 billion for high-net-worth clients, talks about rethinking client portfolios.
Lori Van Dusen, Founder and CEO of LVW Advisors, a registered investment advisory firm, discusses why she thinks stocks may retest the lows.
Andy Sieg, president of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, on how his firm is navigating the challenges and current market volatility presented by COVID-19.
Ron Carson, Barron's Hall of Fame Advisor and founder of Carson Group, on how he is managing client expectations and how the Coronavirus will reward quality advisors.