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Matt Oechsli
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Dallas: “Since it’s probably too late to plan
a year-end team retreat, what would you suggest as an alternative?”
asked Cliff, during a break at a team leader workshop I was conducting.
What prompted the question was an annual team retreat sample
agenda coupled with a worksheet to assist teams in holding their own
year-end retreat. As the discussion evolved, one of the teams in
attendance talked enthusiastically about its annual off-site retreats
and their value to the group. But they were the only team holding these
affairs.
After a brief conversation with Cliff, it became apparent
that most teams could carve out a few hours before the end of the year
to review last year’s performance and discuss their goals for 2011.
This got me thinking about helping Chris add a little more depth and
breadth to this year-end review. Suddenly it dawned on me that the 16
criteria our research has highlighted as important to today’s affluent
could serve as an excellent exercise.
Read More Here >>
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Mike Ross, a portfolio manager at Morgan Stanley Smith
Barney who oversees $500 million with a partner, now has a new role:
wirehouse blogger. In recent weeks, Ross has been writing short items on
Advisor Insight, MSSB’s new in-house web network.
The work takes about 10 to 15 minutes a day, and it’s nothing fancy;
Ross might outline a few details on a report or a conference call that
he’s come across that interests him and he thinks is worth sharing
with the 18,000 company advisors who can access the network. (It is not
accessible to the public, but it does give advisors talking points to
use with clients.) Unlike many bloggers who cultivate in-your-face
panache, Ross prefers a low-key style, even though he’s been in the
business for more than 20 years and, perhaps, has earned the right to
flash a little attitude in his postings (“I really don’t try to
preach on it,” he says. “I’m not going to add a value
judgment.”)
Ross is one of about 230 MSSB advisors who are actively blogging these
days on Advisor Insight. But Ross, who’s based in San Jose, Calif., is
catching on; MSSB reports that among the company advisors who follow
their bloggers, he’s the sixth or seventh most-tracked.
Read More Here >>
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Look for more customization and consolidation in the
multi-family office business in 2011, say industry executives.
Multi-family offices traditionally sign on wealthy families for a broad
array of services that include investing, administration, trust and
estates, philanthropy, governance and comprehensive planning. But with
costs expected to rise amid a new regulatory environment next year, and
demand for more customized services growing, many firms are re-thinking
the way they do business.
“We need to be more flexible and take on more specialized
functions,” said Brian Hughes, managing director, strategic
relationships for Threshold Group, a multi-family office with $2.7
billion in assets. “Relationships with clients may start more slowly
and in smaller, customized pieces, which will put us in a much better
position to do more down the road. We’re clearly moving in that
direction and I think you’re also seeing other multi-family offices
re-thinking the flexibility of their offerings.”
Read More Here >>
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This time of year, Charles Zhang, an independent advisor
with Zhang Financial, is typically bombarded with holiday gifts from
mutual fund wholesalers. But that’s not the case this season.
According to Zhang, the Christmas gifts as well as marketing support
from such firms as Vanguard and Dimensional Fund Advisors have been
thin.
“This year we almost got nothing,” Zhang said. Even free dinners
seem to be off limits for wholesalers. When a DFA rep. recently came and
gave Zhang a dinner presentation, Zhang was surprised to find that he
had to pay for the meal. This was a first. Typically mutual fund
wholesalers pay.
Zhang attributes the drop in gifts to his firm’s shift toward
lower-cost, no load investment structures, such as those offered by
Vanguard, DFA as well as ETF providers. These lower-cost providers
don’t have the budget to buy gifts for advisors and provide the
marketing support that higher-cost mutual funds, such as Oppenheimer and
Putnam, can offer, he said.
Read More Here >>
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If you would like a FREE copy of Matt Oechsli’s 2010 New World
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Enjoy!
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Oechsli Institute’s Group on LinkedIn!
Once again, we want to thank all of you who have e-mailed
comments and questions to us. We will continue to do our best to answer
each one.
If you have any topic suggestions or special requests, please contact
Rich Santos, publisher of Registered Rep. and Trusts &
Estates magazines, at rich.santos@penton.com.
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Next Level Prospecting With Social Media: A Deeper
Dive
Back by popular demand, join us for round 2 of our Social Media
Prospecting webinar. We will be taking a deeper look at how financial
professionals can use social media for building relationships with
clients, prospects and COIs.
Click
here.
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