Best Practices for Scaling a Retirement Advisory Firm

Art by Alfonso de Anda

The retirement plan adviser landscape is in need of newcomers who can both support and eventually replace the old guard, according to industry participants. But how can advisers best build their practices amid a tight labor market across many sectors in an industry that is both specialized, and heavily regulated?

The demand for recruiting retirement advisers is at an all-time high, says. The need for advisers has grown dramatically as more plans come online in the U.S., issues like coverage gaps remain, and big firms seek to keep and retain talent, says Chuck Williams, CEO of Finspire.

Williams has taught a course on corporate retirement plans and employee benefits for 17 years at Northwestern University. He tells his students that there has never been a greater need for advisers than right now.

“As you go to most of our conferences people are my age [or] older, which are mid 50s and older. A lot of them are retiring or they’ve sold a practice, so the demand has never been greater,” says Williams. “There is a definite focus now on getting younger people into this industry and getting [people] from different backgrounds. In my classroom [it] looks very different than it did 17 years ago, just in the diversity of the makeup of them, and their skill set.”

Best Practices in Onboarding

Williams says a best practice in onboarding new talent is identifying right off the bat exactly where an individual fits into the organization and what their career path will look like. He sets up one-on-one calls every week with each of his employees to set goals for the week, Mike Devlin, a principal at BCG Pension Risk Consultants, says when onboarding new members, he learns how to respond to different personalities.

“You need to start recognizing what’s their personality,” says Devlin. “What makes them tick, what makes them happy, what stresses them out?”

As businesses increasingly operate online, teams must also embrace the digital experience for new employees, says Marilyn Suey, founder of the Diamond Group Wealth Advisors.

At her firm, they institute a relatively long process of training, with an emphasis on operational systems. Suey notes that being a digital native is a plus, so in hiring they will often look for someone with basic technical and digital skills that can then be transferred to the more specialized needs of the business.

Hiring talented people with a passion to serve is one of the most important components of growing a team, she says. They do not necessarily have to have a background in retirement services.

“I just hired someone who is a highly academic college graduate without any background in finance, accounting, marketing, sales,” says Suey. “He just was a very articulate and intelligent person that we interviewed. He had the emotional quotient and the aptitude for wanting to serve, and that’s one of the biggest areas in this business.”

Making Diverse Teams Work

The experts agree that diversity is important when scaling a successful team for the long term.

“If somebody comes in bringing something different—a different background, a different experience, a different skill set—we can all learn something from them,” says Williams.

Devlin, who’s firm is weighted towards more highly experienced advisers, says he is trying to recruit younger adults in their 20s and 30s. “Young employees just have thirst for knowledge. Their energy, and just questioning everything, is extremely helpful,” he says.

Diamond Group’s Suey understands firsthand what a lack of diversity looks like. When she first entered the space, she says only 5% of advisers were female.

“I am an Asian American, born here [in the U.S.], educated here, and was a beneficiary of the equal rights amendment,” says Suey. “I am very aware of how in my era I was given an opportunity to participate in the economy in corporate America. I pass that on over all these years, making sure that intentionally, but without discrimination, we hire the best people for the positions that are open at the time.”

Based in in Northern California, Suey says the firm needs to have a diverse team, not only in ages but also in other demographics. As clients tend to be highly diverse across ages, cultures, and languages, the firm aims to serve all types of individuals.  

“Don’t let anybody ever tell you no,” says Suey on growing her firm. “Someone says no, that means not yet, and you go a different path.”