Joe DeNoyior

Joe DeNoyior

Named president of global insurance broker Hub Retirement and Private Wealth (Hub RPW) in February, Joe DeNoyior oversees the company’s $105 billion-plus in assets. He joined Hub through the acquisition of Washington Financial Group (WFG) in September 2019, where he served as adviser and CEO. He recently discussed industry trends, and more, with PLANADVISER Managing Editor Judy Faust Hartnett.

PLANADVISER: What has the experience been to go from a plan adviser working with plan sponsors and participants to being in management and helping other advisers grow their business?

Joe DeNoyior: Being in this role has enabled me to take a look at how we’re helping our other advisers grow, and how we’re aggressively pursuing opportunity and growth through the perspective not only of somebody running the business unit, but somebody who sat down with participants every day. I think it’s an advantage as we continue to build Hub.

We have a great working relationship with our advisory firms. In a traditional corporate structure, you may have someone in management and then have advisory firms under that management, who may have to sell their concepts to management. We have an environment where it’s more open, because, again, I have built an advisory shop but, most importantly, have always been open to ideas.

We grow in two ways—organically and through acquisitions. And when we’re going through these acquisitions, I feel very confident [that I] understand whether this is the right move for prospective advisers, and for us, because I really understand their businesses.

The question I’ve asked myself forever is, can people around me thrive? What can I do to help people thrive? And that’s no different sitting in this role.

PA: How do you foresee the continued integration of health and wealth conversations with sponsors?

DeNoyior: The employee benefit shops have been talking total rewards and well-being for longer than we’ve been talking about financial wellness. If you think about it, wellness, or employee wellness came from the idea that we’re going to help people get healthier, make healthier decisions, provide them some support in mental health as well, so they have lower health care costs. Now we’re bringing the financial dimension, or the wallet, to that end.

I see further integration due to various challenges such as the hiring environment and due to the possibility of remote being here forever. We welcome looking more holistically at the needs of companies’ workforces.

We don’t even use the word “participant” anymore. We’re talking about their workforce because we want to know what the total benefit strategy is. Retirement plans are only a piece of it, and health and well-being are only a piece of it. It’s total workforce management. And frankly, I think it’s helped plan advisers become better business consultants as a whole.

I would urge plan advisers to take a holistic approach and go in even beyond the health side, taking a look at all of it. What can we do that puts the folks we serve in a better spot than when we first came into that organization?

PA: How does the growth of aggregators in the advisory business change the positioning of advisers overall? What does it mean for advisers who remain independent?

DeNoyior: I would encourage independent advisers to start thinking about strategic relationships, so they can talk more holistically to their clients about workforce management. That doesn’t mean they have to offer all of these other services. I want them to be able to expand their conversation, so there are more valuable resources that can compete in the marketplace. I don’t believe they have to sell everything under the sun. They can be a true independent adviser who has one service, but they just need to broaden their conversations and become a valuable resource to their clients.

There will always be a need for organizations that are designed to help such folks stay independent. There’ll be plenty of providers offering a membership organization with tools and services that the big firms have. It may not be as easy to gain scale through these partnerships, but it is very doable. Joining a larger organization may not be the right move for everyone, but I encourage advisers to keep their eyes on the pulse of the industry to determine their best approach.