Financial Advisor Success

Cady North is the founder of North Financial Advisors, a boutique fee-only financial planning firm that focuses on serving female business owners. Based out of San Diego and Washington, North Financial oversees more than $24-million in assets for 30 households, and purposefully maintains a limited number of clients to create high income without the risk of burnout. Listen in as Cady shares why she built a firm around helping a younger clientele of female entrepreneurs, how she helps them balance their money goals and use their capital in the best way possible, and why she intentionally downsized to focus on quality over quantity when it comes to her clients. We also discuss how she has been able to maintain a solo advisor practice by systematizing and automating processes, why she took a 6-month sabbatical to examine what was truly important for her, and why she let go of the to-do lists to focus on feeling fulfilled both mentally and financially. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/271

Kyra Morris is the founder of Morris Financial Concepts, one of the oldest independent fee-only RIAs in the country. Based out of Charleston, South Carolina, Morris Financial oversees $350 million of assets under management for 250 clients—a size that Kyra has taken care to scale to by focusing on finding and retaining top talent, as well as letting go of hires who don’t meet the firm’s high standards. Listen in as Kyra shares how she balances her firm’s growth trajectory carefully by growing fast enough to allow for her team to have new opportunities, but not so quickly that she can’t find and hire the necessary talent. We also discuss how she retains top talent once she finds them, how she manages stress and finds work-life balance as a busy entrepreneur, and why she gives back to her community by creating mixed-use development that enables minority-run local businesses to flourish. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/270

Michael Hartman is the founder of Hyperion Financial, an independent RIA based out of Pennsylvania that oversees nearly $60 million in assets under management for 75 households. What's unique about Michael is the way he fast-tracked his fee-only RIA through the acquisition of a commission-based book of clients that he then converted to fee-only. Listen in as he shares how he got started in the financial planning industry after being in the insurance world, as well as the realization he had that led him to become an independent firm owner to serve clients the way he wanted to and achieve his own personal business aspirations. You'll hear about the challenges Michael went through while transitioning his insurance firm to financial planning, why sometimes you have to take a leap of faith to truly make your business what you know it can be, and more. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/269

Patti Brennan is the CEO of Key Financial, an independent RIA based out of the Greater Philadelphia area that oversees more than $2-billion in assets under management for 800 client households. Patti has managed to scale her firm by centralizing departments into a unique team structure and systematizing processes to create a high-touch experience for clients. Listen in as we dive into how Key Financial uses customizable templates to create individual plans for each client and why Patti created a unique concierge-style client services department to help her clients feel truly valued. Patti also shares why letting go of fear and learning to trust her team was key to being able to scale her business, why she believes it’s important for leaders to be able to show vulnerability, and how she optimizes her team’s individual talents to create a well-oiled organization. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/268

Jared Siegel is a Partner at Delap Wealth Advisory, a fee-only RIA based out of Portland that oversees nearly $260 million of assets under management for over 70 client households. Jared has created a high-quality and high-touch experience for his clients by outsourcing operations, which has also allowed him to focus on the parts of his business that he loves rather than the everyday back-office minutiae. Listen in as we dive into how Jared has re-focused his firm to allow him to do the client-facing work that he really enjoys and the lessons that motivated him to spend more time in his zone of genius. Jared also shares how he develops deeper and more meaningful relationships with clients by focusing on non-financial conversations, as well as how he eventually became comfortable with adversity and can now appreciate how his early life failures have shaped him for the better. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/267

Jim Gold is the CEO and co-founder of Steward Partners Global Advisory, an independent advisory firm with multiple locations across the country that serves nearly 10,000 client households. Managing $16 billion of AUM under 180 financial advisors, the firm is unique in that it is attempting to recreate the wirehouse model of old by merging the “large firm” infrastructure with an employee-owner partnership model. Listen in as we dive into the "why" behind the formation of Steward Partners Global Advisory, including how Jim’s firsthand experience at a wirehouse led him to build his dream business model with all the benefits of a large firm—and none of the corporate scandal or compliance issues that usually follow old-school wirehouses. Jim also shares the details of his firm’s partnership model that allows for advisors to have greater career flexibility while also having a stake in the company, as well as the personal challenges he faced along the path to building the firm he had always dreamt of. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/266

Amy Castoro, President and CEO of the Williams Group, specializes in preparing high-net-worth families for wealth transition through enhanced communication and trust. In this engaging discussion, she highlights that 85% of multi-generational wealth loss stems from trust breakdowns. Amy introduces 10 pivotal questions that foster family readiness for inheriting wealth. She emphasizes the importance of early financial education for heirs and practical strategies like family meetings to strengthen relationships and ensure responsible wealth management across generations.

Dan Callahan, Partner and Chief Investment Officer at Capasso Planning Partners, shares his strategies for growing his firm through outsourcing lead generation. He discusses the challenges and triumphs of starting from zero, using third-party platforms to expand his reach, and justifying the costs of buying leads. The podcast explores the benefits of virtual meetings, lead generation and qualification processes, lead flow and quality, and transitioning from a niche firm. The speaker also reflects on the emotional rollercoaster of building an advisory business and the importance of work-life balance.

Joyce Franklin is the founder of JL Franklin Wealth Planning, an independent RIA based out of San Francisco that oversees $200 million of assets for 40 families. Joyce built a true boutique financial advisory firm by serving as a personal CFO for high-profile tech executives and positioning herself as a steward of their wealth. Listen in as we dive into how Joyce started out preparing tax returns during the tech bubble of the 1990s, as well as how she turned her tax prep side business into a boutique independent advisory firm. Joyce also shares how she has intentionally maintained a smaller client base that averages around 71 hours of work per client every year, how she became the go-to expert for entrepreneurs and executives building wealth in startups, and why she is now turning her sights to building her staff to create a future succession plan. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/263

Melanie Milam is an advisor with Gateway Financial Partners, a super-OSJ affiliated with LPL Financial located in Texas, where she oversees $150M of assets under management for her 110 client households. Melanie has a truly unique approach to connecting with clients by using a tried-and-true list of 34 questions that creates a deeper, longer-lasting relationship with clients.  Listen in as Melanie shares how she leveraged her knowledge as a CPA, as well as her husband’s managerial experience and personal connections, to launch her firm - all while homeschooling her six children. We also dive into how Melanie weaves her faith into her financial work, how she builds deep and long-lasting relationships with clients, and why she believes that women can have it all (just not all at the same time). For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/262