RIA Edge

Mergers and acquisitions are becoming a more common way for larger RIAs to grow. But successfully managing a merger or acquisition after the deal closes is anything but a straight line — and many RIAs are looking for guidance on how to build a “culture of one.”  In this episode, Mark Bruno, managing director at Informa Wealth Management, speaks with Greg Friedman, chief executive officer & founder of Private Ocean Wealth Management and Cynthia Greenfield, chief experience officer at Private Ocean Wealth Management about strategies for successfully navigating a company merger or acquisition. Greg and Cynthia discuss their most recent book, Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions, as a way to share their experience and expertise. Mark, Cynthia and Greg discuss: The importance of culture in the success of a merger or acquisition   Strategies that have worked for Private Ocean in the past to build a active employee-employer relationship through mergers and acquisitions How coaches and facilitators can help in developing more proactive and rewarding meetings  Strategies to bring employees together after a merger   What Private Ocean is doing today to enhance the culture they want to create in their workplace Resources: Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions by Greg Friedman and Cynthia Greenfield The Financial Advisor M&A Guidebook: Best Practices, Tools, and Resources for Technology Integration and Beyond by Greg Friedman and Shaun Kapusinski Advisory Leadership: Using the Seven Steps of Heart Culture to Create Lasting Success for Any Wealth Management Firm by Greg Friedman  Connect With Mark Bruno: WealthManagement.com LinkedIn | Mark Bruno Mark Bruno (@brunz99) |  Twitter  Informa: Overview | LinkedIn Connect With Greg Friedman and Cynthia Greenfield: LinkedIn: Greg Friedman LinkedIn: Cynthia Greenfield LinkedIn: Private Ocean Wealth Management Private Ocean Home Facebook: Private Ocean  Twitter: Private Ocean (@_privateocean) About Greg Friedman: Greg Friedman is the CEO of Private Ocean, an innovative West Coast wealth management firm, and the founder of Junxure, a CRM platform that defined technology for financial advisors. In 2007, Charles Schwab honored him with its prestigious IMPACT Award® for “Best in Tech.” In 2008, Financial Planning Magazine included Greg in its elite list of financial “Movers and Shakers”. Greg was also recognized in InvestmentNews’ 2017 Class of Icons and Innovators for his contribution to the advancement of the financial advice profession and for conceiving new ideas and tools that have propelled the industry forward. In 2018, Greg was named CEO of the Year at the WealthManagement.com Industry Awards. About Cynthia Greenfield: Chief Experience Officer, Leadership Coach and Author. Cynthia develops strategies that deliver on a company’s mission and enhances the employee and client experience through organization, communication and engagement. She combines over a decade of experience in the financial services and technology industries with life coaching techniques to help build people stronger relationships that lead to successful partnerships. She is a community liaison who strives to partner firms with non-profit organizations and external vendors and she spearheads the event strategy for a $2B+ RIA firm. An advocate of healthy company culture, she helps drive cultural integration efforts during times of growth and transition and is responsible for developing and training staff on how to deliver a consistent client experience. In 2021, Cynthia co-authored the book, Integrating Culture in Successful RIA Mergers and Acquisitions, aimed toward business leaders within the financial services industry.

While a number of RIAs have experienced significant growth in recent years, many have actually grown by default – not design: Often, advisors are relying on the market, existing clients and referrals to drive growth. But there are a number of steps and strategies that advisors can implement to drive intentional, sustainable growth. Few leaders in the wealth management industry have a command over these strategies the way Jeff Concepcion, founder and CEO of Stratos Wealth Partners, has demonstrated. In this episode of RIA Edge, Mark Bruno, managing director at Informa Wealth Management, talks with Jeff about the growth and rise of Stratos into a platform with more than $19BN in assets under management.  Specifically, Mark and Jeff discuss: Stratos Wealth Partners’ story, business model and strategies behind their tremendous growth The ideal acquisition target for Stratos  Stratos’ approach to creating and driving organic growth Jeff’s views on how the pandemic has changed, and will continue to change, the RIA space for advisors and their clients  Strategic advice on how you can improve your overall growth rates  Resources: Financial Advisors | Stratos Wealth Partners | United States Events | Stratos Wealth Partners The Evolving Advisor Podcast | Stratos Wealth Partners Ltd  Jeff Concepcion | Stratos Wealth Partners Lou Camacho | LinkedIn Connect With Mark Bruno: WealthManagement.com LinkedIn | Mark Bruno Mark Bruno (@brunz99) |  Twitter  Informa: Overview | LinkedIn Connect With Jeff Concepcion:  Jeff Concepcion | LinkedIn Stratos Wealth Partners: Overview | LinkedIn Stratos Wealth (@Stratos_Wealth) / Twitter About Our Guest: Jeffrey Concepcion is the Founder and CEO of Stratos Wealth Partners, a firm which he launched in October of 2008. Jeff is responsible for the acquisition, development and coaching of the firm’s expanding number of affiliated advisors from across the nation. This is a role he embraces, and understands due to the fact that in addition to his leadership responsibilities, he also maintains a personal planning practice. Jeff’s entire professional career has been spent in the financial services industry. Prior to starting Stratos Wealth Partners, Jeff spent 22 years in senior management positions with Lincoln Financial Network, including being the Executive Director for the Eastern Region where he was responsible for fully one-third of the United States. He was then appointed Senior Vice President of Market Access and a member of the Executive Committee; where he was one of only a handful of executives responsible for Lincoln’s entire retail financial services business.

While the RIA channel has been growing at a steady clip for years, a handful of firms have grown at an accelerated rate and are now responsible for the lion’s share of assets and clients in the industry. Wealthspire Advisors has been one of the fastest growing RIAs in the business, and CEO Mike LaMena sat down with Informa Connect Managing Director Mark Bruno to discuss the firm’s success, strategies and future plans. Specifically, in this Episode of RIA Edge, Mark and Mike discuss: Wealthspire’s history of M&A and growth Wealthspire’s ideal acquisition target and how it evaluates opportunities The recent acquisition StratWealth How Wealthspire has approached marketing and new client acquisition – and driven industry leading organic growth rates Connect With Michael LaMena: mike.lamena@wealthspire.com  301.679.6212 WealthSpire Advisors  LinkedIn: Michael LaMena Connect With Mark Bruno: WealthManagement.com LinkedIn: Mark Bruno About Our Guest: Mike LaMena has more than 25 years of experience building, operating, and leading global wealth management organizations. His commitment to service excellence and his fundamental belief in the power of the firm’s independent, conflict free model of financial advice and comprehensive wealth management, inspires his enthusiasm to serve clients and expand the business.

Finding business strategies that work, and promote continuous growth can be one of the biggest challenges when running a business, especially coming out of the pandemic.  But one firm, Cerity Partners has been able to maintain and continue their growth in tremendous ways. In this episode, Mark Bruno sits down with Claire O’Keefe, partner and head of corporate development at Cerity Partners. Claire reveals how Cerity Partners was able to become one of the top RIAs for individuals, businesses and nonprofits, and how they have fostered long-term, sustainable growth for their business.  Mark and Claire discuss: Primary drivers Cerity has had for effective organic growth Five key areas Cerity focuses on when looking at potential “good-fit” clients Ways to continue meaningful engagement between advisors and clients during and after the pandemic  The strategies that Cerity uses to determine if their growth is high quality and will contribute to future growth Resources: Comprehensive Financial Management | Cerity Partners  Claire O’Keefe – Cerity Partners Kevin Hilden – Cerity Partners Connect With Claire O’Keeffe: Claire O’Keefe | LinkedIn Cerity Partners: Overview | LinkedIn Connect With Mark Bruno: WealthManagement.com LinkedIn: Mark Bruno About Our Guest: Claire is a Partner in the Chicago office and the Head of Corporate Development. She is also a member of Cerity Partners’ Executive Committee. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity College and her Master of Business Administration from Stony Brook University. She is a member of Vistage International. Prior to joining Cerity Partners, Claire served as an Executive Committee member and client advisor for two wealth management firms. In these roles, Claire’s responsibilities included strategic planning, client development, and client advisory. Throughout her career, she has focused her leadership on providing wealth management services to affluent individuals, business owners, executives, and nonprofit organizations.

The RIA channel has seen tremendous growth over the last decade, but a handful of RIAs have executed on M&A and marketing strategies that have positioned them as the industry’s truly elite firms. In this first episode of RIA Edge, Mark Bruno, Managing Director at Informa Wealth Management, speaks with Scott Hanson, co-founder and senior partner of Allworth Financial, about how he was able to grow his business into a national RIA with roughly $11 billion in assets through a range of intentional organic and inorganic strategies. Mark and Scott discuss: Allworth’s M&A strategy and ideal acquisition targets How Allworth is creating and driving growth for the firms it has acquired Digital marketing strategies adopted during the pandemic that are here to stay How to create an optimal experience that drives client retention and acquisition Resources: Allworth Financial | Retirement Preparation Specialists Free Retirement Planning Workshops and Events | Allworth Financial Lightyear Capital and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Agree to Acquire Allworth Financial to Invest in Next Phase of Rapid  |  Bloomberg Ryan Financial Services Connect With Scott Hanson: Scott Hanson | LinkedIn Allworth Financial |  Overview | LinkedIn Scott Hanson (@scotthansonCEO)  |  Twitter Scott Hanson  |  Co-founder  |  Allworth Financial Connect With Mark Bruno: WealthManagement.com LinkedIn | Mark Bruno Mark Bruno (@brunz99) |  Twitter Informa: Overview | LinkedIn About Our Guest: Scott Hanson is senior partner and founding principal of Allworth Financial and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER practitioner. Hanson co-hosts one of the longest-running financial radio programs in America, Allworth’s Money Matters, which can be heard at www.AllworthFinancial.com. He is a regular contributor to InvestmentNews, CNBC and author of three books, his most recent, “Personal Decision Points: Seven Steps to Your Ideal Retirement Transition” is available on Amazon.