CheckMate

A quick, but important, reminder…

Now that we’re nearing the end of the year, we’re starting to see all the usual economic projections for the new year, to include job forecasts. I’ve seen some good ones, and some bad ones as well, most of which are largely tied to the fallout from the subprime mortgage problems.

All I know is this - we continue to have ongoing significant requirements for financial advisors. So if you’re interested in a financial advisor career, don’t be unnecessarily discouraged by anything you might be reading - there’s still plenty of demand.

I’ve always been proud of the fact that we’re a small company with big reach, which allows us to offer the same career opportunities you’d see from a larger recruiting firm along with the personalized service you might not.

So you know I love this post I read from Jennifer Laycock today called “You Can’t Compete With the Big Guys? You Sure About That?” that’s about a locally-owned coffee shop in Kansas City that went straight up against Starbucks and won. After opening almost 10 years ago right next door to the Broadway Cafe, Starbucks is leaving. And I mean they were right next door - as John Jantsch said in his post that Jennifer links to, “…right next door, like, sharing an internal wall next door.”

Strabucks didn’t really give a reason for closing, but if you read the original story in the Kansas City Star, I don’t think it’s too tough to figure out they simply got beat.

Now, I know there’s more to the story, but I thought this comment from one of the co-owners of the Broadway Cafe, Sara Horan, really summed things up:

“We just did our own thing, making good coffee.”

I’m always careful about tooting my own horn, because it’s not my style and I think it can get you in trouble, but I will say that we really strive to do the things Jennifer talks about - provide good customer service and focus on our local community, which for us is the candidates and hiring managers we deal with daily. We’ve been pretty successful at what we do, and I’d like to think that those are big reasons why.

Teaming is something that’s very prevalent at most, if not all, financial services firms now and continues to become even more so. I’m not sure that’s something a lot of potential financial advisors are aware of - I think many look at it as the kind of career where they can go in and make their mark as individuals.

No question, the ability for an individual to stand out and rise above is a major attraction for a financial advisor career, and your individual performance is key, but don’t forget that you are going to be working as part of a team - maybe several different kinds of teams, in fact.

Why? Well, a great article in the newest Registered Rep magazine called ‘Go Team’ provides a number of answers to that question, but here’s two very good ones.

First, from an operational standpoint:

“Basically, teams are able to be more things to more clients because individual members can focus on different aspects of the client experience, and provide better and more specialized service. The team environment also allows for further specialization, and provides a vehicle for succession planning for the older members of the team. Plus, in this hyper-vigilant compliance era, it’s always nice to have someone watching your back.”

And, second, the bottom line reason:

“Advisors who work within teams pull in approximately 25 percent more production, and up to 35 percent more assets per team member, compared to advisors practicing alone.”

A pretty good reason, I’d say.

So, keep teaming in mind throughout the entire process of becoming a financial advisor - from your initial interest right on up to the time you accept an offer - and be knowledgeable of it and prepared to discuss it at any point.

A significant number of the financial advisor candidates we’ve placed have been attorneys who’ve decided to leave the legal profession.

There’s been a big trend for several years now of established lawyers deciding the law just isn’t for them anymore. Many different reasons for that exodus - the career just wasn’t what they’d expected, pressure to maximize billable hours, difficulty in making partner…just to name a few. For some, a financial advisor career has turned out to be a very viable and attractive option.

Financial services firms actively seek out attorneys, and for what are obvious reasons. They have some of the key character and proven professional traits those firms want - self-discipline, a logical mind, tenacity, speaking ability, and so on. In addition, most lawyers have a large base of business and social contacts within their communities especially among clients, fellow lawyers, and other professionals. Those groups normally are doing well financially, have money to invest, and need the advice a top trusted advisor can provide.

From the attorney end, a financial advisor career may provide things that a legal career just didn’t. More flexibility with their time, higher monetary rewards, more opportunities for promotion, a greater feeling of helping people - could be any of a number of things.

If you’re an attorney who has either left the profession or is considering leaving, I’d strongly encourage you to take a hard look at a financial advisor career.