Winnipeg advisor leaves National Bank Financial, seeking more freedom and control over his business' direction
A Winnipeg advisor’s decision to leave National Bank Financial and go independent was fuelled by the desire for more freedom and control over his business.
Grant White, along with his partners, has founded Endeavour Wealth Management after six years at the bank in a move he believes will enable his team to be at the forefront of technology, provide a better client service and, ultimately, grow.
White had nothing but praise for National Bank, which he said was a “fine firm”, and said the switch was simply the “next stage of evolution”. His team’s departure, however, is another blow to the bank in recent times after leading advisors Rob Tetrault (Winnipeg) and Chad Larson (Calgary) left for Canaccord Genuity.
It’s a time of change for White, who is also getting married in five weeks, and he believes the moment is right for a new professional direction, in partnership with broker-dealer National Alliance Securities.
He said: “We wanted to get to an independent model because we feel that’s going to allow us more control over our resources and ability to create our client experiences the way we want to.
“Right down to the office location, to what it looks like, to the environment and everything we do. Whether it’s programmes we create or financial planning software, we wanted more control.”
Top of mind, said White, was technology and the effect that can have on client meetings. The freedom to choose the best software for the firm, which is now NaviPlan, is also crucial in adopting the latest innovations.
He added: “When we look at the other models that have emerged, robo advisors are one thing but there’s a lot of technology that I’ve seen in the US, in particular, that I think will slowly be coming up to Canada. We want to make sure we are at the forefront of that for competitive reasons and also for creating a better client experience.”
The ability to scale was also high on the agenda. White wants to bring in more young advisors to mentor them, giving them time to learn and grow.
He said: “This is the next stage of evolution. I really enjoyed my time at National Bank but I’m excited at the levels we will be able to take our business to and what we can do for our clients on our new platform. I can see us creating a template I think others will want to either mimic or join.”
