'We can wrap our arms around them and provide more training and administrative support'
This article was produced in partnership with Caldwell Securities Ltd.
Caldwell Securities Ltd. Is providing a “cradle to grave” environment for financial advisors, which is aimed at those who want more supportive conditions as they establish or play out their careers.
“There are a lot of advisors who may have been in the industry for three to five or six years, but they’re finding barriers with some of the large financial institutions,” Rick Wood, Caldwell’s vice-president of client and advisor success, told Wealth Professional.
“If you don’t make a certain revenue threshold – and for a lot of them, it’s about $500,000 a year – the banks just let you go.”
He noted that he encountered that glass ceiling when he was working for Scotia Wealth. He wanted to bring some young, up-and-coming advisors into his HollisWealth group, but he wasn’t allowed to because they hadn’t met the firm’s asset threshold.
“Those people were all lost to us, so we, at Caldwell, want to be a home for those types of advisors, so they don’t have to worry about the stress of hitting those type of milestones since it could lead to the wrong type of situations where they’re selling products that have higher commissions rather than what is right for the clients. We’re independent, so we give them the opportunity to really run the business on how they can best serve their clients.”
Wood said Caldwell’s team is willing to welcome advisors generating between $300,000 to $500,00 of revenue into its collegial environment where most have been there for 20 to 40 years. They can then provide the support these advisors may not have previously received to help them grow their businesses.
“We can wrap our arms around them and provide investment management programs for them as well as administration and marketing seminars, and all of those kinds of things,” he said.
“We’re all on the same team working together. So, we help each other out with those things. You don’t have to worry about what I did at that point: about the guy grabbing my client list off my desk and calling them up! We don’t have that kind of environment. It is very much like a family. It’s not right for all. But, for the ones that are right, it’s perfect!”
Wood is talking to people interested in making the switch, whether because of their firm or their role. One experienced portfolio manager wants to switch to advising. Others in their 40s or 50s want a more supportive environment to achieve more work-life balance.
Caldwell wants to be where its clients live, so it will also invest in offices across Ontario, so advisors don’t have to trek to downtown Toronto, thus affording them more work-life balance. It also supports them building a stronger presence in those communities.
The seasoned advisors who are climbing aboard can also participate in Caldwell’s training and practice management programs. Advisors rotate and make weekly “learning leaps” presentations that anyone can attend. Advisors can also get coaching to take their business to the next level or pick up new ideas from young advisors.
“The sharing goes both ways. As much as the young folks learn from our senior advisors the senior advisors who are open or receptive also learn a ton from the younger ones, as well,” said Wood. “To me, that’s the biggest formula for success - when you have it going both ways. That’s what we’re trying to instil here because nobody has the market cornered on good ideas. The more we share, the better we all are, and that is really a key focus for us.”
