Beverly Flaxington is a practice management consultant. She answers questions from advisors facing human resource issues. To submit yours, email us here.
Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
Dear Bev,
I have heard you speak about the importance of coaching newer advisors. Quite frankly I’m not the coaching type. I never played sports so I don’t get the analogies that are made, and I don’t think that my time is best spent spoon-feeding newer advisors. These are educated people; in some cases they already have advanced degrees and certifications. Why can’t the newer generations learn the way we did, at the “school of hard knocks”? I think we are creating a generation that needs constant input and teaching. That’s not going to be good for the future of our industry.
Jim R.
Dear Jim,
Thank you very much for your note. I don’t see a specific question, so I’ll address a few things that I believe could be useful to our readers.
- The issues you are raising may also be generational in nature. I’m assuming that you are from the Baby Boomer era or shortly thereafter. This generation was definitely raised at the “School of Hard Knocks.” They believed in hard work and individual effort and did not expect much from their employer. Younger generations have learned the power of coaching and mentoring, and the positive impact they can have on being more successful in less time. This is a goal for many of our advisor firms, getting younger team members up to capacity more quickly – saving time and making money!
- Many lead advisors have not developed their own coaching approach. Coaching skills are not often taught in financially oriented programs. I’m a college professor and, while I teach courses like Leadership, Entrepreneurship and even Organizational Behavior, we don’t teach many elements of coaching for managers. All coaching requires a willingness to spend time helping your team members understand what they are doing well and where they need to make shifts for greater effectiveness. Time is the key component here.
- There are many, many resources for outside training. In today’s world there are “in the office” options, there are courses your team members could take and there are many very effective industry coaches you could hire to work with your team members on an individual basis.. Please visit our newest offering www.advisorssalesacademy.com for one online, easy to access option for your team members.
- Lastly, one important thing to address is your own belief system with regards to this issue. Fundamentally you may disagree that your team needs or can benefit from any coaching or mentoring. If that’s the case, that’s a philosophy and culture being created. You may find people who want to work in that culture but if you are struggling to attract good talent, or you have turnover related to this issues with younger staff members, you might want to take a look at the thought process and see whether keeping this belief and operating from it is ultimately benefitting your overall goals.
Dear Bev,
We have gone through a great deal of change in our small advisory firm. We have a new Chief Investment Officer who is changing our entire proprietary process. We hired a full-time marketing person who is putting all kinds of new programs in place. I don’t mind change, but we are expected to do different things with our clients too. Some of my long-time clients see the changes as examples that we aren’t doing what we need to, so we need to change it up all the time. How do I either resist the changes internally or communicate them more effectively externally?
Peter P.
Dear Peter,
I am pleased to see that you are a man of options! You are considering a couple of different approaches to managing the constant change that will help you personally adapt in an environment of change. I have a few questions for you. Maybe by answering them you can decide which option will be most helpful:
- Do you believe and agree with the changes being made? You note them, but you don’t really give me clues as to whether you think the changes are right and effective. If you don’t believe in them, it will be hard to represent them externally.
- Are you telling your clients about these changes with a personal reticence or with a negative filter on them? Do you convey them as “more change,” or do you sell the benefits of the change to your clients?
- Has the firm developed a good story associated with these changes? This is one thing your new marketing person could be very helpful with in his/her role. Change can be good, if it is thoughtful and conveyed with the right message.
- Are the changes consistent? I know that sounds ironic – change by definition is not consistent but what I mean is that some change happens and then keeps morphing, so what was true yesterday is not true today. If you believe the change is somewhat permanent and there will be follow through, it’s much easier to be supportive of it and talk about the benefits.
Take some time to review your own perspective on what’s happening, your beliefs about it and the messaging that has been created. If all is done well, clients can be excited by something new that is beneficial to them, so don’t miss an opportunity to show how leading edge your firm can be!
Beverly Flaxington co-founded The Collaborative, a consulting firm devoted to business building for the financial services industry in 1995. In 2008, she co-founded Advisors Trusted Advisor to offer dedicated practice management resources to advisors, planners and wealth managers. She is currently an adjunct professor at Suffolk University teaching undergraduate students Leadership & Social Responsibility. Beverly is a Certified Professional Behavioral Analyst (CPBA) and Certified Professional Values Analyst (CPVA).
She has spent over 25 years in the investment industry and has been featured in Selling Power Magazine and quoted in hundreds of media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC.com, Investment News and Solutions Magazine for the FPA. She speaks frequently at investment industry conferences and is a speaker for the CFA Institute.
Read more articles by Beverly Flaxington
Beverly Flaxington is a practice management consultant. She answers questions from advisors facing human resource issues. To submit yours, email us here. 
