The recruiting team at NPC has grown from two people to four people in the last three years. It looks for independent advisors who produce at least $250,000 in revenues, says John Johnson, who helms NPC's recruiting efforts.
Schwartz at Cambridge predicts ongoing consolidation in the industry. Firms with continued recruiting success are likely to survive this wave of mergers and acquisitions.
"In 1995," he says, "we were one of the many smaller broker-dealers that were typical of that era, but today, the top 10 firms generate 55% of the revenue within the broker-dealer space. In 15 years, I think the top eight firms will have 75% to 90% of the revenue. This is just the normal consolidation process of any maturing industry. The key for advisors and B-Ds is to recognize it and use it to their benefit."