Natalie Wolfsen is chief executive officer of AssetMark and leads the strategic vision for the firm, which encompasses its platform of curated investment and technology solutions, business consulting and operations support, and strategic acquisitions that serve the best interests of financial advisors and their investors.
Russ Prince: Can you describe AssetMark?
Natalie Wolfsen: AssetMark is a modern TAMP that provides financial advisors with an ecosystem of wealth technology solutions that drive transformational value across all aspects of their business.
Through innovative digital tools, deep expertise and hands-on support, our platform enables advisors to outsource services and capabilities that would otherwise require significant investments of time and money. Our solutions are purpose-built for each advisor’s unique goals—whether that’s to grow their practice, increase engagement with clients, or drive efficiency.
We provide an end-to-end experience, spanning nearly all elements of an advisor’s engagement with his or her client—from initial conversations to ongoing financial planning discussions, including performance reporting and billing. In addition, our platform provides tools and capabilities for advisors to better manage their day-to-day business activities, giving them more time for meaningful conversations with investors.
In 2021, we served more advisors and investors than we ever had before, supporting over 8,600 advisors. Our advisors, in turn, used our platform to help nearly 210,000 investor households.
Prince: What sort of challenges is the modern financial advisor facing?
Wolfsen: Financial advisors must constantly adapt to meet the needs of clients in an ever-changing world. Their role as investment managers is transforming into that of wealth coaches, responsible for every aspect of the client’s financial life.
As the demand for the breadth and depth of advice evolves, they are going to have to do more at a faster pace. At the same time, they are responsible for owning and operating a business in a highly regulated and competitive environment. They’re juggling a lot of competing priorities and demands on their time.
Meanwhile, economic uncertainty has accelerated investor trends that were already underway, and the financial services industry continues its large-scale digital transformation. We’ve seen huge shifts in market participation as well as preferences towards personalization and holistic financial wellness. Independent financial advisors are in a strong position to help established and emerging investors achieve their goals, but they need to be able to scale to be competitive.
Prince: What can outsourcing offer advisors to help grow their business?
Wolfsen: To achieve scale and growth, advisors need to prioritize their limited time on activities that drive the most value. Outsourcing provides them with flexible solutions and advanced capabilities that would otherwise require significant investments of time and money, ultimately enhancing their productivity, profitability and client satisfaction.
In fact, our 2021 Impact of Outsourcing study findings underscore how outsourcing drives client, personal and business benefits to financial advisors:
• 98% of advisors who outsource investment management say it allows them to deliver better investment solutions.
• 91% who outsource investment management have achieved accelerated growth in total assets as a result.
• 83% of advisors who outsource investment management report stronger client relationships as a benefit of outsourcing.
Furthermore, the study found that, on average, advisors who outsource report they save more than seven hours per week that they can repurpose toward other priorities.
Prince: The needs of clients are changing. How can outsourcing help advisors meet these needs?
Wolfsen: The pandemic accelerated investor trends that were already underway, namely increasing market accessibility to investors and emphasizing hyper-personalization. In early 2021, we saw retail trading volumes skyrocket, with millions of Americans entering the market for the first time. In the month of January 2021 alone, approximately six million people downloaded trading apps, according to a study from Deloitte. These investors want more. They want greater access to on-demand information, tools to do their own research, and customized solutions that allow them to do their job more efficiently. A recent McKinsey study found that by 2030, it’s expected that up to 80% of new wealth management clients will want to access advice in a data-driven, personalized model. Advisors need to adapt in order to stay competitive.
An outsourcing provider should ideally be ahead of these kinds of trends, offering financial advisors one-stop-shop access to intuitive digital tools and personalized investment solutions that can transform the client experience.
Prince: What initiatives is AssetMark pursuing to better support advisors?
Wolfsen: As advisors continually reinvent their roles to meet the needs of today’s investors, AssetMark is committed to evolving alongside them to bring transformational value across all aspects of their business. This year, we are focused on delivering more for advisors to help them serve their clients and build a better, more secure financial future. As advisors continue to seek independence, we are enhancing our client experience and investment solutions available to RIAs.
We continually advance our technology to further our efforts in transforming advice towards financial wellness, helping differentiate the way advisors interact with their clients. Our proprietary financial planning solution, Voyant, provides ongoing, comprehensive support across varying life goals—from retirement savings to legacy planning—allowing advisors to further deepen their relationships with clients.
Our curated investment platform enables advisors to serve their clients across the wealth spectrum. In the first half of 2022, we plan to expand to include personalized, values-based solutions to provide advisors with the tools they need to deepen their relationships with their clients. As advisors increasingly focus on serving their clients, we are enhancing our turnkey business programs to provide ongoing support and services to manage and grow their businesses from prospecting to administration to ensure our advisors’ businesses continue to flourish.
Russ Alan Prince is the executive director of Private Wealth magazine and one of the leading authorities in the private wealth industry. He consults with family offices, the wealthy, fast-tracking entrepreneurs and select professionals. Connect with him on LinkedIn.com.