Gerard Turtora started his 65-year career in the financial services industry by going door-to-door in Brooklyn collecting monthly life insurance premiums.
Needless to say, he has seen a lot of changes between 1951 and today. He is now a broker and financial advisor with Barnum Financial Group in the Elmsford, N.Y., office of the Shelton, Conn.,-based firm.
Possibly the biggest change he effected was bringing his grandson into his office as an advisor, teaching him the ropes, and letting him take over some of the work. But don’t get him wrong, at the age of 87, Turtora did not bring his grandson in to take his place just yet. He says he has no plans for retiring.
“Coming to work is a joy every day,” says the octogenarian, who still meets with several high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients a week and handles their wealth management needs as he has done for so many years.
Adam Belardino, his 32-year-old grandson, was brought into the business as an intern. Turtora says he enjoyed mentoring his grandson in particular, but he also likes mentoring other young people.
“As an intern, Adam was able to learn the mechanics of the business first, and then advance from there,” says Turtora. Now Belardino consults with about 10 clients a week. “He’s terrific,” his grandfather brags.
“I was always close to my grandfather. I knew he was successful, but as a kid I was not entirely sure what he did,” Belardino says. As he got older he learned what financial planning was and decided to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps at Barnum.
Barnum, which has $10 billion in client assets under management and offices in six states, has been part of the MassMutual organization since the middle of this year after MetLife sold all of its offices serving consumers and small businesses to that company.
“No one does it anymore, but going door-to-door was a good way to start a career. I learned how to develop personal relationships,” says Turtora, who adds that he uses the same relationship skills today, even though technology has revolutionized the industry.
“The technology today allows us to provide clarity and organization,” Belardino says. “We have to know what part of the business can be done with technology and what needs to be done with human advice.”
The two deal mostly with high-net-worth estate planning for clients, some of whom have been with Turtora for 50 years. “We want to create a place where our clients can put all of their assets,” Turtora says.