Going Beyond Surface Metrics
When this is the case, firms and advisors are invested in one another’s successes (when one does well, so does the other) and a partnership emerges that builds enduring value and long-term stability for all involved—the firm, the advisor and the client.
And, as a result, quantitative metrics like revenue and GDC, while important, don’t overwhelm other less tangible but arguably more important factors, such as the lasting impact firms and advisors, collectively, are making on the lives of those they serve.
Said differently, it becomes more about earning testimony, which is enduring, and less about winning titles, which are often fleeting.
This is not, however, where the industry seems to be heading today. Many BDs have adopted the “growth for growth’s sake” business model that minimizes their ability to have a meaningful relationship with the individual advisor, essentially morphing into service providers, delivering a menu of services for a fee.
Towards A More Meaningful Future Together
Every firm and advisor is in business as a means to their livelihood. There’s nothing wrong with that. Simply put, as an industry we must value and prioritize true relationship and impact over which firm generates the highest revenues or which advisor produces the most GDC. This is the essence of the interdependent broker-dealer model.
Bradley M. Shepherd is the president and CEO of Founders Financial, a broker-dealer based in Towson, Md.