"With all of its numerous moving parts, there's no question that making the shift to wealth management absolutely requires a unified team effort."

It's a Coalition Effort

By John Bowen

In recent years, a growing number of advisors have come to understand that wealth management is the key to success. If you're like these advisors, you've already begun to institute a wealth management approach. At the very least, you've probably thought about it. But no matter where you are in the process, it's important to know this important fact: Your efforts alone can't make your transition to wealth management a reality.

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In recent years, a growing number of advisors have come to understand that wealth management is the key to success. If you're like these advisors, you've already begun to institute a wealth management approach. At the very least, you've probably thought about it. But no matter where you are in the process, it's important to know this important fact: Your efforts alone can't make your transition to wealth management a reality.

You need the commitment and support of your partners and employees. Even if your staff consists of a single worker, it's essential to get that person behind you. For those of you with large staffs and multiple partners, the need to get your team on board is crucial.

WHAT WEALTH MANAGEMENT MEANS

With that in mind, here's how you can make sure everyone at your firm buys into your plans. For starters, it's good to remind yourself of what it takes to offer the kind of true wealth management that will maximize both your profitability and quality of service.

By definition, wealth management is a holistic approach to understanding and providing solutions to a client's major financial challenges in life. From a client's perspective, this means having all financial challenges solved. From your perspective, it means profitably providing a wide range of products and services in a consultative way.

If you have been focusing on investment management, you will need to expand your offerings. In its simplest terms, wealth management can be summed up using a single, all-encompassing formula:

Wealth management = investment consulting + advanced planning + relationship management (or WM = IC + AP + RM).

For many wealth managers, investment consulting is the core offering and the foundation upon which they begin client relationships. Advanced planning addresses four key needs beyond investments: wealth enhancement, wealth transfer, asset protection and charitable giving. Relationship management focuses on three areas: fully understanding and meeting clients' needs over time; assembling and overseeing a network of experts to help meet client needs; and working effectively with your affluent clients' other professional advisors, such as attorneys and accountants.

SEVEN STEPS TO BUY IN

Clearly, wealth management is a complex proposition. With all of its numerous moving parts, there's no question that making the shift to wealth management absolutely requires a unified team effort. Here are seven steps you can take that will help ensure that your team is behind the transition 100 percent.

Step 1: Envision your success. You have to fully believe in the value of expanding to wealth management before you can convince partners and other team members to go along with it. Paint a picture in your mind of what your wealth management practice will look like—from the high-quality client experience to the robust offerings of financial services. This visualization will guide you to the commitment you'll need from your team.

Step 2: Create a strategic action plan. First, perform a preliminary analysis of the assets from current clients that could potentially be converted from a transactional basis to a wealth management approach. Show the amount of revenue that would result from these assets and the value of that income stream to the business. Then put together a plan for transitioning appropriate clients to wealth management. Your plan should spell out important dates for contacting clients and arranging meetings and milestones for converting assets.

This action plan will keep you on track and help ensure that change happens smoothly. It will also help inspire your team by demonstrating your commitment.

Step 3: Present your plan. If you have partners, present your plan for the transition to them. Start by communicating the vision you created in the first step. Once your partners understand your vision, they'll be able to help you achieve it. Then, present your strategic action plan. Explain how offering wealth management will help the firm grow faster, while providing clients with more highly valued services and a superior experience. Don't forget to mention the potentially negative outcome of not making the shift.

Step 4: Turn partners into clients. Take each partner through your consultative wealth management process, exactly as you would for a client. Why? Most people are uncomfortable with what they don't know. By going through your process, your partners will become comfortable with it and grasp the value it will bring to clients.

Step 5: Gain consensus. Everyone needs to agree that moving ahead with wealth management is in the best interest of the firm and your clients. If your team has major concerns about incorporating wealth management into the business, this is when they will surface. Be ready to address them fully. Don't underestimate the importance of this step. With a clear commitment to change, you can focus the entire practice on what you want to achieve. Without this clear commitment, your attempts to move forward will almost certainly fail.

Step 6: Form your coalition. Once your partners have signed on, turn to the staff. Describe the coming changes and why you need to make them. Spell out how they will each be affected and, in particular, how they will benefit.

Keep in mind that the time you need to form your coalition may be substantial. Most of us react negatively to change, initially. We need time to digest and understand "what's in it for me." Remember that by the time you reach this step, you will have had plenty of time to think through why you need to move into the wealth management arena. Your staff members may be hearing it for the first time, however. Give them the time and information they need to conclude for themselves that the changes are in the practice's best interest, and their own.

While this step is about gaining the support of your staff, it will also ensure that all partners remain fully behind your efforts. When your staff is excited, it feeds back to the entire firm, including your partners—creating energy that will push your initiatives forward.

Step 7: Report your successes. As you execute your strategic action plan, report your successes to your team. This will help cement their support and maintain momentum.

Arm yourself with the right strategies for implementing wealth management and enlisting your entire organization. By doing so, you'll put yourself in the best possible position to make wealth management work for you-and you'll be building a truly exceptional business.