When a high-net-worth client comes to you with a major life event—a business sale, a significant estate question, or maybe a liability exposure they hadn't thought about—what happens next?

Do you recognize the full opportunity in that moment?
Do you know the right questions to ask?
When it's time to act, can you help them move forward by working with their existing professionals or introducing them to someone you trust?

Elite advisors do all these things. And the way that they develop these capabilities is by having a professional network of other elite experts they work with to identify solutions to clients’ biggest issues.

Here’s a look at the huge value of having this type of network and how to begin building one of your own.

The need for the network

A professional network enables advisors to help their affluent clients address a foundational problem they face: the coordination gap.

Think about what's actually happening in the financial life of a client that's in, say, the $3 million to $10 million net worth range. They've got tax complexity. They have concerns about their heirs and whether they're ready to inherit. They've got real liability exposure—a lot of times with multiple real estate assets, businesses and valuable personal assets.

And for the most part, all those issues are addressed in silos. A CPA is dealing with tax issues. An estate attorney is dealing with estate issues and documents. An insurance agent is writing policies. And financial advisors are managing the investments. But despite the fact that all of those concerns relate to each other, each professional is just doing their individual job. At the end of the day, nobody is really looking at the whole picture.

Ultimately, the affluent client—who is seeking simplicity—ends up with more complexity because they end up having to do all the coordinating themselves.

The professional network solves this problem by delivering ideas and solutions that reflect the client’s complete picture, and enabling the advisor to coordinate the efforts of the key experts helping that client.

Building an elite professional network

In general, an advisor’s professional network needs three core members:

1. A CPA. HNW clients are navigating capital gains, business income, Roth conversion decisions and other concerns. You need a dedicated tax professional who can really provide insight and guidance on mitigating taxes for wealthy families.

2. An estate planning attorney. Estate documents have a shelf life. A trust or a will made several years ago may now be misaligned with what the client needs today. Assets have grown larger, family dynamics have changed, goals have evolved. So an estate attorney helps keep you sharp on what to look for and what questions to ask.

3. A property and casualty insurance specialist. This is the risk mitigation component, which advisors often don’t provide. HNW clients carry liability exposures that standard coverage often doesn't address adequately. A good P&C specialist helps you see what's there and what isn't.

Important: The specific professionals you choose to include in your network should be at an elite level. You want experts who work with HNW clients and, ideally, who work with the same types of HNW clients as you (business owners, tech executives, inheritors, etc.). A group of professionals who are “just OK” or who don’t really grasp the needs of your specific client base won’t add the type of value you need to thrive.

Getting results with your network

Having a network is one thing; harnessing its potential power is another. In our experience, the best way to generate concrete and coordinated results for clients is to conduct a simple quarterly meeting with your network members. At each meeting, review the specifics of clients you’ve recently onboarded. Bring up any advanced planning gaps you’ve already spotted, and provide information that could help the other experts identify gaps you’re unaware of.

Armed with insights from each quarterly meeting, you can go back to your clients with comprehensive and coordinated ideas and recommendations from some of the best people in the industry.

Conclusion

The advisors who thrive in the HNW market aren't winning on investment performance. They're winning because they see more and coordinate better than anyone else their clients have ever worked with. The professional network is how advisors can build that capability and become crucial and vital resources to the families they're serving.

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