Ralph Ortega

Pat O'Connell, who heads the advisor group, says "literally thousands of advisors" have started interacting with clients using Go Social, and that it's been "very well-received."

Chip Packard, who coheads the German bank's wealth management unit in the U.S., says it’s not clear the firm's UHNW clients wants to replace advisors with automation in the states.

The group of 5 advisors will be opening a new office for the regional broker.

There are big payoffs for advisors who plan carefully.

The OAKS Wealth Management Group has a combined $3.2 million in production.

The new recruit had generated $2.7 million in production before switching wirehouses. A second advisor from UBS who had $1.9 million also went to Morgan.

"The more investments and account types a client has, the more complicated their tax picture can become. Add to that the variations between state and federal tax laws, and the complexity increases further," says Greg Steiger, manager of retirement income planning at RBC.

"Not all brokers put a lot of thought into it. I imagine because it's not where you're making your money," says Robert Gordon, president of Twenty-First Securities. "But they should, because it's part of the service to the client, and because it's the right thing to do."

Advisors describe how both their clients and business benefit when retirement planning enters the decumulation stage.

Experienced wealth managers say they can do the best job of landing a junior partner.

The group is the latest to defect from the British bank's wealth operation before its impending sale to Stifel.

Thomas J. Buck, an ex-Merrill Lynch and RBC advisor who once oversaw $1.2B in client assets, consented to FINRA findings that he "willfully committed fraud."

A recruit from the banking channel at Wells Fargo moves to the regional's independent broker-dealer.

The brokerage wants a judge to stop the former employee from claiming she remains employed by the firm, and from disclosing proprietary information on Facebook and other social media.

Rival Edward Jones has grown and wants to keep on growing.

Wells Fargo Advisors hopes to have 5,000 out of its 15,000-plus advisors using social media tools next year.

Bank of America's Keith Glenfield says clients at the firm's Merrill Lynch wealth management unit are using alternatives to take a more deliberate approach to core allocations.

The industry believes that adding lending and other services to an advisor's offerings will improve client service and boost the bottom line.

Learn how these leaders are focused on growing the advisor ranks and helping them build bigger businesses.

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