Portfolio

It’s important for advisers just starting a practice to understand that times may be hard, lonely and often without reward.

The firm's relatively modest-sized army of advisers is more productive than any of its competitors. In 2015, the average Raymond James adviser produced $387,733, beating Cetera, its closest rival, by more than $56,000.

If an advisor hasn't adopted new technology, the CEO asks, are they putting their own interests ahead of their clients?

The wealthier the family, the trickier it can be to interpret their finances. A modern investment management platform can alleviate the need for manual number-crunching.

The industrywide gain in fee income is a welcome development given the new fiduciary rule--see how firms are preparing for new regulations as well as new competition.

The fiduciary rule flips wealth management on its head, especially in the bank channel. Smaller books will be just one response at Cetera.

The adviser's job is about to get harder, and some old dogs are going to have to learn new tricks in order to survive.

Educate them on the risks and lower volatility of a geographically diversified portfolio.

The new recruits joined the wirehouse from Merrill Lynch and UBS.