Practice management

As wealth management firms journey into emerging markets, asking the right questions in the right manner will reduce the risks associated with client selection.

J. Kevin Stophel has moved on after 13 years with the firm to establish an independent wealth practice partnered with Concert Advisor Services and Concert Wealth Management Inc.

Planners who structure their practices in a way that compels their best clients to mention them to friends and family will enjoy a steady stream of right-fit business.

Despite a rocky economic environment, affluent pre-retirees are more optimistic about the future, but remain wary of credit card companies and large banks.

Advisors who stay stuck in their comfort zone may have a neat and tidy life, but, it will simply be a fraction of what it could be had they continued to evolve and max out their God-given lifetime capability. Best-selling author Steve Sanduski shares 9 ways advisors can continue to evolve and reap great benefits, both personally and professionally.

When it comes to figuring out how you will improve your services or what new things you can do for clients, there is a lively debate about where those ideas should come from. Are you overlooking an obvious source for new and profitable ideas?

With all the economic uncertainty many clients may be dissatisfied and primed for switching to advisors who can relate to them on a personal level.

A group of family trusts has lost a $7.56 million arbitration claim that highlights the difficulties of winning individual claims tied to various Morgan Keegan funds that have fallen under regulatory scrutiny.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has named Andrew Bowden as Deputy Director of the agency's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE).

To attract more independent advisors, HighTower has introduced two new options, the HighTower Network and the HighTower Alliance. Elliott Weissbluth, the company's CEO, said by adding these channels, HighTower will be able to attract advisors who prefer to continue to own their own practices rather than joining a partnership.

Wells Fargo Advisors has tapped an executive from Citigroup and two of its existing leaders to serve in new senior leadership roles.

The Insured Retirement Institute announced Wednesday it elected Larry Roth chairman of its board of directors.

It's no secret that the rise of mobile devices has created one of the largest shifts in consumer behavior in the last 40 years. ABI research reports that 1.2 billion smartphones will enter the market over the next five years and Morgan Stanley predicted that web browsing on mobile devices is likely to overtake desktops within the next couple years. Is your website keeping pace?

As efforts to apply stricter fiduciary and disclosure requirements on broker-dealers slow, the Institute for the Fiduciary Standard, a one-year-old think tank that advocates for uniformity, met with Mary Schapiro, the Chairman of the SEC, to make its case.

Wells Fargo Advisors has extended its summer hiring spree with the addition of two Morgan Stanley Smith Barney advisors with $127 million in client assets under management.

With so many financial services-related conferences vying for the attention and attendance of advisors and wealth managers, how do you determine if a particular conference is worth committing to and what are you really hoping to get out of it?

Seeking confidential access to brokers looking to make a transition, Securities America has signed a new agreement with online company Join A Firm that will cover costs for its branches to maintain profiles on the recruit-matching site.

Advisors who don't feel like wading through reports on 9,000 hedge funds may feel more comfortable scanning information on about 40, especially if those funds have been expertly screened. Envestnet has announced a hedge fund research alliance with Fund Evaluation Group.

To become more successful, most small business owners must begin by acknowledging all of the areas in which their business falls short. For independent advisors, and many entrepreneurs, this can be a tough thing to assess. Never fear: Four key custodians offer four simple ways to improve your business.

Preparation is the key to a successful audit. The following guidelines will help your firm smoothly navigate the regulatory audit process and manage any possible surprises.