Practice management

Sometimes it takes a "human capital strategy" to develop top talent. One firm has already used this strategy to multiply revenue by more than four times since 2004 with 30% expansion in staff.

Several provisions affecting advisors contained in President Obama’s budget blueprint drew sharp reactions from many corners of the industry, with groups variously praising measures to increase funding for securities regulators and blasting provisions concerning taxes and retirement planning.

The burgeoning influence of financial advisors in the United States was a repeated observation at this year's Tiburon CEO Summit at New York City's Ritz Carlton in Battery Park. Here are 11 themes we heard at the two-day event encompassing 200-plus executives and advisors.

CPAs and attorneys are great sources of referrals, but every advisor already knows this. According to Ken Haman, what your competition doesn't know (and what you are about to learn) is how to hone your message, stand out from the pack and generate more referrals from key influencers.

“As investor confidence grows and perceptions of wealth management firms improves, so do advisor perceptions of their firm, particularly among independent advisors,” the J.D. Power study reported.

The platform upgrade features advanced trading and modeling capabilities, enhanced user interfaces, and improved model data reporting, as a result of heightened demand for holistic advice and operational efficiencies in managed accounts.

Mary Jo White was sworn in as SEC chairman and led a meeting where the agency approved rules requiring brokers and investment advisors to adopt identity-theft prevention programs.

A top executive with Fidelity urged congressional action to stave off what he described as "a looming retirement crisis," appealing to lawmakers to pressure the Department of Labor to avoid an expansive redefinition of fiduciary responsibilities for advisors, among other things.

The Financial Services Institute is heralding the advance of legislation in Florida that would significantly ease the registration process for advisors representing firms headquartered in other states.

“We have found that people in Gen Y not only said they are highly disciplined, they really are more highly disciplined than people in older generations,” Bill Taylor, vice president of financial planning at Northwestern Mutual, said in an interview. “It might be because they’ve seen their parents hurt badly when stocks fell in 2008, because of the decline of defined benefit plans, or just because young people have access to more information today.”

An elevator speech is a quick way to explain the unique benefit you deliver to clients, but Steve Wershing says most advisors frequently provide just a rambling, somewhat fuzzy description of their practice. He says an effective elevator speech is succinct and highlights the difference from other advisors, but that's only part of the reason for learning one.

Delivering easily accessible, multimedia resources that are broken into small packages is key to engaging and educating individuals, according to new research.

From the impact of volatility on client portfolios to uncertainty in North Korea, here are eight timely tidbits of information that financial advisors should be aware of this week.

What's next for financial advisors? How will wirehouses, banks and RIAs continue to evolve in the coming year? Tiburon's Chip Roame explains 15 key trends that every advisor must keep an eye on.

Here are some great tips that will help your financail advisory website rise to the top of the heap in search engine optimization.

Just 37% of baby boomers are confident in their financial preparations for retirement—and that number keeps falling.

Just 34% of advisors believe that social media is a "wise use" of asset managers' time and resources and just over half (53%) feel that asset management firms are "smart to explore" social media.

Former U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on Monday to serve as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management hauled in nine new advisor hires on Friday with more than $765 million in assets and $9.2 million in fees and commissions.

Beacon Pointe is actively looking for more advisory firms with a CPA tie-in as it plots an expansion strategy of reaching 35 to 40 offices around the country in the next 10 years, Cooper says.