Clearing and custodial firm Trust Company of America is taking on Schwab, TD Ameritrade and other big players in the space. Frank Maiorano, the firm's new CEO, is leading the firm's growth initiative with an innovative technology play that may well "forever change the way wealth management is performed."
Retirement income is top-of-mind for many advisors—not to mention their clients. In our Point/Counterpoint features, we explore two sides the argument to use dividends as a retirement income strategy. Can bond markets really support a client in retirement? Are volatile stock markets worth the risk? Charles Farrell, of Northstar Investment Advisors, and Stephen Huxley and Brent Burns, of Asset Dedication LLC, debate the merits of dividend investing in retirement.
And, Joni Youngwirth continues her three-part series on practice management with a plan for identifying the most important processes you use in your practice and how to run them more efficiently.
Read more from the October 2011 issue of Investment Advisor.
Building Trust With TechHigh energy, "client-facing DNA" and a new leadership team are all on the table for Trust Company of America's growth strategy. But that's not all—Frank Maiorano's vision for the clearing and custodial firm also includes a cutting-edge push into tablet technology. Editor in Chief John Sullivan reminds us that whatever the firm might lack in size, it more than makes up for in innovation. Where Maiorano's leading the company respects the past and the foresight of his predecessors, but he has a keen eye for the future and all the advantages technology brings.
Read the full article.
Recession Imminent? The U.S. economy is a highly complex, multifaceted mechanism and, accordingly, is extremely difficult to predict, Mike Patton writes. Economic predictions are frequently unreliable, despite the fact that many economists prognosticate with great confidence. So, are some economists' predictions that a recession is certain by year-end accurate? Patton explores the history of recession in the United States to try to put a finger on a new recession: Is it inescapable or are we worried about nothing?
Read the full article.
As Good As It GetsWe're all worried about the next generation of financial advisors; where will they come from and will there be enough? If the 27-year-old president of Intelligent Financial Services, Jason Good, is any indication of the quality of the next generation, we should all relax. Good has those rarest of skills; left-brain analytics to decipher pages of spreadsheets combined with right-brain creativity to hone his people skills (and let's not forget a healthy competitive streak). John Sullivan talks with Good about how he got so far, so fast.
Read the full article.
Floating Over Volatility Delaware Diversified Floating Rate Fund manager David Hillmeyer is profiting mightily from floating rate securities and wants you to as well. Hillmeyer points to two main reasons for the appeal of floating rate securities: minimal interest rate sensitivity because of their low duration and the fact that they earn increasing rates of income as interest rates rise. But, he cautions that investors need to more fully understand floating rate securities in order to select the appropriate floating rate fund. He tells John Sullivan how advisors can incorporate floating rate securities to their clients' benefit.
Read the full article.
Through The Roof
POINT: Rising Dividends for Retirement Income
COUNTERPOINT: Building a Personal Pension Portfolio
Perfecting The Business Of Advice
Want a More Efficient Practice? Examine Your Core Processes
