Our June issue is our annual broker-dealer issue, and in it we offer some familiar features. For the Presidents' Poll, we polled BD presidents at leading firms to get their take on the biggest issues they and their reps face now, as well as long-term. The Broker-Dealer Guide is a handy compendium of the industry's top broker-dealers, sorted by major categories.
In addition to our broker-dealer coverage, though, we're also eager to introduce the first in a series of articles we'll be running in the magazine and online dissecting what practice management is and how to do it better. For the past six months, the Investment Advisor Group and ActiFi have partnered to survey advisors on the subject, and we humbly present the first article on our findings this month.
We also talk to Rupal Bhansali, senior vice president and chief investment officer of international equities for Ariel Investments, for her guidance on how to tell a good money manager from a bad one. All it takes, she says, are three little questions.
What Are Advisors Doing Wrong?Three simple questions are all it takes when evaluating money managers, yet Rupal Bhansali says they're three questions too often overlooked by advisors and clients alike. In the (refreshingly) candid and direct style for which she is known, Bhansali, senior vice president and chief investment officer of international equities for Ariel Investments, tells Editor-In-Chief John Sullivan what advisors are doing wrong and how they can fix it.
Pursuing Practice Excellence: The Advisor PerspectivePractice management is a struggle for nearly all advisors. While in most instances they know they should have better practice management skills, there is little agreement among advisors and their partners over what the term actually means, much less any empirical, public evidence on which approaches and programs actually deliver success in practice management. So over the past six months, the Investment Advisor Group and ActiFi have partnered to help solve the mystery of practice management. Rather than dictate a definition or merely brainstorm our own ideas, however, we asked the people doing the work—advisors themselves—to do so, to tell us what they need in terms of practice management help. Spenser Segal, CEO and founder of ActiFi, and James J. Green, group editor-in-chief, introduce their findings in the first of this series.
Power in Practice: A Coaching Program to Last a Career–Part IIFor participants in Power in Practice, an in-house business coaching program offered by Commonwealth Financial Network, the course can sometimes feel like drinking from a fire hose. The program content is designed for advisors who are committed to transitioning their practices into true businesses, but its unique framework—including workshops, peer group meetings and coaching calls—gives participants the tools, structure and motivation they need to take their businesses to the next level. Joni Youngwirth shares what she learned from advisors in the second article of this series.
Five Facets of a Secure RetirementFor typical retirees in the United States, their goal is to fund a comfortable retirement. However, there are two primary risks investors face in managing their retirement portfolios—longevity risk and financial market risk. Peng Chen, president of Morningstar's global investment management division, explains the five factors that drive the product-type allocation decision.
Managing Through the Micro-Cap Mania
Smaller Pieces, Bigger Pie
The 2012 Broker-Dealer Presidents' Poll
Investment Advisor's 2012 Broker-Dealer Reference Guide
