It was 23 years ago that Investment Advisor first asked its independent broker-dealer rep readers to rate their own BDs. While much has changed in the IBD space since 1990, much also remains the same. Recruiting and retaining reps is still the primary business goal of broker-dealers, but the services BDs provide has evolved over time.
We've seen the rise of broker-dealer networks, we've seen contraction in the number of IBDs and we've seen scale as one approach to making a broker-dealer more attractive to reps. However, we've also seen resilience in the ranks. Bigger is not always better, and the entrepreneurial spirit and the niche approach to running a successful broker-dealer remains strong.
Investment Advisor's annual Broker-Dealer of the Year survey tracks that evolution, and is the premier way in the industry for IBD reps to make their voices heard on what they want, and what they don't, from the broker-dealers through which reps do business.
As in the past 22 years, we name winners in four different categories (see who won in 2012), so like-sized BDs (as measured by number of producing reps) compete against their peers. In the September issue of Investment Advisor we reveal the winners of this year's voting, and we bring together the leaders of the four winning broker-dealers in an in-person editorial roundtable that always provides insights—and often some sparks as well—that constitutes the core of our September cover story in print and online at AdvisorOne. (See more about the process for choosing the Broker-Dealers of the Year.) In addition, we poll reps on what they would want from their existing firms, and also ask them which BDs they'd migrate to if they became unhappy with their current BD.)
So we encourage all independent broker-dealer reps to tell us and your peers what's important to you, and to rate how well your own broker-dealer is meeting your needs.
