Black financial advisors from across the country recently gathered in Tampa, Florida, for the fourth annual symposium hosted by the Raymond James Black Financial Advisors Network (BFAN). At our most engaging conference yet, advisors attended sessions focused on professional development and networking and shared ideas for fostering business growth.
The quality of presentations was fantastic, and there were great takeaways for our financial advisors.
Perhaps what made this year's symposium so different and special was the INROADS event, which kicked off the conference. INROADS is a non-profit organization that trains and develops minority youth students for corporate and community leadership.
For years, Raymond James has been a proud partner by providing summer internship opportunities to INROADS participants. During the kick-off reception, we invited local INROADS alumni as an introduction to our business.
It was an opportunity for them to network with black financial advisors and senior leaders at Raymond James and to learn more about our noble profession. With one of BFAN's major goals being to positively impact the industry, INROADS and our reception this year are great steps, as we aim to increase the number of minority professionals in our industry.
Spotlight on Speakers, Workshops
Attendees heard from notable industry speakers including several BFAN council members. Among the most popular sessions year after year is our financial advisor panel.
Mario Payne shared a creative asset-gathering strategy where he increases client touchpoints by sending cookies to clients throughout the year; Thomas Dedrick shared insights into leading a successful business; and Lynne Henning described how she's segmented her team in order to generate an extremely efficient and effective workflow process.
Educational workshops at the symposium allowed advisors to dive deeper into Social Security, explore tactics for prospecting and gathering new assets, and discuss a range of topics with the investment policy committee, including the direction of the market, the impacts of tax cuts and rising inflation.
Town Hall
We also had tremendous support from the firm's senior leadership, with an engaging and candid Town Hall led by Raymond James Private Client Group Presidents Tash Elwyn and Scott Curtis concluding the event.
