Advisor Group Adds 8 Female Reps From Rivals: Recruiting Roundup

Advisor Group says its member broker-dealers — FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, SagePoint Financial and Woodbury Financial — have recruited eight female advisors with a total of $330 million in assets. The news came just as the firm wrapped up its 13th-annual W Forum for female registered reps.

"I'm a strong believer that it will never be enough for our industry simply to hire more women. We must empower women who enter the financial advice profession, and give them the career development opportunities they need to flourish and make a major impact on their companies and the clients they serve," according to Executive Chair Valerie Brown.

Joining Woodbury is the team of Black Financial Services of Avon, Minnesota; it is led by Margo Scepaniak, has about $126 million in client assets and used to work with LPL Financial.

Wayfinder Wealth Management of Santa Maria, California moves to FSC from Edward Jones; the group is headed by Teri White and has $53 million in client assets.

Haber Wealth Management of Fort Worth, Texas, is led by Tricia Wood; now with FSC, it formerly worked with Rhodes Securities and had $70 million in client assets.

Elsa Agdinaoay-Segal, Kelle Tom, Glennel Jordan Warren and Donna Tso joined Royal Alliance from MML Investors Services; their firm, Occidental Underwriters of Hawaii, has combined client assets of more than $70 million.

Also, Taina Gude, an advisor with more than $10 million in assets, joined AmeriFlex, a large advisory practice affiliated with SagePoint in Las Vegas; earlier, she was with Waddell & Reed.

Advisor Group recently started the Women Forward Fellowship program, so that some 10 fellows can receive up to $5,000 each toward their chosen coaching program and one-on-one mentoring on a monthly basis.

Phoenix-based Advisor Group includes about 7,000 advisors with about $250 billion in client assets.

Raymond James' Hires

Meanwhile, Raymond James welcomed four financial advisors in The Villages, Florida, to its employee channel from Wells Fargo: Marc Hallick, Romain Spell, Tyler Jackson and Andrea Patrick, who work with about $331 million client assets.

The team operates as Precision Wealth Management of Raymond James and has about $2.5 million in annual fees and commissions. Together, the group serves a variety of clients, including high-net-worth individuals, business owners and retirees.

"After conducting thorough due diligence and evaluating several firms, it became apparent that there was only one firm where our whole team agreed we would be happy and be able to serve our clients as we wish and as they deserve," according to Hallickz. "And that firm was unquestionably Raymond James."

Hallick began his career in 2003 with Morgan Stanley and in 2005 moved to Wachovia, which became part of Wells Fargo. Spell started his work in the business with Edward Jones in 2009 and moved to Wells Fargo in 2014; he spent five years in the Navy, three of which he served as a U.S. Navy Corpsman with the 3rd Battalion 3rd Marines.

Jackson cut his teeth as a private banker with Wells Fargo starting in 2002; he became a financial advisor 10 years later. Patrick began her career in 2002 with Wachovia as a teller manager; she worked as a private banker with Wells Fargo starting in 2010 in The Villages and become a financial advisor in 2015.

"The Precision Wealth Management team is an exceptional group whose client-first values align with those of Raymond James," said Patrick O'Connor, Florida regional director for Raymond James & Associates, in a statement. "We are excited to welcome them within the fast growing market of The Villages and are pleased that the combination of support, freedom and resources offered at Raymond James attracted them to the firm."

Other Developments

The Financial Services Institute says HighTower Advisors' CEO Bob Oros has been elected as a member of its board.

"For years, our board has proven its strength comes from its diversity. Today, our board becomes that much more diverse, and even stronger," according to FSI President & CEO Dale Brown.

"Bob brings a wide variety of experience to our Board as well, both through his leadership of HighTower, and throughout his career. His extensive background in our industry will better inform us as we move FSI forward for years to come," Brown explained.

Oros joined the RIA consolidator in January, after serving as CEO of HD Vest. Earlier, he worked for Fidelity, LPL Financial, Charles Schwab and Comerica.

"It's a great honor to be named to the FSI Board, a group of industry leaders I have long admired for their support and advocacy on behalf of financial advisors," Oros said in a statement. "I look forward to working closely with the board to address the converging interests of all who are committed to providing independent, objective advice to all those who save and invest."

Separately, Arkadios Capital of Atlanta says it has added a fourth wealth advisory this year to its broker-dealer platform. The five-member team of Foresight Financial Partners moves to it from Triad Advisors and works with about $180 million in client assets.

The group is led by advisers Ron York, Alan Berger, Rich Berger, Janet Sherry and Susan Rymer. It generates about $2 million in annual revenues and is based in Wall Township, New Jersey.

"Arkadios Capital is the best platform for our continued success, both for our partners and our clients," said Berger, in a statement. "Founder David Millican has been in our boat, and has successfully navigated these waters. The broker-dealer he has built is tailor-made for growth from the advisor's perspective. That is critical, and it is unique."

MML Partnership

MML Investors Services — the RIA and broker-dealer of Massachusetts Mutual Life — says it is working with the investment firm Brinker Capital and can now offer Brinker Capital Wealth Advisory services and solutions on its wealth platform to serve high-net-worth investors.

Wealth Advisory includes access to a portfolio management team, tax management and transition solutions, reporting and third-party partners specializing in alternative investments, banking and lending, ESG solutions and trust services.

"The true winners of this partnership with Brinker Capital are our clients," according to Bebe Wilkinson, MML Investors Services' head of Wealth Management Product.

"Being able to offer the Wealth Advisory solution on the WMS platform enables MML Investors Services to be the broker-of-record, and that provides our clients tremendous peace-of-mind, knowing that they can tap into Brinker Capital's knowledge and experience in the high net worth space," Wilkinson added.