Orion Advisor Solutions CEO Eric Clarke's plan to retire by year-end, announced Monday, has left fintech consultants and other industry experts pondering who his replacement will be, with Ryan Beach, president of Orion Wealth Management, and Brian McLaughlin, president of Orion Advisor Technology, widely cited as two of the likely top internal candidates.
However, one fintech strategist predicted Orion would choose somebody else altogether, from outside the company.
"My money is on someone from the TD organization," Doug Fritz, founder and CEO of F2 Strategy, told ThinkAdvisor by email, referring to TD Ameritrade, which was acquired by Schwab in 2020 and is still being integrated into its acquirer's operations.
A TDA executive "would fulfill my prediction that Orion becomes an RIA custodian," said Fritz.
As far as McLaughlin is concerned, "I think the move to have Brian oversee the tech last year might mean that he's going to continue to focus on it for a while," Fritz predicted. And that, he said, "would leave the door open for an outside personality with a reputation and experience to lead with two strong execs supporting her/him."
McLaughlin joined Orion last year, when Orion acquired Redtail Technology, the web-based client relationship management software firm led by McLaughlin.
"I think Brian McLaughlin can run all the tech," Joel Bruckenstein, president of Technology Tools for Today (T3), told ThinkAdvisor. "I think people like Ryan Beach can run all the M&A. They've been in this business a long time and they're two of the best at what they do," and the company has a "hierarchy of really good people and they have a great board."
The CEO post is a "role that needs to be filled but it doesn't need to be filled tomorrow," he said.
The recent addition of Charles Goldman, "who's obviously a very experienced and very capable guy," to the Orion board as executive chair only helps Orion, according to Bruckenstein.
"I think they're in good hands … [and I would] not be worried if I was an advisor at all," he added.
