Page 37 - Investment Advisor April 2021

Corp. until last month, when its sale to RCM was announced. Has the pandemic just meant business as usual for your high-
Amid the pandemic, RCM’s well-off clients were “taking net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients?
stock of their lives” and diving into comprehensive financial No. They‘re taking stock of their lives, their families, their
planning, including consideration of new investment opportu- future. They’ve found themselves with more time to do in-
nities, he said. And some were “stepping up their philanthropic depth, comprehensive financial planning.
efforts to help people hit hard” by the COVID-19 catastrophe. Our private wealth team has been in in-depth dialogue
Here are excerpts from our interview: with them on a broader basis about, for instance, new invest-
ment opportunities, reviewing estate plans, trust documents,
Investment Advisor: The culture of Rockefeller Capital creating strategies around the future of closely held family
Management is very different from that of Merrill Lynch or businesses. And while many are seeing incremental wealth
Morgan Stanley. Please contrast the cultures. creation through a robust set of financial markets, a lot have
Gregory Fleming: [Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley] are large stepped up their philanthropic efforts to help people hit hard
organizations with a multitude of businesses, so it becomes by the pandemic.
harder to be nimble and have the ability to deliver tailored
solutions to clients. Describe your ideal advisor for the firm.
We’re a boutique firm with a very focused business model. We look for seasoned advisors that have a history of success
Our culture is entrepreneurial. For example, when a client in growing their practice, a strong track record of client reten-
comes to us with a unique problem, we try to figure out how tion, a clean compliance and regulatory background and the
to solve it. The mindset is everywhere in our culture — trying type of experience and clients that would allow them to fully
to solve the problem and being able to meet the client’s needs. utilize what we’re building.
We want to know that their clients have the sort of financial
Why did you think RCM was right for you personally? complexity that would benefit from an integrated family office
When I left Morgan Stanley, I had a vison of how I thought wealth and private wealth solution. And, importantly, we look for
management for high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients people who will fit into our culture, which is collegial and col-
could be put together to take care of the full range of their needs. laborative. If you don’t want to be collegial and collaborative,
The Rockefeller name is iconic, and the family is an integral this isn’t the place for you.
part of what we’re doing here. So I thought, with that name
and this unique business model, we could attract best-in-class Are you seeking teams versus solo FAs?
people who want to help build something special — something Mostly teams, because the elite advisors we’re looking for are
different in what is certainly a crowded market. working with clients that have the magnitude of wealth and
needs not just on the investment side, but for generational
How challenging is it to build a broker-dealer when hiring both planning, tax advice, bill pay [among numerous other services].
private wealth advisors and investment advisors, as you are? And, because we have a strategic advisory business, we can
The Private Wealth business is core to what we’re doing. The provide advice on a client- or family-owned business. That
brokerage model has increasingly evolved into an advisory package of needs and requirements is typically met by a team.
model for the clients that we’re focused on. I don’t think of it
as a challenge; rather, it’s an opportunity to serve them in ways You’re reportedly offering large signing bonuses. Is that right?
that are tailored to their specific needs. We’re competitive in financial packages. But if the decision
We have a unique model that brings family office services comes down to financial considerations, advisors should go to
across our entire platform, enabling all clients to access things other firms — and they do. We’re interested exclusively in pre-
like tax preparation, bill pay, trustee services, philanthropy mier advisors who share our view that the Rockefeller model
advisory, and financial multi-generational education and plan- is a superior one in which they can better serve their clients.
ning services.
You are about to close a deal acquiring Whitnell & Co. —
When you launched RCM in 2018, your goal was to have which had been a subsidiary of Associated Banc-Corp. Did
under management $100 billion in client assets within five you approach them, or did they come to you?
years. How are you doing? They approached us. One of their senior executives is someone
As of 12/31/20, we had over $72 billion. We’re pleased with our who worked with me in the past. I’ve built a big network over
progress. We think we’re carving a place for ourselves in the the years. Associated [phoned and said], “We’re thinking of
crowded market. We’re making good progress but feel humble doing something with our high-net-worth wealth manage-
about what’s stilI in front of us. ment arm, and we think you’d be a good fit.”

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