Page 22 - Investment Advisor June 2022

RIA LESSONS & LEADERS

By Ilona Box and Michael Fischer

4 Ways to Get Succession Planning Right

Also, most HNW advisors still don’t understand direct indexing.

wenty-six years ago, I was
working in the accounting
Tdepartment of a Fortune 500
hospitality brand when a close friend
told me about a financial advisor who
she had heard was searching for a
junior partner.
Frankly I didn’t know much about
the industry and wasn’t even sure it
was something I was interested in, but
I did know that I was tired of crunching
numbers in a cubicle without communi-
cating face-to-face with other people. So
I decided to explore it.
That’s how I met Shelly Church, my
now mentor and friend whose partner-
ship and guidance led to me becoming
her successor.
Through our more than two decades
of planning for this change, I learned
what it takes to create a smooth transi-
tion. While every practice is unique and more organically than we could have have access to coaching and consulting
there is no silver bullet, there are a few imagined and soon I had my own clients through Raymond James that enabled
essential tenets I’d recommend to any based mostly on referrals. us to create a 10-year roadmap for the
advisor thinking about their retirement A perhaps unexpected benefit of transition as it drew closer.
and succession plan. starting the process early was that it Third, even with the best laid
became a tremendous selling point to plans, flexibility and communica-
INITIAL STEPS clients and prospects. Because most cli- tion are key. We had to negotiate
First, start planning as early as pos- ents don’t like change, knowing I was 20 and re-negotiate our vision as the
sible. In our case, I knew hardly any- years Shelly’s junior allowed for a long- practice changed. When it became
thing about the industry, but Shelly and term relationship with our practice con- clear I was not only a successor, but
I made a good match based on our per- tinuing for 40-50 years. This is a lifetime also an asset gatherer, we decided to
sonalities and natural strengths, which to some clients and left them feeling put together a detailed agreement. At
complemented each other. very comfortable with the continuity of the same time, we both acknowledged
Because she started looking for a their relationship. that despite our original roadmap, we
junior partner many years before she Second, it’s essential to bring in would need to remain willing to com-
planned to retire, that time allowed me a third-party expert to consult and promise along the way and be open to
to work as her sales assistant to learn the plan for the succession. After work- continued adjustments.
business while studying for my Series 7 ing closely together for several years, Finally, advisors should not to be
at night. Shelly and I became dear friends, so afraid to invest in their practice and
After a few years, I moved to more it was incredibly helpful to have an its legacy. To elevate me along the
advanced roles shadowing Shelly dur- outside perspective for unbiased com- way, additional staff had to be hired,
ing client meetings and slowly taking on mentary from someone not emotion- overhead increased and overall, there Adobe Stock
my own clients. The growth happened ally engaged. We were fortunate to were many steps backward in order to

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