Page 46 - Investment Advisor - October 2021

BROKER-DEALER BEAT

By Jeff Berman and Janet Levaux

LPL to Invest More Than $1.3B in Tech,

Other Key Areas This Year

Also, the IBD is testing paraplanning and comprehensive advice solutions,

and CIO Burt White to retire next March.

PL Financial plans to spend
more than $1.3 billion this year
L on investments in key areas
including technology and its workforce
to support advisor growth and help them
compete, the firm announced during its
annual Focus conference held online in
early August. The event follows the firm
reporting continued organic growth and
advisor retention, with a new high of
$1.1 trillion in total brokerage and advi-
sory assets, in the second quarter. LPL is “being purposeful in designing same type of flexibility and personaliza-
“As you know, this has always been solutions not for thousands of advisors tion is just as important to our advisors
a relationship business,” Dan Arnold, but one that is personalized just for and historically the industry has never
LPL CEO and president, told attendees. you,” he said, noting the company is call- given advisors a model with exactly
“But, over the next decade, this is going ing this its “personalization layer, where what they needed. There were always
to increasingly become more of an expe- we are always meeting you where you tradeoffs to be made. So the objective
rience-driven business.” Therefore, LPL are in the evolution of your business.” of the personalization layer is for advi-
“will be even more intentional about After all, “now more than ever, per- sors to no longer have to compromise
creating a differentiated and compel- sonalization is where the marketplace is because you can have the ongoing flex-
ling experience for you and your clients, going,” he said, noting it “expands your ibility and optionality to match your
whether that’s in person, on the phone ability to express your passion for your business now and in the future.”
or on our digital platforms.” business, the relationships you make Over the course of 2021, LPL also will
with your clients and the culture unique “build capabilities to support your high-
ADDED PERSONALIZATION to your brand.” net-worth clients, including introducing
An “important cornerstone of innova- Arnold and Rich Steinmeier, LPL investment banking referrals, enhanced
tion is the rising expectation to create managing director of business develop- product and lending capabilities and
more personalized solutions in every ment, compared what LPL is looking specialized advice support,” Steinmeier
part of life,” Arnold said. “In that spirit, to offer with personalization to what told advisors.
we want to provide you with more flex- Starbucks has done with the ability for Another area in which LPL is “making
ibility and relevant options in how you customers to personalize drinks. material changes is the building of support
structure your business to give you more “Twenty years ago, there were two for multi-custodial practices,” Steinmeier
control so as your needs change you can ways to take coffee: Caffeinated and said. “We recognize that personaliza-
evolve your perfect practice and how decaffeinated,” Steinmeier said. Then tion also comes in building more flexible
you serve your clients.” along came flavored creamers and then workflows to allow you to structure your
By offering advisors a variety of the many ingredients you can add to practice how you’d like it to operate. And
choices that “never previously existed coffee at Starbucks, he said, calling it so we’re building more flexibility in those
under one roof, we want to make it easy “uber-personalization” that allows it to workflows to support assets that your cus-
for you to pick and choose the options potentially “make a unique drink for tody both with LPL and away from LPL: a
that work best for you and your clients,” every single person on earth.” multi-custodial solution to help you sim- Adobe Stock
he explained. He noted that “it’s our belief that the plify your operating environment.”

44 INVESTMENT ADVISOR OCTOBER 2021 | ThinkAdvisor.com