By Justin Wells, Head of Operations
Most RIAs have little in the way of a formal, documented succession plan. And that should give any RIA leader pause. In a highly competitive wealth management marketplace where the ability to scale is essential, planning for the future and identifying the next generation of leaders is key to ensuring the legacy a founder envisions is realized.
Succession is not simply handing off a title or tasks; it’s about building a leadership team who will push the business forward. However, most firms lack a dedicated growth leader, someone whose sole focus is on driving the strategy forward by implementing integrated sales, marketing, and other growth programs. That is a critical role for any RIA to be successful long term.
Yes, most RIAs have highly skilled and experienced leaders managing functional areas like compliance, investments, advisory, and operations. However, any focus on growth tends to be a “side job” and not core to their responsibilities.
Unfortunately, when trying to scale an RIA, a marginal focus on growth will yield marginal results at best. That is why embracing the concept of professional growth leadership is critical. By ensuring a firm’s leadership team has a single leader who is focused and accountable for strategic planning and growth efforts, founders can set their firms up for meaningful ongoing growth, particularly after a succession event.
Finding the Right Growth Leader
The following steps can help in identifying a professional growth leader who can deliver sustainable growth in a way that respects a firm’s brand and organizational culture:
- Is their default state one of growth and ambition? You can coach someone on skills, but you can’t coach drive.
- Do they have a track record of real results? Have they improved pipelines, accelerated deal flow, and closed business in a way that materially grew a business?
- Have they implemented marketing programs that produced real results?
- Do they have strong EQ and the ability to work with and support your advisors and connect with prospective clients?
The best growth leaders will have a sustained track record of results, materially impacting the growth of their firms. As always, the best predictor of success is prior results.
RIA leaders who hope to compete going forward cannot keep doing what they’ve always done, especially in anticipation of or following a succession or transaction. The key is to carefully define future roles and entrust a professional growth leader who can take on those responsibilities that will enable the firm to scale and build upon its legacy.
