I want to thank everyone on this post for saving me from making the same mistakes.  I worked as a licensed assistant years ago and since have gone to medical billing and then real estate broker.  I made a lot of money in real estate, but then we all know the rest of the story.  I was highly invested in RE and the client pool is too shallow, so now I am looking for work instead of retiring as I had planned.  I put my resume on Monster yesterday, and viola, received a call from W&R today.  I decided to google them before returning their call and found all of this.  THANK GOD!  W&R is the last thing I need in my life now.  The only thing I might consider is a salaried position in ops or as an assistant, or even as the receptionist.  I don't need a lot of money anymore; my place and my car are paid for.  Thanks to all of you I won't be talked into a position as a broker.  I AM GRATEFUL THAT ALL OF YOU POSTED THIS INFO!

Well, just to give an update on where I am at. I finished all my licensing in 2 months since my initial posting. Training here is pretty bare and minimal. So, if you are new to the industry, like me, it is either sink or swim. So as some advice to others, talk to the senior advisors around the office and they will show you how everything works and what strategies don't work. The goals are not high compared to other industries, so if you can't hit the minimums here, then don't expect to do any better elsewhere. I for one am pretty lucky, as I have a cousin who is a personal injuries attorney. My goals are to get referrals through him and tap into his clients settlements. I just recieved from him my first client, of which is a $50,000 settlement. Once I show proficiency in what I do, then I expect to recieve more higher net worth referrals from him. Bottom line is, for me, I am trying to get my friends and family members to become advocates in what I do. Once I build a decent sized center of influence circle, then I wont need to prospect as hardlater on.

In addition, dont expect to get any help from the managing principal, they are in their own little world and are disconnected from the employees. Here, where I work, all the senioradvisorsknow how hard it is when you first begin, so they try to do anything to help me. Hopefully the other offices senior advisors are just as nice.

From my iPhone

[quote=nightevils]...I for one am pretty lucky, as I have a cousin who is a personal injuries attorney. My goals are to get referrals through him and tap into his clients settlements. I just recieved from him my first client, of which is a $50,000 settlement....[/quote]

I would put these people in front loaded products because you will not have that money very long

I joined Waddell & Reed about a year ago from Ed Jones, where I was for just over 7 years.  I've been around the block long enough to know that it's not easy to break into this industry and that most of the complaints are coming from people that don't know any better.  Complaining about having to pay licensing costs pales in comparison to the Non-Compete that Ed Jones makes you sign agreeing to 3 years or fork over $75,000 back to the firm.  Not to mention knocking on 600 doors before you even get started and then working out of your car for your first year with Ed Jones.  The payouts at Waddell are much higher, you can do true financial planning instead of pushing products, and I'm not captive to Waddell & Reed funds as many people imply.  I work from the Pershing platform that I used when I was at Merrill before Jones.  The training is a hell of a lot better too, it's not just cold calling phone scripts.  I'm happy as hell and my clients are in a better position too.  

I came across this forum about a year and a half ago when I was asking myself the same questions about W&R and financial advising as a career path in general.  Now that I have a solid understanding of the company and industry I make my living in, I figured I would take a minute to give my two cents and hopefully clear up some of the unanswered questions. The first thing I would like to say is that RandomRep has been one of the only sensible contributors to this conversation.  I can tell that most of you don't have the slightest idea what you are talking about and you are cluttering dialog with your blabber.  

The first thing I would like to suggest is know what you are getting into before you enter the office wearing your new suit and shined shoes, but without a clue as to what you are going to do when you sit down at your desk.  9 out of 10 new advisors that walk into my office do exactly this and they are the same ones that are packing up their desks at year end when they miss the quota.  It doesn't matter which firm you work for, nobody is going to tell you the right way to build your practice.  You need to figure it out for yourself!  Some people buy leads, some people door knock, some people depend on family and friends (all of which are losing business models if you ask me)...  In the end, all that matters is that you develop a business model that you can implement and sustain, and that execute that business plan on a daily basis.  This is not easy to do and is exactly the reason only 20% of advisors make it through their first three years.  

Second, understand the company's incentives.  Again, this pertains to every firm in the industry, not just W&R (although W&R might be more blatant about it).  Depending on the office, most managing principals will hire just about anybody that walks though the door.  This is contingent however, upon you being able to pass the series 7, 66 and life and health exams.  W&R uses this process to weed out the people that are obviously not cut out for the business.  Once you pass your exams and become activated, the company's only incentive to train you and give you a desk to work at is to MAKE MONEY!  Your MP and DMs will tell you to go out and petition your friends and family, sell them insurance, investments, financial plans, etc. so that they can GET PAID and HIT THEIR NUMBERS!  Once you bring in your family and friends and exhaust your natural market, the company could care less if you don't close another deal and fail out.  They have 30 other naive new hires getting licensed and talking to their parents about variable annuities too.  Ask your MP and DMs how they get paid, then you will understand where they are coming from when they tell you what to do.  Every firm has this unfortunate incentive structure, so as long as you understand it and make it work for you, you will be fine.  My advice, figure out a way to generate business without depending on your friends and family.  That's how you build a sustainable practice, and it also lets you keep a few cards up your sleeve if times get tough, as they inevitably will.  FYI, most people that don’t fail out in the first year fail in the second year because they have used up all their connections and have no idea how to get in front of new prospects.

Third, the grass is always greener.  Everyone always talks about how EJ, UBS, ML, MSSB, Ameraprise, NEF, etc. have all these great training programs, how the office is so nice, how you have assistants to do your paperwork, blah blah blah.  Nothing in this world is free, you sacrifice for everything you are given.  At W&R for example, you will constantly find yourself explaining who the hell W&R is.  This is because the company does no national marketing.  Within the industry however, W&R is well known to be a top of the line firm with great investments.  You will quickly realize W&R is a stingy company, meaning they will not give you handouts out of the goodness of their hearts.  You will have to buy your own computer, pay technology fees, do your own paperwork, buy your own leads, etc.  What do you get for this sacrifice?  The best pay out in the business!  I ask anyone to find me a firm that pays a higher percentage to their new advisors than W&R does.  At ML your office admin, computer, chair, desk on the 40th floor, name on your business card and commercials on TV all come out of your paycheck - at W&R that goes into your pocket.  Every company has its benefits and drawbacks.  I can tell you that if I had started at ML or MSSB, there is NO WAY I could have made it through my first year with their minimums and annual quotas.  How many people with $250K in investable assets to you know?  The learning curve is steep and it takes a while to learn the business if you want to do it right and ensure your survival for the first 3 years.  

And finally, to address the rest of the questions that I don't feel are worthy of a full paragraph:  MBAs carry no weight in this business - you're wasting your time and money.  Get a CFP.  Don't worry about the licensing fees, if you hit your numbers you will get them reimbursed.  Stop thinking that everyone is out to screw you because they are evil predators – it’s just business.  There is no salary in financial planning!  Some firms claim they offer a salary, but it is always contingent upon hitting your numbers and the larger the salary the smaller the commission split.  You aren't going into financial planning to get a fat salary and sit on your ass.  You are going into this because you want to be directly compensated for your effort and hard work.  This is a commission game; no firm out there is going to pay you a salary without demanding something in return.  W&R is a good place to build a practice.  You have to demand the training from your MPs and DMs; but when it comes down to it, there is no better way to learn how to swim than to be thrown into the pool.  Don't expect any hand holding in financial planning, because you won't get it.  So why do it?  Because you get paid, you work for yourself, you are not expendable and you can help people on a daily basis.  With that said, you will probably fail and come back to write a whiney post on this page explaining how you got duped and scammed.  I will tell you this business is what you make of it.  

AdvisorOpie, wow, that was awesome. That should be required reading of anyone looking to enter the biz.

You put some time and effort into that. How about one step further, and create a "So, you want to be a Registered Rep?" post.

Stick around, don't make this your first/last post.

That was a great post advisoropinion! A FAQ with some of that info would be very useful indeed

Please call me at 714-529-9770 x7251 - Vance

How does Waddell and Reed compensate you if most of your clients invest in individual stocks? I know they want you to hit a $1 million IVC within the first year, but individual stocks don't get included in that. What do they count for? What kind of commission do you get if you bring in, say, $1 million in individual stocks?

I recently had to go to Arbitration with SagePoint Financial Inc., Phoenix, AZ.  SagePoint is forcing me to pay

back a Promissory Note that I had signed depite the fact that the "REAL" company was AIG Financial Advisors! They hired me 3 weeks before the parent company went insolvent!! They strung me along the rest of 2008, and 8 months of 2009, with the other advisors, indicating  we were going to be sold. Then they changed their name. CAN ANYBODY IMAGINE THE AUDACITY OF A COMPANY THAT HIRES "NEW" FINANCIAL ADVISORS-3 WEEKS BEFORE ANYONE KNEW OF THEIR INSOLVENCY,( WHICH WAS MADE PUBLIC SEPTEMBER 16,2008)!!!!!! THEY NEVER STOPPED HIRING EVEN AFTER THE NEWS BROKE!! THE INVESTING PUBLIC PERCEPTION IS IMPORTANT-IS IT NOT? CLIENTS DO CARE ABOUT OUR B/D's........

Can anyone imagine transitionimg clients into AIG FINANCIAL ADVISORS- RIGHT WHEN THE NEWS HIT THAT THE PARENT COMPANY WAS INSOLVENT???

WHAT AN OUTRAGE!! IT WAS LIKE THERE WAS NO CEO OF AIG. Did Lehman, Bear Stearns hire people,(3- weeks), before they went insolvent? CORPORATE MALFEASANCE at very least.....DON'T BE FOOLED-SAGEPOINT FINANCIAL IS AIG FINANCIAL ADVISORS. FSC AND ROYAL ALLIANCE ARE BOTH PART OF AIG. YOU WON'T FIND IT ON THEIR RESPECTIVE WEBSITES NOR BUSINESS CARDS OR LETTERHEAD THAT THEY ARE A WHOLLY-OWNED SUBSIDIARY.

WHAT HAPPENED TO TRANSPARENCY AND FULL DISCLOSURE?? I HAVE A CLEAN U4. B/D's LIKE THIS SHOULD HAVE STOPPED HIRING. OUR GOVERNMENT HAD TO KEEP AIG CORP IN BUSINESS CONSIDERING THE IMPACT OF OPERATING IN 130 COUNTRIES. BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR THINKING-I SUPPOSE.

*****This blog is my opinion only. SOME may love AIG Corporation and their subsidiaries. The purpose of this blog, is to vent the truth- that seems decepetive.It hurt me only. I am not an attorney nor do I seek to harm SagePoint or FSC, Royal Alliance. I am only posting - my personal life experience with others in the same industry. Nothing more. I am not in anyway, matter or form suggesting that this "blog" is considered research for pre-hire at any of the aforementioned companies, Parent and subsidiaries. This blog is for fun & enjoyment only. Lastly, there are some fine financial advisors that work for these B/D's. They do not have any decision-making authorithy of course.