Forefront
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I got my email as well and faxed the docs back to corporate. Everyone in my office (ISG) got their emails and I haven’t heard of any problems. I am sorry though to hear about the problems of others. I just wanted to update the status from someone in ISG…not to gloat.
I want to apologize for posting a response without all the info. After reading many of the messages on this thread it seems follow a common theme. How and when will the advisor be paid if they follow the rules of the payee? I just wonder how many of you would pass on this website to your clients since it’s all about the advisor being paid for some bogus plan? It’s unfortunate that the average wirehouse producer is more commited to their firm then their client.
again, powerful.
Thanks for your insights Apollo.
wow
Hey Guys and Gals…I had a great experience yesterday…On confirmation of my award money I called each staff member who has helped me on 4-front and thanked them for helping us get there. I told them that we are going to invest a lot of this money back in appreciation meetings for our clients. But first, I told them that am giving them a bonus in appreciation for the hard work they have done to get us there. They were surprised and appreciative beyond measure.
All this just to say that when you get your "client service award", a few thousand dollars donated to client and staff appreciation is going to really benefit everyone. I think that this business is getting ready to be a lot more fun.29 years …and there is enough to share. Wholesalers are good enough people but sometimes I would rather not have the perceived affiliation (from the clients). I did work hard for that money…but so did my staff. Their attitude will help grow business. Its just a personal decision.
And you're right, the hey "guys and gals" was a lot corny. Good Luck, "Show Me".[quote=Onward]29 years …and there is enough to share. Wholesalers are good enough people but sometimes I would rather not have the perceived affiliation (from the clients). I did work hard for that money…but so did my staff. Their attitude will helps grow business. Its just a personal decision.
And you're right, the hey "guys and gals" was a lot corny. Good Luck, "Show Me".[/quote]29 years! My apologies. I have respect for anyone that has been doing this for that long. Im over 10 years but a bit short of 15. A 29 year vet gets props from me. I thought you were blowing smoke but your probably a very decent person. Regards.
I deleted the condescending comment out of that post out of respect for a 29 year vet. Regards.
BP
I dont work at WS anymore, but based on the recent posts, it looks like you were spot on. You were right and I was wrong. The AGE guys think that WS has sucked from day one and that Danny is a total loser. WS was a pretty great firm before the world melt down with subprime. Jerking FA's off with ticky tack stuff is not the old WS. This is probaly a very different company now under WFC. Under WB Carrol and Thompson let DL et al alone. If you bring the bottom line earnings you can do it anyway you want. I think BP is right. These guys running WFC are conservative bankers. I think they will have their nose in everything. I dont think they really care is an FA is happy or not. Its going to be interesting to see how much DL lets WFC F&^%$ with FA's before bolting. Maybe never. Maybe he has always just been full of it.Cheers!! Ken Thompson…he was real good too. Oh how much did he get when he left?? Bob Steel again another winner…the hits keep on coming.
Just a few comments for what its worth:
A b: WB didn't let Danny alone. They asked Danny why he couldn't make money as fast as ML did (Ken Thompson's question). We later found out why. But Danny stood his ground. WFC is actually letting Danny have lots of rope.....maybe to let him hang himself (I'm not sure). Like AGEMAN says, Danny has completely owned the Retention (no)/ 4-front (yes) decision. I think that it is a good decision because the regulators, congress and the public want to crucify and "claw back" bonuses. So there is a program called 4-front "that already exists" that awards the broker for putting together a plan for the client (it is not perfect). Implement it (with considerable work as most all of us are used to on this forum) and the clients are appreciative and the FA/FC are rewarded for doing the right thing. There is no question whether Danny is devoted to the broker/client relationship. WFC really doesn't understand it one way or the other. So he really does need our support. They are just waiting to see how he does. AGEMAN---If I were Danny, I would have waited to make the comments about 9/11 after the market closed. That is what he did, good move. I agree that we need to hear more from Danny now about the firm. Communication needs to be stepped up. Slick---Ken Thompson was not a good leader for the Wachovia bank because he was not client-oriented---it was all about the bottom line. Bob Stehl is just real busy. He trusts Danny and he doesn't know enough about brokers to tell yet. That's the way I see it. Help me think about this.[quote=Onward]
Just a few comments for what its worth:
A b: WB didn't let Danny alone. They asked Danny why he couldn't make money as fast as ML did (Ken Thompson's question). We later found out why. But Danny stood his ground. WFC is actually letting Danny have lots of rope.....maybe to let him hang himself (I'm not sure). Like AGEMAN says, Danny has completely owned the Retention (no)/ 4-front (yes) decision. I think that it is a good decision because the regulators, congress and the public want to crucify and "claw back" bonuses. So there is a program called 4-front "that already exists" that awards the broker for putting together a plan for the client (it is not perfect). Implement it (with considerable work as most all of us are used to on this forum) and the clients are appreciative and the FA/FC are rewarded for doing the right thing. There is no question whether Danny is devoted to the broker/client relationship. WFC really doesn't understand it one way or the other. So he really does need our support. They are just waiting to see how he does. AGEMAN---If I were Danny, I would have waited to make the comments about 9/11 after the market closed. That is what he did, good move. I agree that we need to hear more from Danny now about the firm. Communication needs to be stepped up. Slick---Ken Thompson was not a good leader for the Wachovia bank because he was not client-oriented---it was all about the bottom line. Bob Stehl is just real busy. He trusts Danny and he doesn't know enough about brokers to tell yet. That's the way I see it. Help me think about this.[/quote] Virtually every legacy AGE broker would disagree. I am not saying that you don't believe this, I am saying that you don't know what a firm that puts clients first truly looks like and more importantly acts like. Danny had an opportunity to truly institute best practices, however he chose to say that almost everything that WS did was best and therefore that it what is happening. Danny has had an opportunity to communicate through this entire Forefront mess, yet has dropped the ball again. The attitude that we are getting from the complex and regional manager is if you don't like it, leave.[quote=Onward] [ Like AGEMAN says, Danny has completely owned the Retention (no)/ 4-front (yes) decision. I think that it is a good decision because the regulators, congress and the public want to crucify and “claw back” bonuses. So there is a program called 4-front “that already exists” that awards the broker for putting together a plan for the client (it is not perfect). Implement it (with considerable work as most all of us are used to on this forum) and the clients are appreciative and the FA/FC are rewarded for doing the right thing.
There is no question whether Danny is devoted to the broker/client relationship. WFC really doesn’t understand it one way or the other. So he really does need our support.
Slick—Ken Thompson was not a good leader for the Wachovia bank because he was not client-oriented—it was all about the bottom line. Bob Stehl is just real busy. He trusts Danny and he doesn’t know enough about brokers to tell yet.
That’s the way I see it. Help me think about this.[/quote]
Danny was all over that there would be retention very, very early. I think I remember him saying something just after C’s deal blew up.
There is no way (in my opinion) that he is the one that pulled the retention. He wouldnt be promising the retention daily and then bag himself.
The ticky tack crap on Envision does not at all look like DL et al.
I think WFC runs everything. Look at their history, they are all about controls and the bottom line. They shot real bullets and dont seem to leave much up to chance.
I think Danny follows orders now and I also think there was something to the UBS rumor and ludeman in a joint venture or with danny running UBS us.
I think he lost a boat load of money in WB and needs a job. I think he wants to run the show and he is not at WFA. I think he will bolt at the first opportunity.
Ken Thompson was a truly nice man. Buying 130 billion of Cali “pick a pay” loans at the top of the market was not the smartest move in the world.
Jebediah---
I have always said (over the years) that if I were to move, it would be to AGE. You are right...I don't know very much about how AGE operated. So....if you'll indulge me...what could our firm do that would be more client friendly? I have read so many things that should not be done. If you feel like taking the time would you list the things that would make our firm better? Do you think that 4-front is a good way to compensate brokers? The thing goes on for another year. Will it help clients and brokers? Could Danny communicate things about 4-front more thoroughly? I am also wondering about your complex manager? Does he need to re-commit? I am a reasonably satisfied (probably naive) senior financial advisor at our firm in the southern region. I want to see us be competitive and most of all succeed. So...if you have the inclination, I solicit your thoughts.[quote=Onward]
Jebediah---
I have always said (over the years) that if I were to move, it would be to AGE. You are right...I don't know very much about how AGE operated. So....if you'll indulge me...what could our firm do that would be more client friendly? I have read so many things that should not be done. If you feel like taking the time would you list the things that would make our firm better? Do you think that 4-front is a good way to compensate brokers? The thing goes on for another year. Will it help clients and brokers? Could Danny communicate things about 4-front more thoroughly? I am also wondering about your complex manager? Does he need to re-commit? I am a reasonably satisfied (probably naive) senior financial advisor at our firm in the southern region. I want to see us be competitive and most of all succeed. So...if you have the inclination, I solicit your thoughts.[/quote] I guess I can put in 2 cents here. Bring back the Point Shop. Bring back BrokerVision. Bring back a lot of the original people in the home office that gave us great support because they knew the broker was their paycheck. Bring back the recognition trips. Bring back the larger match to the 401k. Bring back the autonomy of the branch manager and cut the useless complex managers. Bring back the larger branch manager bonus based on branch P/L. Bring back Bob Bagby so I can smash his nads for throwing us in front of a trainwreck called Wachovia. Thats all for now. Another former AGE guy can pick it up from there as I am sure I left out plenty.[quote=Onward]
Jebediah---
I have always said (over the years) that if I were to move, it would be to AGE. You are right...I don't know very much about how AGE operated. So....if you'll indulge me...what could our firm do that would be more client friendly? I have read so many things that should not be done. If you feel like taking the time would you list the things that would make our firm better? Do you think that 4-front is a good way to compensate brokers? The thing goes on for another year. Will it help clients and brokers? Could Danny communicate things about 4-front more thoroughly? I am also wondering about your complex manager? Does he need to re-commit? I am a reasonably satisfied (probably naive) senior financial advisor at our firm in the southern region. I want to see us be competitive and most of all succeed. So...if you have the inclination, I solicit your thoughts.[/quote] Two simple things. Realize that it is a privilege that an individual would have their money with our firm, and that the firm works for the broker, not vice versa. As far as 4front, I think it is a big ploy to attach the client to the firm under the guise of best practices. Now before I get the "if your relationship is that weak" bs, let me tell you why I think this. If I were to inherit an account from a departed broker with an Envision Plan, I would have a far better chance to retain the account knowing all the information in the plan. In fact it would be easy to pitch a client on a seamless transition vs. going with the departed broker and starting all over again IMO.First of all I would like to thank you for a good laugh regarding your statement “that it is a privelage that an individual would have their money with our firm”. I would love to run your firm’s ad campaign. How about “Don’t Call Us We’ll Call You”, “We Don’t Have To Try Harder” Or “Just Do It” Because We Said So. Get a friggin life and get over your brainwashed attitude. In one breath you said that a client should give thanks that your firm would accept their money and then you say that 4front is a “big ploy”.
I suppose it could be read either way. The firm is privileged that the client would trust us with their money. The firm should thank the client with the way it treats said client.First of all I would like to thank you for a good laugh regarding your statement “that it is a privelage that an individual would have their money with our firm”. I would love to run your firm’s ad campaign. How about “Don’t Call Us We’ll Call You”, “We Don’t Have To Try Harder” Or “Just Do It” Because We Said So. Get a friggin life and get over your brainwashed attitude. In one breath you said that a client should give thanks that your firm would accept their money and then you say that 4front is a “big ploy”.
A b---Danny did recognize early on that retention was important to the brokers. However you remember that it was about that time that congress, the public and the prez decided that Wall Street was greedy and evil. They wanted to "claw back" and even tax the AIG bonus income at 90%.
Leaders react and adapt quickly (as Danny did). I think he decided that there must be a way to pay brokers who do the right thing. So the existing 4-front program was updated to accomodate the needs of the brokers, clients and public for the new environment. Brilliant and effective in my opinion. Yes...I think Ken Thompson was a nice enough guy, but he followed trends instead of leading them. When he saw that ML was making more, in % terms, than WS (we now know why) I heard that he pressured Danny to match it. Danny didn't cave in. When it seemed that CA loans are the place to make money, he bought Golden West (at the very top of the real estate market). You and I both question his timing, I think. But yes...he is a nice guy. Bud...Sorry for my ignorance. What is point shop? Danny has said he wants to bring back Recognition Trips. I sure miss them. The reality is that Wells is going to have to pay back TARP funds (It irks me too.) You're right....Wachovia Bank created a train wreck with the bad loans.