Sponsored By

Powering the business IQ of the RIA industry.

RIA Edge Podcast: Wealthstream’s Michael Goodman on Building a $1BN RIARIA Edge Podcast: Wealthstream’s Michael Goodman on Building a $1BN RIA

Wealthstream's Michael Goodman discusses the keys to building a successful and consistently growing RIA.

Mark Bruno, Managing Director, Wealth Management

January 18, 2022

 

schwab-advisor-services-ria-edge-logo.pngSponsored by Schwab Advisor Services

 

The leaders of RIA firms have more options than ever when evaluating growth opportunities in today’s market. M&A activity continues at an accelerated pace—and technology is allowing advisors to extend their services to an ever-increasing number of investors and clients.  

In this episode of RIA Edge, Mark Bruno, managing director at Informa Wealth Management, speaks with Michael Goodman, founder and president of Wealthstream Advisors, about the keys to building a successful and consistently growing RIA. Wealthstream, which recently crossed the $1 billion threshold, has grown through a mix of strategic acquisitions, marketing and business development. 

Specifically, Mark and Michael discuss:

  • How an independent RIA can compete with increasingly influential professional buyers in the M&A market;

  • The keys to evaluating the right acquisition opportunities;

  • Creating a repeatable, scalable, business development process; and

  • Acquiring versus hiring talent to drive growth.

Listen to the RIA Edge Podcast

About the Author

Mark Bruno

Managing Director, Wealth Management, Informa Connect

Mark Bruno is Managing Director, Wealth Management at Informa Connect. In his role, Mr. Bruno leads the company’s Wealth Management media and event properties, which currently consists of WealthManagement.com, Inside ETFs and Inside WealthStack. He is also charged with driving several innovative new community and advisor-based initiatives, including the launch of the new RIA Edge podcast, event and webcast series.

In addition, Mr. Bruno is overseeing strategic partnerships and acquisitions to accelerate Informa’s growth within the financial advisor and wealth management communities. Mr. Bruno brings over 20 years of experience in the wealth management and asset management industries to Informa, including prominent leadership roles in industry media, research, and consulting organizations.

Before joining Informa Connect, Mr. Bruno was a Managing Director at ECHELON Partners, where he provided investment banking, consulting and valuation services to wealth managers. Mr. Bruno specialized in helping RIAs with a range of strategic initiatives, and his areas of expertise include organizational design and assessments, compensation consulting and succession and continuity solutions.

Prior to joining ECHELON, Mr. Bruno was the Managing Director and Associate Publisher at InvestmentNews, where he was responsible for overseeing a wide range of businesses, including IN’s research, content strategy, digital, custom publishing and sales groups. Mr. Bruno was with InvestmentNews for 12 years and helped establish the company as the leading B2B media brand in the wealth management industry. He played an integral role in the sale of InvestmentNews from Crain Communication to Bonhill Plc in 2018.

Mr. Bruno is an award-winning journalist, author and researcher who has written and edited for a number of financial publications over the past two decades, including InvestmentNews, Financial Week, Pensions & Investments and U.S. Banker. Mr. Bruno has also been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Chicago Tribune for his expertise in wealth and investment management. Mr. Bruno has received numerous accolades for his writing and reporting, including the American Business Media's prestigious Jesse H. Neal Award, and for his breaking news coverage and analysis of the financial services industry by The Society of American Business Editors and Writers. Mr. Bruno is the author of Save Now or Die Trying: Achieving Long-Term Wealth In Your 20s and 30s, one of the top-selling retirement planning books of 2007.