Change or get left behind. Advisors relying on time-honored strategies and generic investment management are essentially throwing a wrench into their growth engine, and in fact will quickly be outpaced by firms that are rapidly developing new client experiences, marketing tools and different services, and doing so in a more economically sustainable way.
Firms who think growth is overrated, don’t see a need to evolve and believe clients will be happy in perpetuity are in denial, according to panelists and speakers at last week’s Wealth Management EDGE conference at The Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood Beach, Fla.
From the main stage to WealthStack and Inside ETFs, speakers urged advisors to capitalize on new tech and move away from an overreliance on strategies like referrals, model portfolios and risk profiles. And when it comes to AI, crypto and ESG, proceed with prudent caution and informed diligence, but don’t be held back by undue cynicism or current headline-making controversies.
After all, Lifeworks Advisors CEO Ron Bullis said, the speed of industry innovations will only accelerate from here.
“The technology we’re experiencing now and what we’ve experienced in the last 12 months will be the slowest rate of change we’ll experience for the rest of our lives,” he said.
