Last month, we introduced our research study exploring why new financial planners enter the profession and what career path they seek when starting out. This month, we will look at the activities that they cited as the most fulfilling, what their expectations are for promotion to a lead planner role, and their view of management’s commitment to their career development. When we asked new planners what were the most fulfilling activities they did each day, Gen Y (Millennials) cited Meeting ...
Career Satisfaction Research Survey: Part 1
Earlier this year we surveyed 665 Generation Y planners and 275 Generation Z planners to get their thoughts on their career satisfaction, and what drives that satisfaction (and from the firm’s perspective, their retention!). In this anonymous survey, we hoped to gain additional insight into what we see anecdotally each day as we interview job seekers for financial planning roles across the country about what they’re really looking for that will make them “stick” with the job and firm they’re ...
How to Reduce Your Hiring Headaches Part 2
In last month’s article, we shared some of our thoughts on the 2024 labor market and hiring outlook plus a few tips on how to avoid certain frustrations when hiring new talent for your firm. This month we will conclude our two-part series with three more tips to consider when hiring. Headache #3 - ‘I can't find anyone who is good enough for my firm’ Potential headache hack - Double-check your description to make sure your expectations aren't too high. I have firm owners all the ...
How to Reduce Your Hiring Headaches Part 1
Congratulations on making it through another year and holiday season! It’s that time of year again to start planning out and making your 2024 hires. Good news is that the job market has shifted a bit more in favor of hiring firms in terms of candidate supply and movement versus the last few years. Yay, finally! We can look to the government data released this month to see that based on The December jobs report the number of jobs added was better than expected which would seem contradictory, ...
Set Yourself Up for Success in 2024: Setting Goals
The start of the new year is the perfect time to set goals to build momentum in your firm. Creating goals as a team allows you to have all of your team members on the same page as to what should be accomplished. Setting goals can be difficult as you have to walk the line between too easy of goals that you stifle yourself, and those too out of reach that it hurts team morale. As you work towards walking that line, here are some tips for setting goals for 2024. Collaboration in Goal ...
How to Show Gratitude to your Team
When was the last time you told your team that you truly appreciate them? It may come naturally for you to do so in terms of your clients, such as sending end of year thank you letters to go out to all of your clients expressing how grateful you are for them and how you wouldn’t have the business you have if it weren’t for them, etc. What about expressing the same level of gratitude for your team members? As we approach the end of the year and reflect back on what our firms have accomplished ...
When is it Time to Promote?
For growing firms, the end of a year is a time to reflect on goals and challenges from the previous year. It can also be a great time to promote people on your team who are performing exceptionally, so they can start the new year off in the right position and mindset. This month, we will look at how to identify candidates due for promotion. Here are three signs to look for: They are already taking it to the next level. This one is straightforward and can easily be evaluated by comparing ...
YOUR FINANCIAL PLANNING CONFERENCE GUIDE
Summer is over, school is back in session and cooler temperatures mean the official start of conference season in the financial planning profession. This is a fun and exciting time and a way for you to catapult your career to new levels of success! Attending conferences is a great way to gain a better understanding of the profession, increase your technical knowledge, and expand your network. The bulk of the national conferences are held between the months of September and November and figuring ...
IS YOUR INTERVIEW PROCESS TOO LENGTHY?
Everyone who follows these articles knows that our approach is to be as thorough and precise as possible when it comes to candidate selection. At what point, though, does a hiring process become too lengthy and a deterrent for job seekers? Since, the current demand for new planners is high and supply is small, the obvious downside is that the longer a firm drags out the interview process the increased likelihood the candidate will accept an offer from a competing firm. In this month’s article, ...
SETTING REASONABLE EXPECTATIONS FOR NEW PLANNERS PART 2 OF 2
Last month we discussed what expectations are generally unreasonable for a new planner hire and this month we look at what firm owners SHOULD expect from their new planner. As I mentioned last month, not all new financial planners are equal. Nonetheless it’s reasonable to have some solid, but realistic expectations for a good candidate that you might hire. A few items to screen for include: Have a general familiarity with how financial planning firms serve clients and earn revenue – Most ...
SETTING REASONABLE EXPECTATIONS FOR NEW PLANNERS PART 1 OF 2
Throughout my career I have witnessed firm owners’ frustrations with new planners they have hired or were interviewing. Their frustrations stem from lack of clarity on what type of education a new planner receives and what can be expected of them. Also, firm owners sometimes don’t know what role they are trying to fill so they are left with trying to hire for a catch-all position resulting in unclear roles and responsibilities, and unreasonable expectations. We will start this two-part ...
UNLOCKING OPPORTUNITIES: HOW TO PROVIDE VALUABLE INTERNSHIPS
Just as in any other industry, financial planning firm owners take on a certain degree of risk when hiring professional staff. For firms that are looking to hire, a quality intern program is a great way to try out potential employees before they sign on the dotted line for a permanent position. In addition to ‘test driving’ future employees, having interns is a good business practice because an extra set of hands to complete work and an additional set of eyes with a fresh perspective is helpful ...