Schwab’s Lisa Salvi shares insights from the firm’s annual benchmarking report, revealing how top-performing RIAs are driving significant organic growth amidst industry challenges. 

In this episode of the RIA Edge Podcast, David Armstrong, editorial director for Informa Connect’s Wealth Management Group, talks with Lisa Salvi, managing director of advisor services at Schwab, about the firm’s annual advisor benchmarking report that reveals a strong rebound in 2023. While M&A remains prevalent, organic growth is increasingly prioritized as a key driver for top-performing firms. Finding the right talent continues to pose challenges as firms are urged to invest in career pathing and employee development programs.

Specifically, David and Lisa discuss:

• How advisors are rebounding by defining ideal client personas and cultivating long-term relationships. 
• Using technology as a catalyst for driving efficiency and enhancing client experience.
• Attracting and retaining clients based on value proposition, independent of market fluctuations.
• The need for strategic hiring and employee development programs amidst an industry facing a critical talent shortage.  
• How M&A continues to be a strategic option for many advisory firms seeking to expand their reach and talent pool.
• Why succession planning is vital for firms to ensure long-term stability.

Resources:

• RIA Edge Podcast

 

Connect With David Armstrong: 

• WealthManagement.com
• LinkedIn: WealthManagment.com
• LinkedIn: David Armstrong 
• Twitter/X: @djamesarmstrong
• LinkedIn: Informa

Connect With Lisa Salvi:

• LinkedIn: Lisa Salvi
• Charles Schwab
• LinkedIn: Schwab

About Our Guest: 

Lisa Salvi is a member of the Advisor Services leadership team and is responsible for Schwab’s Business Consulting and Education offer. Her team develops and manages programs and one-on-one consulting engagements designed to help independent advisors make lasting and significant improvements within their firms by focusing on key business, technology, and cybersecurity issues. Salvi’s team leads the annual RIA Benchmarking Study, the Compensation Study, and programs that support the development of advisor talent through executive education and student initiatives. They also provide insights and tools that help the Advisor Services sales and support teams deliver outstanding client service to independent advisors.

Salvi has worked with fee-based advisors since 2003. Since joining Schwab in 2007, she has held several positions, including Chief of Staff to Bernie Clark, head of Advisor Services.

Salvi holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, and the Series 7 and Series 24 registrations.  

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Michael Conway shares how advisors at his firm, Conway Wealth, prioritize a deep understanding of each client’s values and puts health and well-being at the center of the planning conversation. 

In this episode of the RIA Edge Podcast, David Armstrong, editorial director for Informa Connect’s Wealth Management Group, talks with Michael Conway, founder and CEO of Conway Wealth, about their bespoke approach to wealth management services for the high-net-worth market. The firm has a unique process for understanding a clients’ values and priorities beyond finance, and creating personalized plans that speak to their longer-term goals and values. Access to a vetted roster of professionals in the fields of health, nutrition, travel and family dynamics is part of the value proposition at Conway. Their customized emphasis on each client has fueled significant growth in recent years and allowed the firm to make a major investment in developing their own fintech with Seeds Investor, an investment platform that facilitates client conversations and gives advisors a path toward deeper and more meaningful portfolios and financial plans.

Specifically, David and Michael discuss:

• How Conway Wealth puts a focus on discovering the motivations and priorities for each client and seeks to tailor a customized plan that moves beyond investments to speak to the their longer-term life goals.
• How the firm formalized its Life & Wealth Network, designed as an exclusive association of professionals and platforms to provide guidance for clients around health, nutrition, relationships, leisure, security, and charitable giving—and how Michael thinks about the economics of using a partner network versus bringing services in-house. 
• The metrics that Michael watches closely to ensure the firm is running efficiently and to flag capacity problems before they negatively impact the client experience. 
• The decision to build their own stand-alone investment platform, Seeds Investor, to bring client values and priorities into planning discussions and building bespoke portfolios.

Resources:

RIA Edge Podcast

Connect With David Armstrong:

• WealthManagement.com
• LinkedIn: WealthManagment.com

LinkedIn: David Armstrong 

Twitter/X: @djamesarmstrong

• LinkedIn: Informa

Connect With Michael Conway:

LinkedIn: Michael Conway

Conway Wealth

About Our Guest: 

Michael Conway is founder and CEO of Conway Wealth Group, a premier, independent financial planning and advisory group. He is also a shareholder of Summit Financial, LLC.

As a successful and well-respected financial advisor, Michael has spent more than 30 years building his practice and providing clients with specialized solutions that blend financial and estate planning strategies with open architecture investment management.

Michael’s high net worth clients include successful entrepreneurs, corner office executives, CEOs, CFOs, Wall Street professionals, professional athletes, and others, all with significant wealth tied to their businesses or employers. Michael’s process focuses on leading clients toward Aligning Life & Wealth by focusing not just on investment gains, but the important parts of life that create lasting happiness for families.

Michael is a member of the Financial Planning Association and has earned Certified Financial Planner® and Chartered Financial Consultant® credentials. In addition, Michael is frequently looked to as an expert in financial news media and has been featured in various publications, including Barron’s, the Wall Street Journal, Investment News, and Investor’s Business Daily, among others. He was also named one of the 100 Most Influential Advisors by Investopedia.

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