Month: May 2026
RIA Edge Podcast: Building a Full-Service Financial Firm with Marty Bicknell

RIA Edge Podcast: Building a Full-Service Financial Firm with Marty Bicknell

By |

In this episode of the RIA Edge Podcast, host David Armstrong sits down with Marty Bicknell, president and CEO of Mariner Wealth Advisors, to discuss how the firm has grown into one of the biggest RIAs in the country.

Marty shares how Mariner approaches acquisitions with a strong focus on culture, builds in-house capabilities across tax, trust and insurance services, and structures business development to support advisor growth. He also explains how artificial intelligence and operational systems may reshape advisor capacity, scalability and the future direction of wealth management firms.

Key takeaways:

  • What’s driving Mariner’s current acquisition strategy
  • How Bicknell thinks about bringing client services like tax, trust, insurance and estate planning into the Mariner ecosystem
  • Why Mariner bought a small boutique M&A firm
  • Why niche markets like dentists, athletes and first responders are a key part of Mariner’s future growth focus
  • How he sees AI tools impacting advisor capacity and the firm’s operations

Resources:

Connect With David Armstrong:

Connect With Marty Bicknell:

About Our Guest:

As the CEO and president of Mariner, Marty drives the strategic direction for the firm. As a recognized leader in wealth management, he devises innovative solutions to help meet the needs of our clients. He has extensive personal and professional experience with closely held family businesses and their unique complexities. He often mentors other successful entrepreneurs.

Marty, along with seven others, founded Mariner in 2006 with a goal of keeping the client at the center of all we do. He wanted to build a firm that could simplify our clients’ lives by having all the resources they need under one roof. The day the doors opened, Marty made the promise to put the clients’ interests before anything else…a promise he still holds dear to this day.

Marty has a bachelor’s degree from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kan

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS
RIA Edge Podcast: Building ‘Summit 2.0’ with Randy Morris

RIA Edge Podcast: Building ‘Summit 2.0’ with Randy Morris

By |

In this episode of the RIA Edge Podcast, host David Armstrong speaks with Randy Morris, founder and CEO of Summit Wealth Group, about the firm’s transition from a long-standing broker/dealer affiliate to launch its own independent RIA platform.

He explains how the decision was shaped by a desire for greater autonomy, improved client experience and long-term growth potential. Randy also shares how leadership structure, internal ownership and a minority capital partnership are helping guide the firm forward, along with how digital marketing, acquisitions, expanded services and technology are each playing a role in building the next phase of the business.

Key takeaways:

  • What drove the firm’s leaders to leave a 20-year tenure as a hybrid affiliate of an independent broker/dealer to launch “Summit 2.0” as a fully independent RIA
  • The succession calculations that fueled many of the structural changes Summit made in recent years
  • The importance of organic growth and how Summit has landed some of its largest clients via SEO and Google
  • What drives the firm’s M&A strategy, and the types of firms it is looking to add to the mix in the future
  • How Summit executives decided on an executive organizational structure to formalize and streamline decision-making processes, and how they deliberately created internal career pathways for employees
  • The reasons the firm accepted an investment from Constellation Wealth, beyond simply access to operating capital
  • How the firm feels about balancing unified branding with localized identities for its geographically diverse advisors

Resources:

Connect With David Armstrong:

Connect With Randy Morris:

About Our Guest:

Randy Morris’ early career helped prepare him as a financial planning pioneer. After graduating from the University of Colorado in 1982 with a degree in business and organizational management, he worked for two years as Vice President of Executive Economic Services, Inc., in Denver, Colorado.

In 1985, Randy founded Executive Financial Planning, Inc. (EFP), one of Mississippi’s first financial planning firms. In 2002, he created Summit Wealth Group (SWG) out of a desire to provide additional wealth management services for clients. Randy serves as the firm’s CEO. In March 2025, Summit Wealth Group, LLC, registered with the SEC as a registered Investment Advisor and filed notice with six states. 

Peers in the financial industry have recognized Randy’s skills and accomplishments by electing him as a past President of the Mississippi Chapter of the Financial Planning Association (FPA). Randy is a Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC-1985), and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® Practitioner (1987). He is also a Registered Representative, an Investment Adviser Representative, and a Registered Securities Principal. Additionally, he has assisted the CFP® Board of Examiners as an exam reviewer. 

Randy has served on numerous boards, including Barge Timberlands International, Camp Lake Forest Ranch, Southeast Regional Committee for Young Life, Military Community Youth Ministries (MCYM), and the World Vision Leadership Council. Randy lives with his wife, Nancy, in Scottsdale, Arizona, where they attend Scottsdale Bible Church. They have six children: Joy, Jesse, Hannah, Scott, Randy, and Ryan, as well as 12 grandchildren.

Randy’s accolades include being recognized by Forbes Magazine in each of the past 8 years, making its “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” list for the state of Arizona. 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: RSS

Archives

Categories