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Beverly Flaxington is a practice management consultant. She answers questions from advisors facing human resource issues. To submit yours, email us here.
Dear Bev,
We have recently moved three younger advisors into roles where they are able to take career steps that will put them on a path to ownership of the firm over time. This is a big step for us, as the current five partners each own equal shares. It has taken a great deal of maneuvering to figure out how to keep us somewhat “whole” while allowing these three people to accomplish a lot over time.
We have asked, as part of the steps in the path, for these advisors to generate business alongside managing client accounts. The pushback has been truly amazing, unlike anything we were expecting. They have watched us consistently bring in new business, and they have benefited enormously from it. In many cases, we have made one of them a lead advisor for an account we have sourced. Not only have they been unwilling to take on new business development, they have come together to form a coalition against us, the senior partners, sharing all of the reasons why asking them to do business development is not right.
I have to admit, their reactions are making me reconsider whether these are people we want to be handing our business to before we exit, leaving them with ownership stakes and voices in how things are run. They were handed the keys to a very stable, growing kingdom, and they are snubbing their noses at the opportunity.
Have you seen a situation where leaders have pulled back on an offer, or let younger advisors know they no longer qualify for the opportunity to gain ownership? We want to know our options.
Anonymous
Dear Advisor,
Before you pull your offer or reconsider whether you have done the right thing in setting these three advisors up for future success, let’s make sure we are solving the right problem. You didn’t provide me detail on what reasons the three individuals gave for believing that asking them to do business development was inappropriate and out of place.
I have a few questions I suggest you and your four partners pose to yourselves before you make a rash decision to undo what’s been done:
1. What structure changes did you offer or put in place to move these three from being servicing-oriented advisors to financial advisors with business development responsibilities? Think about this from their perspective — they have been doing the job of managing client relationships and presumably doing it well.
You are now adding a significant responsibility to their plate. I would expect, along with this, you have thought through structural changes, how they should allocate their time differently, how they will be measured on the different expectations of them, etc.
2. What training, coaching or support have you offered these three individuals to help them develop strong sales skills? I work with advisors all day, every day, and especially with next generation advisors, to help them sell most effectively. I can tell you firsthand, the skill set does not come naturally to most.
They need to know how to develop a strategic sales plan, how to identify opportunities, how to network effectively, how to develop their brand alongside the firm brand, how to develop COI relationships and so on. Many advisors who have been rainmakers for a while lose sight of the fact that starting a sales career from scratch is not easy. It’s like asking someone in the dental field to start running financial plans with no guidance, training or support. If you want someone to develop a new skill, you need to give them the tools to do so.
3. What respectful response did you give to the reasons they presented as to why this would be difficult for them? Rather than see them as forming a coalition to attack you with their differing point of view, it might be helpful to take whatever points they have made to heart and discuss your collective responses as the five existing partners.
I find it hard to believe there was not some kernel of truth in whatever they presented. If they took the time to come together and share their thoughts, it might be wise to take the time to give a reasonable response to their assertions.
4. What is your replacement strategy if you decide these three individuals have annoyed you enough that you can no longer work with them? Ultimately, it isn’t my place to tell you the right decision is to pull back your offer or push them out. However, before you choose the second option, you should have a Plan B in place to ensure your firm can continue to run smoothly as you and the other four senior partners consider succession.
Dear Bev,
I’m working for a firm owner who hates conflict and sees the good in every individual. He considers everything that isn’t sunshine and roses to be “conflict.” We have a colleague (peer to me) who is dropping the ball everywhere. He is an embarrassment to our firm, and multiple clients have complained about his lack of attention to detail and his attitude.
Our firm leader will literally say in response, “But Pat (not his real name) is a committed Christian who loves his God.” That’s his favorite line. Or he might say, “Pat is doing the best he can do as all people do at every step along their life journey.”
It is crazy-making! I don’t care if Pat loves God or has hit an obstacle to his development. I don’t want to take another call from a client who is furious because Pat neglected to put their request for a distribution through or put the wrong number of zeros on a withdrawal form!
I’m perceived as the one with the bad attitude and the one who doesn’t “see good in all,” as our firm leader says to me often. I really like my job, and I’ve been here for 12 years (Pat joined 26 months ago). I don’t want to quit, but I don’t know how much more looking at Pat through rose-colored glasses I can do. I don’t dislike the guy, I simply want him to do the job we’re paying him to do without creating chaos while doing it.
L.C.
Dear L.C.,
I’m sorry to start out by saying this, but you are in the proverbial no-win situation. First of all, people — unless they are open and work with a coach or therapist or do a lot of self-reflection — don’t change that much. If your firm leader wants desperately to find the good, he is going to find it every time. If he can’t see the importance of separating the “goodness” of Pat from the trouble he is causing clients, you are not going to convince him otherwise without becoming the bad guy in the equation. The evidence is there. Clients are complaining, and unless your firm leader is so detached he doesn’t know this is happening or no one has shared it with him, he is choosing to find good in Pat without also demanding accountability from Pat. The two can co-exist, but the leader has to accept this.
Second, if you are a peer to Pat, you are in a very difficult situation. You could certainly offer to help mentor him if his skills are not up to where they need to be. However, you won’t accomplish anything by pointing out all of Pat’s failings or possibly sharing with Pat your thoughts on his inability to do the job. If you want to mentor and support, that’s fine, but otherwise you literally need to turn your attention only to what you are doing and let Pat sink or swim on his own.
Lastly, if clients are complaining to you, you have to be very careful. You can’t join them by acknowledging Pat isn’t doing well, and you don’t want to be the one to accept the blame for Pat’s actions. The best approach would be to ask the client to contact Pat directly or (even better) the owner of your firm to share their frustration.
All of this said, unless Pat chooses to leave or something blows up that is really significant, you are probably stuck. You might want to consider, after a 12-year career, if it is time to move on.
Beverly Flaxington co-founded The Collaborative, a consulting firm devoted to business building for the financial services industry, in 1995. The firm also founded and manages the Advisors Sales Academy. The firm has won the Wealthbriefing WealthTech award for Best Training Solution for 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Beverly is currently an adjunct professor at Suffolk University teaching undergraduate and graduate students Entrepreneurship and Leading Teams. She is a Certified Professional Behavioral Analyst (CPBA) and Certified Professional Values Analyst (CPVA).
She has spent over 25 years in the investment industry and has been featured in Selling Power Magazine and quoted in hundreds of media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC.com, Investment News and Solutions Magazine for the FPA. She speaks frequently at investment industry conferences and is a speaker for the CFA Institute.
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Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
