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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,
Our customer service associate (CSA) does not want to be here. She went to school for acting and has dreams of being on Broadway. Dreams don’t pay the rent, however, so her father, an investment advisor at a competing firm, pushed her to take a job on our team as a CSA. We have four other support people who are all engaged and involved in the business. They want to move up to become either planners or advisors. The other CSA stands out because she is clearly not interested in this role, this team, and this industry, and she definitely has no aspirations of becoming an advisor.
Our firm has a hiring freeze right now, so if we were to manage her out, we’d be unable to fill her role, and we need all of the help we can get. We recently took on three very large multi-gen families, and the onboarding and servicing has been complex while we keep our other clients happy.
I’m a “bloom where you are planted” guy, but my partner is a “do what you love and have passion” guy. I think she could decide to become engaged and involved if we really pushed her; he thinks we need to accept what we get and realize she wants something else out of life.
This is causing difficulty between the two of us. She technically reports to our COO, who has washed her hands of dealing with this CSA and told the two of us we need to work it out. Who is right here, my partner or me?
S.W.
Dear S.W.,
I am a pretty direct individual, but as long as I’ve been writing this column, I have had the stance that I’m not here to be the deciding vote when partners, or others, are at a crossroads. This isn’t because I don’t have strong views or am unwilling to take a side in general; it’s because I never have enough background and inside information to believe I am making the right decision one way or the other.
That said, in a scenario like this, the truth lies somewhere in between — in other words, you are both right. Why? Because people should strive to do something they are passionate about. When we have passion for our work, it isn’t really work, and we’ll go the extra step to ensure we are successful on behalf of a team.
However, people do also have choices, and while she may never be entirely passionate about this role, she could decide to put her mind into doing a better job and be more dedicated and committed. We always have choices in the steps we are willing to take, and more importantly, the attitude we will take them with.
It sounds like you are stuck because you can't manage her out. I’d truly love to see her explore a career she has always wanted and would love. That’s not an option right now, or you’d be left with an open seat and too much work.
Unfortunately, that means one of you, either you or your partner, is going to have to manage her in a more hands-on fashion than what has been done to date. If others on the team are pulling their weight, you have large new clients coming on board, and you have existing clients who need attention, then no one can afford to give C+ energy right now.
This means sitting with her and outlining clear expectations for success — desired outcomes that are both quantifiable and qualitative. It means setting objectives to meet these desired outcomes every week and then checking in to see if she has met them. If she hasn’t, you need to implement mid-course corrections she’ll have to make. She will need to be accountable for what she agrees to take on.
I know this likely isn’t the sort of thing either of you want to do, but nothing is going to shift here unless you take these steps. Instead, your relationship with your partner will continue to deteriorate, and you’ll have bigger fissures in the team than you have now.
Dear Bev,
She’s late. She doesn’t socialize with the team. She is often angry and lets everyone know. She will wait for someone, anyone, else to answer client calls. She doesn’t get back to people in a timely manner. She is rude to the support staff.
And she is the daughter of our founder.
Options?
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous,
I’m not sure whether she reports to her parent or has a different reporting structure within your firm. Regardless, here are my thoughts.
Gather the data; be fact-based. Provide evidence. Be objective and analytical.
Then, share this information with the founder directly. Ask that person for input on how best to manage the daughter and what you should do. Be positive. Frame it as, “We know she is smart and capable; these are things we are observing that need to be corrected.”
Be careful with the language you use. Nothing judgmental, nothing accusatory. Present the data in a way that shows you want to help her to be successful and also make sure she is fully supporting the team. Ask the founder for ideas and whether these issues and behavior are known to them.
Importantly, don’t be overtly critical, even though the behaviors you are outlining here must be very triggering for everyone on the team. Stay neutral and focused on helping the daughter get to a better place professionally.
In fairness to her, she might be angry and non-social because her parent wants her there, but she doesn’t necessarily want to be there. I’m not saying you let bad behavior slide; just know there could be other drivers that are manifesting in what you are seeing. Sometimes a “seek to understand” approach is helpful all around.
Read more by Beverly Flaxington:
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, 2025 and 2026. Beverly is currently an adjunct professor at Suffolk University teaching Executive MBA students Leadership and Managing 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.