The Mistake of Holding Out for Someone “Just Like Me”

One of the RIA succession planning methods we often see financial advisors use is bringing up a successor from within the ranks of your business. This can be a really effective method if you have the time to make that transition and have someone that you feel would make a good replacement to handle your book of clients. One of the mistakes that many RIAs make with this method, though, is holding out for a replacement who is just like them. They want to hand their clients over to someone who could be their clone. While this impulse is understandable, it’s a mistake; here is why.

Why You Can’t Wait for Your Clone

You might never find them.

If you wait to retire until you find a replacement who is exactly like you, chances are you are going to be working for a long time to come. You’d be hard-pressed to find any two financial advisors currently working who have the same personality and style, let alone one who wants to retire and another who wants to take over their client list. Don’t hold out to find that miracle. Your goal is to find someone who is competent and who your clients will trust. If they have a similar style or personality, that’s a bonus.

It’s not what your clients need.

Your clients don’t need your clone to manage their accounts. They need someone who is going to help them meet their financial goals and manage their money in the smartest possible way. It’s not that your clients don’t need you, but what they need from you may be different from what you initially expect. What they actually need from you is a replacement who can competently take over their account and enough time to get to know and trust this new person.

The financial world is changing.

It’s a fact that the financial world is changing. As hard as you may have tried to keep up with the evolution of financial advisement, chances are the younger generation have a better grasp on the needs of new clients looking for a financial advisor. You shouldn’t be afraid to bring on younger talent and allow them to make some changes to your process and procedure as they start to take over. Just because you’ve always done someone one way doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the only correct way to get it done. Allowing them to make changes and do thing differently can be a great boost to your business.

We Can Help You Find the Right People

While you don’t have to find your clone to take over your clients, you do need to find the right people. That’s where we can help. Talk to the advisorRETIRE™ team and learn more about how we can help you find a someone to help you successfully transition out of our business and into retirement. We’ll make sure that you, your business, and your clients are happy as you move onto the next phase of your life!