A revised and expanded look at how to thrive and prosper in the financial advisory businessA new and revised edition of the eye-opening, no-nonsense handbook on managing and growing a financial-advisory business,Practice Made (More) Perfect is packed with industry insight and practical ideas that every leader and manager within a financial advisory practice needs to know in order to get the most out of their business. Regardless of how little time is available or how seriously challenged a firm may be, this book contains the information that can help. The principles of sound management apply to firms of all types, and the tools provided in this book are guaranteed to be applicable under practically any circumstances.
Written by industry expert Mark Tibergien, one of the "25 Most Influential" people in the financial services industryA new edition of a bestselling Bloomberg titleIncludes fresh insight on recent topics, including how advisors responded during the latest meltdown, the implications of the aging advisory profession, the challenges of attracting and keeping both clients and staff, the role of organizational design in a growing business, recent changes in compensation planning and implementation, and key information on leadership and management in today's financial world
Many financial advisers run their businesses as if acquiring more clients will solve any and all problems, but without a strategic framework, more clients just lead to more demands and less time to meet them. The truly successful firm will build strategy, structure, and processes that will ultimately translate into increased profits, cash flow, and transferable value.
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
Introduction xix
Chapter 1 The Financial Advisory Business: Whats Next? 1
What Are Top-Performing Firms Doing? 3
The Business as Client 4
10 Things to Think About 4
Chapter 2 Strategic Business Planning: Defining the Direction 11
Muddled Messages 12
What Is Your Strategic Differentiator? 14
What Is Strategic Planning? 14
The Strategic Planning Process 16
Chapter 3 Managing Workflow: The Back Office Moves Forward 35
Sources of Inefficiency 36
Achieving Efficiencies 37
Does Efficiency Come at a Cost? 39
Managing Risk 45
Chapter 4 Building Leverage and Capacity 55
Getting to the Next Stage 56
Becoming a Market Dominator 57
The Challenge of Growth 58
The Entrepreneurial Crossroads 59
Cornerstones of the Professional Practice 66
Models That Work 68
Leveraging Your Affiliations 72
Big Is Beautiful 76
Chapter 5 The Human Capital Plan: People Who Need People 81
The Problem You Cant Do Without 82
Aligning Human Capital with Strategy 83
The Nature of the Work 86
The Nature of the Worker 90
The Interviewing Process 93
Chapter 6 Creating a Positive Workplace: Professional Development 99
The Career Path 101
The Appraisal Process 104
Coaching and Development 107
The Workplace 109
Building a Foundation 114
The Four-Way Test 115
Lessons on Inclusion 125
Chapter 7 Rewarding Behavior and Performance: Compensation Planning 129
Developing a Plan 135
The Components of Compensation 139
Establishing Base Compensation 149
Establishing an Incentive Compensation Plan 150
Owners Compensation 153
Chapter 8 Reading the Financials: Financial Management 155
Fundamentals of Accounting 155
Constructing a Financial Statement 156
Tying the Financials Together 165
Chapter 9 Income, Profit, Cash Flow: What the Numbers Are Saying 167
Formatting the Financials 168
Analyzing the Income Statement 169
Analyzing the Balance Sheet 179
Analyzing the Statement of Cash Flow 184
Financial Impact Analysis 185
Chapter 10 Managing Growth: The Search for Solutions 189
Harnessing Resources 190
Using Financial Leverage 192
Managing Cash Flow 194
How About Equity? 195
Referral Agreements and Joint Ventures 196
Practice Acquisitions 199
Investments in New Initiatives 203
Chapter 11 Exit, Stage Left 205
The Price of Indecision 206
Sale Planning versus Succession Planning 207
Wisdom or Obsolescence? 209
What to Do? 210
Keeping It in the Family 211
How to Make a Partner 217
What About the Successor? 223
Merger as a Succession Plan 226
So What Do You Do? 228
Seeking Counsel 230
Developing the Assumptions 231
Take Control 232
Chapter 12 On Leadership and Management 235
What Defines a Leader? 236
Who Will Emerge? 239
Is Anybody Leading? 240
Rites of Passage 242
Ready, Fire, Aim 244
Awakening the Manager in You 248
Practice What We Preach 251
Hiring Your Boss: Do You Need a CEO? 251
Afterword 257
Appendix 261
About the Authors 297
Index 299
