Their parents, baby boomers and some seniors, toldmillennials they could beanything.
|Great songs about the children being the future were sung backin the 80s and early 90s. With such high hopes for theirfuture, millennials embarked downa road of immense dreams.
|For some, those dreams are already coming true.
|Read: 15 women making a difference ininsurance
|Across every industry, millennials are reinventing the way theworld works, just as earlier generations have done. The insuranceand financial services space is no exception.
|For more on how millennials are changing the insurance industry, go here.
|A select group of math whizzes, product visionaries and salesstars are building a compelling future for the industry. This listtells the stories of 30 of them:
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Melina Ahmandpour
|Agent, intern, public speaker New YorkLife
|Why did you choose a career ininsurance or financialservices?
|I unfortunately lost my mom years ago to cancer. I had had aprevious scholarship to college and I was looking for otherscholarships and other ways for funding school. I looked atthe Life Happens scholarship and because I was sodesperate and determined to get it, I applied for three years in arow and finally got it.
|Afterward, [Life Happens] asked me to speak, so I was a speakerat NAIFA National in 2013. Then, I spoke at a few other events andended up landing an internship with New York Life. It just kind ofspiraled.
|Describe what you do:
|I work as a speaker for the insurance and financial industries.I speak at conferences, associations, and companies. Throughthat, I landed an internship with New York Life and they havelicensed me. I’m under an internship contract because I am still incollege, but I do work as an agent.
|As a speaker, I share my personal story of loss, and how my momunfortunately didn’t have life insurance. Every awful thing thatyou can possibly think of happened in my case. I talk about this inan effort to inspire people who are in the insurance industry. Andfor other people who think that life insurance is not necessary, Ithink my story gives them a second thought. Within the last twoyears, I’ve done about 20 talks nationally and internationally.It’s been a whirlwind.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I am very proud of the fact that I don’t give up easily. I’llmaybe fail one, two or ten times, but if I really think that I cando this, I’ll keep doing it until I succeed That’s kind of whathappened with the scholarship, which ended up opening all theseother doors for me. It showed me not to be afraid of failure.I’m happy that, with that kind of mindset, I was able to go fromhaving a very difficult situation in my life to having it turn tothis, which is crazy wonderful. I’m sure that there are many moreexciting things to come.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I think this is a general challenge and it’s definitely been achallenge for me: approaching people. How do you bring up lifeinsurance out of thin air without making people feel like “Hey, I’mtrying to sell you something.” Because the second they sense that,they avoid you.
|We’re trained on how to overcome this challenge and we have allthese workshops, and I don’t want to downplay our trainers or thepeople who teach us by any means. They do a great job and workreally hard, but I don’t think any kind of [formal] training canreally teach you. I really think that the best teachers, especiallyin my short experience, have been established agents. When youtalk to them, they too went through the training, they experiencedit, they too were new at one point; they figured out what tosay.
|If there’s one thing that I would like to see happening more,it's mentoring. I would really like to see more established agentstaking new agents under their wings, taking them to appointmentswith them, teaching them. You can read books and go to classes, butyou can’t learn it if you don’t experience it. You have to think onyour toes.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I think that there’s a great opportunity for people to startmarketing themselves in a different way, especially with socialmedia right now. We’re just in a whole different generation andplace in the world today. I talk to agents and they talk aboutthe old days, “I went door to door,” they say. Those days are over.No one is going to do that anymore.
|I know that New York Life has a great social media platform andI’m sure other companies do as well. If you take advantage of that,it will help you approach more prospects. You make a page onFacebook and everyone there sees that you’re an insurance agent. Ifthey see something that they might need, they might contact youbecause of your presence on Facebook.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in anadvisor? How can advisors best serve this market?
|In college and on the news all we hear is that Social Securityis running out and your 401(k) doesn’t mean anything any more. Allthe tools for money-saving and retirement are not doing what theyused to do. I think millennials are looking for somethingconcrete and permanent, something that they know that if they puttheir money into it, it’s not going to go away by the time thatthey retire. And I’m almost positive that millennials don’t want toretire at age 65. They want to retire earlier. What they’relooking for in an advisor is someone who is either young like theyare or someone older that can relate to them that and that can givethem something that’s not going to cost a fortune.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Get yourself a good mentor. I am lucky that I have a greatmentor and he has helped me so much. You have to look forsomeone who challenges you and pushes you, and when you want togive up and you say, “I can’t do this,” they can talk to you aboutit. Finding a mentor will save you in so many ways. They can comewith you to appointments and if you say something wrong, they arethere to save you. And when you go to appointments with them, youcan see how they interact with people.
|I would also make a note of saying this is not an immediategratification kind of job. This is something that takes time. Trynot to get frustrated at the fact that you may not make a ton ofmoney immediately, but keep going at it because there areopportunities to be successful in this industry.
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Travis Babb
|Senior partner Babb Financial Group, LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|Both of my parents were financial planners, so I grew up aroundthe business. The dinner table conversation involved a lot ofbusiness talk, so I like to think I absorbed most of theinformation through osmosis.
|I also would walk to my parents’ office and help with filingafter school, so I am not really sure I chose my career but ratherit chose me.
|Describe what you do:
|I help preserve and grow our clients’ wealth in order for themto retire with confidence.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I studied Economics at ASU's business school, which I felt washard enough as it is, but to add to it, I had my Series 7 testlined up the day after I graduated. So not only did I have to studyfor finals, but I also had to study for this six hour exam inaddition to packing my home up and moving. It was one of the morestressful points in my life, but I passed and actually started workthe very next day. That year I went on to qualify for MDRT at theage of 23.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge is the complexity of the investments onthe market. Apple is such a successful company because they makeeverything so user-friendly and intuitive as opposed to theircompetition. We need investments that are concise and easier tounderstand. The problem is consumers want to be educated now morethan ever, but when I hand them a 24-page illustration their eyesbegin to gloss over. As an industry, we need to get rid of all thered tape and speak in layman terms.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|When I first got into the business, it was all about the babyboomers retiring. It still is all about the baby boomers; we havehad more referrals from our clients then we ever had because ofbaby boomers retiring.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I believe millennials are more skeptical than other generationsdue to the amount of information that is available. They receive alot of conflicting information from parents, friends and theInternet. It will be hard to serve this type of client because alittle bit of information can be very dangerous.
|I think advisors will need to better educate millennials abouttheir options. It will also be harder to establish relationshipswith people who have been stuck in front of screens for years.Regardless of age, all people want human interaction, but it mightbe more difficult with the millennials as they are used tocommunicating in different ways.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Proximity is power. It is very hard to try and get a client baseby going it alone. I would recommend establishing greatrelationships with people in the industry that need help. There arealso a ton of advisors looking to retire that are looking forsomeone to buy their business as they phase out. The key is findinga solid partner to buy it from who has already a great relationshipwith their clients.
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Brenden Barkate
|Senior vice president Exclusive InsuranceBrokerage
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I was playing football at the University of Redlands and my headcoach brought me into his office. I wasn’t exactly sure what thecircumstances were and, quite frankly, assumed I was introuble.
|He told me that a successful alumni was starting an insurancebrokerage and that he specifically asked for me. I asked mydad, who has been in the financial planning business for 30+ years,and he said it would be a great start to learn the business insideand out. I knew my father was very successful in what he did, and Iwanted to pursue that same level of success.
|Describe what you do:
|I help financial planners, CPAs and attorneys brainstorm andfind solutions to financial concerns they are facing with eithertheir personal needs, estates, or businesses. Whether it iscreating an estate plan, a tax-mitigation technique for a businessowner, or simply implementing some insurance solutions for anindividual; every day can be a little bit different.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I came into the business with nothing. I was given a computer,phone, and a desk in a bullpen. I was one of two people who startedthe company. Today, I am a Senior VP at one of the largestinsurance brokerage and consulting firms in the United States. Twoyears ago, I assisted an advisor in closing one of the largest lifeinsurance policies ever sold. I thought that was prettyneat.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The one thing I would change is adding more regulation to theinsurance industry, specifically pertaining to the sale of indexlife or index annuity products. I oftentimes come across advisorswho have a life license they obtained in 52 hours. The followingweek, they are persuading clients into products they knowrelatively nothing about. These insurance products arephenomenal solutions for certain clients and I hate to see themsold incorrectly or abused, as it gives a black eye to ourindustry.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I go to insurance conferences, meetings, product panels, etc.and oftentimes I am the youngest person in the room by 20+ years.The average financial planner is aging and there is plenty of roomfor young professionals to come into the insurance industry andmake a difference in people’s lives. The insurance industryhas been around for 100+ years and is not going anywheresoon.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|With access to Google, I think millennials are looking fortransparency in a financial advisor. With information readilyavailable at your fingertips, no longer can financial advisorsdance around the facts. Advisors need to approach millennialsas extremely bright, and present solutions with all the facts —even if some are not what the client wants to hear.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|While there is plenty of opportunity inside this industry tostart your own business, there is no shortcut for hardwork. There is no “manual” for starting an insurance practice,per se. You need to find a part of this industry that youcare about and devote yourself to that cause. If you can do thatand aren’t afraid to fail, then you won’t be anything butsuccessful.
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Chantel Bonneau, CFP
|Wealth management advisor NorthwesternMutual
|Why did you choose a career in insuranceor financial services?
|I was interested in a career that focused on financial planningat a holistic level. Risk management is extremely important andundervalued by so many people. I put risk management at thefoundation of my clients’ plans because it builds stability andpredictability into their plans. As someone who loves bothanalytical work and spending time with people, this was a perfectrole that combined those skills. There aren’t many careers thatallow you to grow in both ways.
|Describe what you do:
|I work with individuals to build financial plans that reflecttheir ambitions, goals, and resources, both current and future. Ispend my time getting to know a client and what they’re focused onaccomplishing from a personal, professional and financialstandpoint. From there, I assess their current financial situationand determine solutions that will get them closer to theirgoals.
|Much of what I do is about creating a roadmap they canunderstand and follow. Like most goals, having a partner isbeneficial and I try to be their partner in education and inexecution.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I’m particularly proud of the client relationships that I’vebuilt. It’s extremely rewarding to have clients that I’ve workedwith for four or five years and to see the impact of that planning.I have clients that feel secure in their retirement trajectory,have put important insurance products into place while they’rehealthy, and feel confident in their strategies.
|All of what we learn is important in theory, but a plan is onlyas good as the implementation, and I’m always excited to seeclients who prioritize their future because of the work we’ve done.For example, I have a client who started as a single youngprofessional with no planning at all. Over time, he has grown inhis career, bought a condo, and recently got engaged. As he wentthrough these different phases, we were able to keep his planningup to speed with his life and priorities.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I wish people would share more stories about advisors who havebeen helpful to them. So often we hear the negatives, but there aremany people who are much better off because of the relationshipthey have with a trusted and knowledgeable advisor. While media andsocial media have made us a nation of Do-It-Yourself’ers, yourfinances, like your health, are an area where you don’t want toself-treat. Working with a professional to take care of yourfinancial wellness has proven rewards. Northwestern Mutual’sPlanning & Progress research repeatedly shows that thoseindividuals who work with advisors feel significantly happier andmore financially secure in retirement.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|As a millennial myself, I see my generation as the greatestopportunity. We’re a large group, we’re educated and, according toresearch, we’re more financially disciplined and focused onbuilding financial security than some might expect. Cultivatingmillennial clients now will plant the seeds for a relationship thatwill grow as their income and assets do. I’ve had success workingwith millennials because I focus on educating them about the keycomponents of prudent financial plans. They like information beforetaking action and value being brought up to speed on the financialfundamentals that are often overlooked in traditionaleducation.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in anadvisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Millennials want transparency and honesty, as they should!Insurance is extremely important and, as we know, typically theyounger you purchase protection products, the more cost-effectivethey are. Millennials need to learn more about risk products and begiven recommendations tailored to them in the context of theiroverall financial plan.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Ask questions of your clients that help you truly understandthem and their priorities. If you know why they’re working so hardand toward what goal, you can provide great guidance as well asdevelop a great relationship.
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Karen Carr, CFP
||Why did you choose a career in insuranceor financial services?
|I was always interested in financial services. Finding the rightfinancial products, including insurance, can be an intimidatingprocess, but it is so important for someone’s overall financialplan. I was excited to be in an industry where I could be anunbiased resource and help people navigate those decisions in theirbest interest.
|Before joining Society of Grownups, I completed a B.S. infinance, obtained my CFP®, and worked as an advisor at aboutique private wealth management firm. I specialized incomprehensive financial planning, including insurance planning, forindividuals and families at all life stages. During this time, Idiscovered my passion for working with young professionals whooffer their own unique planning opportunities and challenges.
|I was excited about the unique approach to financial literacythat Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) wastaking with the development of Society of Grownups, and I knew Iwanted to be a part of it.
|Describe what you do:
|I am one of five Certified Financial Planner professionals atSociety of Grownups, a MassMutual learning initiative dedicated tofostering financial literacy among twenty-and-thirty-somethings.Our main objective is to change, and open up, the conversationabout money and make financial planning more fun and lessintimidating.
|At Society of Grownups, I teach some of the core financialclasses, including “Loans and Groans,” a student loans workshop,“Buying a Home,” a three-part series on first-time home buying, and“The Basics of Investing.” I also conduct one-on-one sessions withGrownups who come into our space, either a 20-minute checkup or alonger, more in-depth 90-minute appointment.
|During these one-on-one sessions, I talk with Grownups abouttheir individual situations, offer balanced advice and perspective,and create actionable steps to help them work toward theirfinancial goals. This can sometimes involve providingrecommendations for products and services when it’s in the bestinterest of the Grownup. However, we do not sell any products atour space or on our website.
|I also assist with Society of Grownups’ corporate and universitypartnerships by teaching classes to employees or students. I alsohelp develop curriculum for our various classes and events, workwith our PR team to develop expert content for our blog and otherpublications, and assist with developing digital tools andresources on SocietyofGrownUps.com.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|The launch of Society of Grownups. We just opened our doors inOctober 2014 and weren’t sure what the reaction was going to be.This financial literacy learning initiative aimed at the millennialgeneration is a really new, innovative concept — we are approachingthe conversation around money, personal finance, and being aGrownup in an entirely new way. I am really proud that I was partof the team that helped bring this concept to life and am excitedby how well it’s been received.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|Engaging with millennials — they haven’t traditionally been themost attractive customers to the industry because they aren'talways seen as a profitable demographic. Figuring out how toconnect with these Grownups, and how best to serve them, isdefinitely a challenge when, traditionally, this generation is sodistrusting of the financial industry and insurance companies. Thechallenge is in figuring out how we, as financial planningprofessionals and insurance providers, can be a resource for thesetwenty-and-thirty-somethings and act in their best interest.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|Innovation. The insurance and financial industries have operatedone way for a very long time, and it's ripe for the opportunity totry a new approach and engage a new demographic.
|What do you think millennials are looking for inan advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Millennials are really looking for someone who will listen tothem, meet them where they are, and, most importantly, someone theycan really trust. Advisors can best serve the millennial market byspeaking in plain English, avoiding confusing jargon, and being atrustworthy resource who acts in the best interest of theirclients.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Don’t be afraid to think outside the box — there is lots ofopportunity in this industry for innovation and creativity, so it’sokay to push the envelope a little bit.
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Joshua Coleman
|Founder, CEO of Momentum AdvancedPlanning Independent advisor associated with The Penn MutualLife Insurance Company
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I’m a self-proclaimed nerd and was drawn to insurance firstbecause of its relation to math. After graduating from VillanovaUniversity with a degree in finance, specializing in financialmathematics, I wanted to do something with math and numbers thatwasn’t teaching. I wanted do something in practice with numbers.So, finance and insurance were appealing.
|Secondly, I recognized an opportunity within the aging workforcein the space. To me, it was just another basic math problem.There’s a ton of people that have to be taken care of, and afteradvisors retire, there are fewer and fewer new advisors joining theindustry to fill that role. That presents a challenge and anopportunity and I was intrigued by that.
|Describe what you do:
|I play quarterback, but not the type of quarterback you may bethinking of. I serve as an advanced planning quarterback forfamilies and successful businesses. I do this through partneringwith the advisors they’re already working with and acting as afinancial engineer.
|I supplement what the advisory team is already doing, bringpotential new ideas to the table, and then play quarterback tobuild out any additions to the advisory team that may be necessary,and service the solutions put in place.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|What makes me most proud is my first year in the insurancespace. During the span of just 365 days, I was able to make acharitable impact of over nine figures for a very small group ofour initial clients. When clients are happy and a large group ofcharities are benefitting, that’s a win to me and definitelysomething I’m proud to have been a part of.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge in this industry is that we implementextremely sophisticated solutions that include a lot of movingparts. This challenge has become, in my mind, the biggest risk forthe industry.
|The solutions are good, but that doesn’t mean that they’ll bemaintained properly and carried out well in the future. The reasonI say this is because the industry is currently faced with an agingworkforce, and we also have the upfront compensation ininsurance.
|How can we eliminate this risk? One thing I’d like to change isto spread compensation based on keeping solutions in place andlong-term success.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|There’s an innumerable amount of families and businesses tohelp, and that’s exciting to me. So many advisors have becomereally niche, which is great, and I see it as a huge opportunity for a group like ours to weavetogether those niche practitioners for the broader long-termsolutions. There’s no shortage of niche specialists and no shortageof clients that need help, so bridging that gap and bringing thosegroups together is exciting.
|Also, there’s an amazing opportunity in this industry for thosejust stepping into the career world or those looking to make achange. In our industry, you get to build a career around your lifeas opposed to being forced into a career that regulates your life.At Momentum, we currently offer employees the option to workremotely which is extremely unique in the industry. You can designthe life you want to live and build a career around it, and youreally can’t beat that!
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Millennials are looking for someone that’s been where they areand understands where they’re coming from. The absolute worst thingyou can do for a millennial is try to convince them that you knowexactly what they need.
|Also, millennials appreciate someone who’s going to value theirinput into a solution. Their access to information is immense, andtheir ability to get it means that they should be part of thesolution dialogue. Advancements in technology have made it simplerto include millennials in that dialogue, but at the same time,involving the millennial in the decision, to me, is crucial.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Listen to advice and learn from people who are in the space —but don’t copy it. Combine it with your own personal take on theworld, and think of how you can bring something to the table thatwould enhance what you’re being told or shown. Providing adifferent perspective is invaluable.
|The best advice I could have gotten starting out in thisindustry would have been to not be afraid and not to think thatevery successful person does it the same way. In reality, it’s verymuch the opposite. So, if you don’t start forging custom pathsthrough the space early, you probably never will, and as a resultyou may not be as successful and effective.
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Mary Deutsch
|Founder MTD Financial
|Why did you choose a career in insuranceor financial services?
|I had previously been a business owner and when I learned offixed indexed annuities (FIAs); I was working in the retailindustry. Once I heard more about how they work and saw the benefitto both the client and myself, as a business owner, I knew I had tomake a change.
|Describe what you do:
|I hold educational retirement seminars to teach people aboutFIAs. The presentation is very direct and honest, including thepros and cons of annuities, and also includes a history andoverview of some of the common misconceptions of the stock marketand the financial and insurance industries as a whole. At theconclusion of my presentation, people schedule appointments to meetwith me in the following weeks. At those meetings, I use a nopressure system that helps the client and myself determine what, ifany, insurance products are a right fit for them. I encourage allpotential clients to start with only a small amount that they arecomfortable with to begin, knowing that we can help them with morelater. Finally, myself and my office make sure to follow up withand take care of our potential and existing clients to offertop-notch service and experience.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Although I have worked in sales, management, marketing, and finance, I had never worked withFIAs prior to starting my business. However, from the time I soldmy first FIA to 12 months later, I hit over $7 million in personalFIA production, which wouldn’t have been possible without continualfocus on the education and assistance of others, which allowed meto help hundreds of people. The interesting thing about thatachievement is that I really didn’t know it was unusual and simplykept working with the help of my marketing organization, mymarketer, and my fellow producers to make that happen.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I feel that more producers should look out for what is in thebest interest of the client. Not just in regard to suitability,although that is important, but also with regard to selecting theproper product and its features, negating the personal benefit tosatisfy the client’s benefit. If more people did that, I think wewould see an increase in production industrywide.
|What is the biggest opportunitythat you see in the industry?
|In order for our industry to have continued growth, we must lookto advance our products and their benefits, understanding that thechange in times calls for adaptation. As the younger generationsgrow, more individuals are starting to look at the future and theirretirement at a younger age.
|Being a younger individual myself, I think the industry coulduse more products that benefit the 40-and-under population to startsaving for retirement earlier. If we can capture that market, thegrowth of our industry is inevitable, and we would see moreproduct, company, and industry loyalty.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|They are looking for an individual who can educate them in a waythat makes sense to the consumer. So many people want to understandthe opportunities for growth and safety of their hard earned money,but many advisors use verbiage or double-talk that causes moreconfusion and distrust. We have to remember that we are the expertsand professionals in our field and that is the reason that clientsreach out to us for help. Remember, if our clients wanted to knoweverything that we do, they would go get their license and wouldn’tneed us.
|Listen more than talk, ask rather than tell, and you will helpmore than hurt. Be honest, straightforward, and explain things insimple terms that would make sense to anyone, and you will earntrust.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|I would encourage anyone looking to enter this industry to findthe most successful people who are where you want to be, andsurround yourself with them. Listen, take direction, put your egoin the back seat, and help others. You will find success if yourtop priority is to help others and you remain laser-focused on yourgoals. Throw away doubt and get to work. What has made me who I amtoday has been the work ethic and passion that I learned growing upon a dairy farm. I’ve always followed the philosophy that those whowork the hardest, who make some personal sacrifices and are willingto endure failure while maintaining confidence and a positiveattitude, will see success.
||
Amelia Dobson
|Independent insurance agent, producer RiceInsurance, LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insuranceor financial services?
|I was offered a full-time receptionist position right out ofcollege, and felt that was a superior alternative to the threepart-time jobs I held at the time. I soon found out the agent thathired me was ranked top 20 out of 14,000 or so State Farm agents inthe country. He paid for me to get my license, transitioned meinto service and then sales shortly after. The impact I made onpeople’s lives by being someone who was knowledgeable, friendly,trustworthy and dedicated hooked me instantly. I'm a naturalpeople person. My clients became loyal to me because I wasloyal to them. They say once you start in insurance, you'll neverget out. So far, I've found that to be true.
|Describe what you do:
|My job is to help people navigate the world of personalinsurance. I listen to them and learn about their lives and withthat information I build an insurance package to fit their specificneeds and budget.
|As an independent agent, I work with multiple carriers, whichallows me to bring many options to the table. I am all abouteducation. I don't sell you things you don't need; I don't cutcoverage to beat your current rate. I tell you what's available,how it covers you, how much it costs, but most importantly, Ilisten. I give people the tools necessary to build the levels ofprotection they want. My job is to change people’s perception ofthe insurance industry, one client at a time.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|A lot of people in our community hear the word “insurance” andthink of me. I've proven, over time, that I can be relied upon andtrusted. This has allowed me to write a relatively high volume andit continues to increase. The first couple of years definitelywere slower. I wasn't struggling, but I chose to invest my timeinto activities that would pay off in the long run, not the shortrun. It was hard to stick it out at times, but the last year ortwo, it has really paid off.
|The greatest thing that comes from this isn't the numbers, it'smy community. Success in sales depends on what type of professionalyou are, and this directly relates to who you are as a person. I'velearned so much about people, about life and about myself. I canhonestly say my career in insurance has made me a better me. Thatis something I am not only proud of, I'm extremely thankfulfor.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge I see in our industry goes back to whatI'm actively trying to change: the perception. Too many agents outthere don't take the time to really explain how policies do anddon't work. People are busy, and learning about their coveragedoesn't take high priority, especially when they think their agentis taking proper care of them.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity in insurance is the fact that you havethe flexibility to steer your own ship. You choose how you getreferrals. You choose how much time you put in each day. It's up toyou to decide what type of agent you want to be.
|Do you focus on volume or service, or a combination of both? Areyou going after a niche market? You have to differentiate yourself,that's a fact. But how you differentiate yourself is entirely up toyou. There's a lot of power and opportunity in that. You need thesupport of your company, but ultimately your success rides on yourshoulders. I love the accountability aspect of it. When you feelaccomplished, you can thank yourself for that.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I find millennials are much more interested in learning thedetails of their policies. They're smart, intuitive, innovative andinvest in themselves. They not only want to trust the personthey're working with, they want to get along withthem. Maintaining a professional demeanor is key, but at thesame time you have to let personalities guide the relationship.Think outside of the box. Use technology to your advantage. Savethem time.
|Each year that passes, our lives transition farther away fromthe simplicity of what was our childhood and head deeper into thechaotic reality of today. Hash out the details over email or phonefor convenience, and then take them out for coffee or happy hour tothank them for their business. Work first, play later! At least,that's my motto.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Sales can be a daunting profession and if you don't see resultsimmediately, a lot of people can't handle it. Figure out yourpersonal brand. Everything you do is a reflection of who you areand where you're going. Treat every person you encounter withrespect and appreciation. If you always give, you'll always have.All this to say, go above and beyond for your clients, prospects,referral partners and everyone in between.
|Sales is about earning trust and respect, it's about beingconsistent and having integrity. It's hard work and your effortsshould be focused on the small activities you can complete everyday. Reach out to people. Stay top of mind. Provide value withoutexpecting something in return. If you're spending your time wiselyand prioritizing your integrity, there is nothing anyone can do tostop you.
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Conor Drake
|Marketing director Exclusive InsuranceBrokerage
|Why did you choose a career ininsurance or financialservices?
|I was finishing up graduate school in 2011 and, like manygraduates, I completely financed my education. I began to do someresearch as to how I should structure and pay off the loans I hadaccrued and realized that this was a growing problem among recentgraduates. The more I looked into this issue, the more passionate Ibecame.
|In wanting to try to help others in my situation, I eventuallyreached out to interview at a number of different financialplanning firms. I was lucky enough to catch on at one of thefastest growing companies in the country.
|Describe what you do:
|I operate as a consultant to different financial advisors, assetgatherers or insurance specialists to help them design, develop andimplement strategies for individuals or businesses.
|No two people or businesses are the same, so everything I do isextremely personalized and tailored to each particular business orindividual and their specific set of circumstances.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Last year, I helped design and implement a number of financialproducts and strategies that is going to help a family save up to$60 million in potential estate taxes. Being able to help a familymaintain wealth for several generations was a great experience.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|A current challenge I see is people making financial decisionswithout all of the proper information in hand. With all of thetools that the Internet provides, many people are making importantfinancial decisions based on flashy TV commercials, Google orWikipedia. While I believe every client should do research ontheir own surrounding any important financial decision, there isalso a lot of misinformation out there and it can be difficult tofigure out what information is good information. I believe it ishard to replace the expertise and feedback that is availablethrough working with a great financial services professional.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|Social media is an area I see more and more financialprofessionals utilizing. I am a huge proponent of staying engagedwith your clientele. I think that all of the opportunities thatsocial media provides for us to stay engaged with our clients on amore consistent basis allows us to build a more mutually beneficialrelationship with our clients.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think more than anything else, they are looking for someonethey can trust. I think this is important for anyone looking for aninsurance advisor, but I think millennials are particularlyskeptical. I think a great way to serve this market and build thistrust would be for an advisor to be proficient in managing studentloan debt. I am obviously biased here, but by getting in withmillennials before they are at their peak earning years and helpingthem when maybe it is not the most lucrative time to do so for theadvisor, they can start to build this trust and create a client forlife.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|I would tell someone that there is no substitute for hard work.I think the financial services profession as a whole is aging andthat there is a very good opportunity for a young person with theright attitude and work ethic to be successful. I had an oldfootball coach who used to love the saying, “There is no elevatorto success. You have to take the stairs” and I think that is anespecially relevant sentiment for any young person looking to getinto the industry.
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Michele Fournier
|PC, Life & Health Licenses marketing &communication supervisor Assurance
|Why did you choose a career ininsurance or financialservices?
|This is a funny question, as insurance wasn’t an industry I eversaw myself having a career in. Truth be told, there were a lotstereotypes that didn’t seem appealing to a young marketing &communications professional.
|I originally wanted to go into sports marketing, and when I gotthere, realized that I needed a more stable, 9-5 environment. Isort of fell into insurance, and now I couldn’t imagine not being apart of the industry.
|Describe what you do:
|I’m a Marketing Communication Supervisor at Assurance – a top 50U.S. insurance brokerage. I oversee three individuals on themarketing team and manage a portion of our external communications,working closely with the company’s staffing and constructionpractices.
|In addition to attending and helping plan industry trade shows,I write many of our communication pieces, including flyers, RFPs,email campaigns and web content. I’m also heavily involved in thecompany’s public relations efforts and blog writing.
|Every day is completely different as far as projects.Essentially, my job is to:
|1. help clients minimize risk and maximize the health ofemployees,
|2. bring in new prospects, and
|3. attract the best & brightest talent through marketinginitiatives.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I was named Assurance’s 2014 Employee of the Year. Considering Iwork with 350 bright and motivated insurance professionals, it wasan extremely humbling honor.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|As a marketer within the insurance industry, a big challenge isbridging the gap that exists among the different generations in anorganization, especially as it relates to marketing automation andother technologies in the sales process.
|I have some brokers who embrace digital marketing spheres andCRM, and I have others that are still selling without usingtechnology – and doing well. I think a lot of brokerages arechallenged with reinventing their brand, trying to embracechange/technology and adding young talent while still also cateringto seasoned insurance veterans.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|In the life insurance and benefits arena especially, I thinkthere will be a bigger opportunity in how insurance brokerageseducate clients and their employees on their benefits program.Generations tend to learn differently and have diversemotivators. There’s a lot of opportunity for insurancecompanies to work hand-in-hand with their clients to demonstratethe value of employer-sponsored healthcare and a more customizedapproach.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|The millennial generation is synonymous for jumping fromorganization to organization. As such, I think a lot of millennialsare focused on instant gratification. They want to know what theycan do now within their plan.
|Advisors can help by being present (not just at renewal or openenrollment) and finding new and different ways to reach millennialsto explain their benefits. If you think about it, millennials havethe option to stay on their parent’s plan until the age of 26.Going through an enrollment period, understanding an individualplan and effectively utilizing benefits is likely new.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|This would really be for anyone at any level entering theinsurance industry: Fnd your strengths, brand yourself, but, at theend of the day, stay nimble enough to embrace change. There will bea lot of it!
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Brent Gritton
|Wealth strategist Semler FinancialGroup
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I am the third generation in my family to work in the insuranceindustry. When I officially told my dad, Doug, this is what Iwanted to do, he said, “Great! Brent, be prepared because this isgoing to be the hardest thing you’ve ever done.”
|The reasons that ultimately led to my decision were that Iwanted to have the freedom to be my own boss, I wanted my income tobe a direct result of performance (no guarantees, unlimitedupside), and I knew at the end of the day, every dollar I madewould be a direct result of positively impacting others’ lives. Iwanted to help people and be significant.
|Describe what you do:
|I help folks navigate the increasingly complex world of personalfinance through proven macro-economic principles. I show them howto increase their money supply without taking additional risk andhow to position themselves for maximum retirement income withoutthe fear of running out of money. I play the role of educator withmy clients so they can confidently make decisions regarding theirfinancial affairs.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|To this point, the achievement I’m most proud of is qualifyingfor Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) for the first time in 2014. Iwas close in prior years, but close doesn’t count. This was a goalof mine since I entered the business.
|My grandfather had a ring made with a diamond for every year hequalified for MDRT. I remember seeing him wearing it while growingup, but didn’t understand the significance. My grandfather passedaway before I began my career, but my dad showed me the ring atthat point and told me my first goal needed to be qualifying forMDRT. It took me four years but once I did, it was a greatmoment.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge in the industry is bringing newmillennials into the business. The average age of advisors today isin the mid-50s. We need to bring on younger guys and gals and trainthem to take over.
|In my opinion, in the insurance and financial services industry,there’s a lot of: “My daddy can beat up your daddy.” What I mean bythat is that there is far too much bashing of particular productsor strategies. Everyone’s situation is different. In the world ofpersonal finance, it’s next to impossible to say “everyone shoulddo this and no one should do that or use this product and never usethat product.” The only thing that does is make the decisionprocess for consumers more difficult.
|I believe there is a scenario or set of circumstances out therefor every financial tool. I would like to see more educatinginstead of selling. I feel that would make the decision process forconsumers easier, which is a great thing for the industry as awhole.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|Without question, I believe retirement income planning is thebiggest opportunity in our industry today. I feel this is the areathat poses the largest problem for consumers. With defined benefitpension plans being nonexistent for most, the need for creatingretirement income falls solely on the consumer. With that comes agreat deal of risk.
|In addition to risk, the mindset for retirement income becomesone of scarcity because of the very real fear of running out ofmoney. Teaching consumers ways to maximize their future retirementincome without taking more risk, and without the fear of runningout of money is a message a lot of folks need to hear. This doesn’tjust apply to someone five years from retirement. These discussionsare relevant to the individual or family just startingout. After all, the reason we save money long-term is to beable to generate income in retirement. The sooner one can positiontheir savings in ways that will maximize their future incomewithout the fear of running out, the better.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Certainly, millennials want to work with someone they like andfeel is knowledgeable. I believe they are looking for someone togive them answers. I have to use the word 'education' again becauseI feel it’s so important and is the basis for a lifelongrelationship with an advisor and helps develop trust over time.Someone who can play quarterback for all of their financialaffairs. I don’t mean being a jack of all trades, but someone whocan point them in the direction for guidance in all areas.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Wow. There’s so much I want to say and it’s hard to give justone thing. My message would be, do it. This can be a very rewardingand satisfying career, but if you are like most (myself included)there will be days you struggle. Maybe even days you question whyyou are doing this; just keep at it.
|Always spend time increasing your knowledge. Constantly bethinking of ways to enhance your business and ways you can helpyour clients understand complex issues. You don’t have to be inthis alone. Find mentors. Pick the brains of home office executivesand producers alike.
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Associate, financial advisor Henderson Financial Group, Inc.
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|When I started in the insurance business, I took a financialadvisor position because I needed a job. What made me stay when Iinvested in the profession was the realization of how great animpact I could have on a family through insurance planning. Fromthe people I come in contact with to the value I feel we provide asadvisors, it would be difficult for me to find another field Ienjoy as much as ours.
|Describe what you do:
|I work with my clients to maximize their savings, minimize theirtaxable burden and protect against health emergencies and financialdownturns. To do that, I use insurance and investments.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|In 2014, I was named one of Nashville’s Emerging Leaders. It was animportant achievement to me because the honorees were chosen notjust by their professional accomplishments, but by the impact theyhave on their community. It’s very easy to get wrapped up in yourwork, and it was nice to know that the things I do outside theoffice can make a difference as well.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge I see in our industry is attracting andretaining young talent. Many young advisors can’t stick around longenough to gain a passion for our industry, and finances are a bigreason why. We need to find ways to financially incentivize newtalent and support them until they can build a sustainable book ofbusiness. If we don’t, we will continue to see a decline in newrecruits to the financial industry.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The regulatory push for transparency creates a real opportunityfor advisors. The more information a client has at their disposal,the easier it is for us to establish trust and make them feel as ifthey are informed and knowledgeable about their finances. These aresoft skills, things that have nothing to do with book knowledge.But if we can master them, we’ll always be irreplaceable to ourclients.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I believe millennials want an insurance advisor who will treatthem as partners in insurance planning, rather than customers. TheInternet now gives consumers access to all of the information thatwe have as advisors. To serve millennials, we need to be able toexplain products in a way they understand. In addition, we alsoneed the ability to get a person to act on attaining coverage theyneed, even when they don’t understand what that particular productis at first.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Find a mentor who will take you into meetings and situationsthat are over your head. Luckily, I have a mentor who not onlyencourages me to think bigger, but also takes me into complexsituations where I can watch and learn. I’m in my fifth year and amjust now coming across my own clients who need some of thestrategies I watched him implement when I first started. If Ihadn’t learned how to read a room and see a client’s unspokenneeds, I would miss out on those opportunities to be ofservice.
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Cameron Jacox
|Co-founder InforcePro
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|When the idea for InforcePro was hatched, I was still incollege. We went into the industry to solve the particular problemthat we discovered. That problem has now been solved with oursoftware, but now we realize that there is an array of differentand complementary problems that we can solve usingsoftware.
|Describe what you do:
|I'm co-founder at InforcePro, which is the only software companyto have built an in-force, or “post-issue” solution for policymonitoring and policyholder engagement. Technology in our industryhas been laser-focused on pre-issue — getting a policy into forcefaster and better — for over 20 years. The dropoff of technologyvendors' focus after a policy was issued mirrored the drop off inattention by the agent in that regard, but that begged the “chickenor egg” question: Did the agent fail to engage with in-forcepolicies because he did not have adequate technology, or didadequate technology not exist because the agent wouldn't use it? AtInforcePro, we've discovered that the answer is the former. Inshort, InforcePro can download, update, alert on, market to, andreport about in-force business.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I think it's extremely exciting that InforcePro has, in just 12months, developed partnerships with eight of the top ten nationalmarketing organizations, earned over 110 BGAs as clients, and cometo monitor over two million in-force policies. Our growth isprobably the thing that I'm most proud of. It illustrates thereally fundamental need for post-issue solutions and the pent-updemand for in-force monitoring capabilities.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The single biggest challenge that we face today is the same asour single biggest historical mistake: Saying “gotcha” topolicyholders or, more specifically, the fact that the exclusiveway of communicating with policyholders was through the use of“terse” 30-day notices prior to major policy events. This way ofdoing business has corollary concepts in “buyer beware.” But thelife insurance industry has hurt its reputation this way, so whyhas it continued?
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity is to embrace post-issue technologysolutions to follow the policyholder after they become one. Thefoundation for that is information about the inforce contract; whatis it, what needs to be monitored, and how can technology enableit? That needs to be readily accessible to the carrier and agency.Next, comes the creative aspect: The ability to connect withpolicyholders’ social and banking profiles online, generateperiodic reevaluations of coverage and even risk.InforcePro has focused, first, on the moving parts in policycontracts. Conversion options cannot be a gotcha provision provided30 days prior to expiration – or not at all.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|We're looking for someone who is just as tech savvy as we are.We're OK with an in-person meeting, but we don't need a policydelivered and we sure don't find it acceptable to have to call into get a policy update, make a payment, or make a change – thatneeds to happen online. And once our policy is in-force, our needs and desires are fluid and mobile as are our lives; we need tobe able to make changes, evaluate the in-force policy, and increaseor decrease the coverage or structure more easily. Otherwise, itwill seem too static and out of touch.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Enter with your head up and keep your head up. Realize that theindustry is driven by sales and distribution, along with data andanalytics, and success in those capabilities can drive your careerforward unlike any others.
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Karan Kanodia
|Co-founder, managing partner InforcePro
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|My career in insurance was never planned. I was alwaysinterested in the cross section of technology and finance. The roaddown the insurance industry was driven by naïveté, drivenby the belief that it is one of the largest industries globallywith extremely slow technology adoption. In addition to thespecific opportunity we were tackling, I believed therewas an opportunity to have a dramatic impact on this industrythrough technology. That's turning out to be true more and morewith every passing day.
|Describe what you do:
|InforcePro is the first ever post-sale customer engagementplatform for insurance distributors. Most technologyis focused on pre-issue in our industry such as CRMs, quotingproviders, e-apps, etc. InforcePro is focused on the bridging thepost-sale gap. It is able to do so by automating inforce data feedsfrom carriers, creating the first ever database of legacy productsgoing way back to the 80s, and finally integrating with multiplequoting providers to create an end-to-end policy review engine thatenables distributors to stay on top their books like neverbefore.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Conversion of large enterprise customer pilots into fullscale implementations. As a young company, resources are scarcewhile demands of multinational enterprises are multi-dimensional;they often include comprehensive product features, support, ITsecurity, etc. Today, InforcePro has 1000+ enterprises as clientswith some multi-billion dollar houses such as Scotia Bank.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|Lack of transparency and proactive customer engagement.Insurance is often seen as a static one-time purchase by consumerswho have little awareness of the complexities. Through InforcePro,I'd like to empower distributors to engage with policyholdersand aid consumers to take well-informed riskmitigations decisions.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|There's a wealth of opportunity to leverage data andgenerate insights for a stronger understanding of consumer purchasepatterns, agency management, product performance variations, etc.The key pre-requisite is easy access to in-forcedata which is one of InforcePro's core focuses.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|As a millennial myself and having grown up with easy access toinformation through the Internet, we have a tendency to researchtopics ourselves instead of taking them atface-value. Advisors can stand out by playing tothat instinct of millennials instead of the older-styleinformation-monopoly mindset.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|This industry is a combination of data andrelationships. So skills in data analytics with comfort getting outinto the field and building relationships will go a longway.
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Ryan J. McCarty
|Founding partner MegastarAdvisors, LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|The insurance industry chose me — my grandfather, RogerMcCarty, founded Brokers International over 60 years ago, whichtoday is one of the largest IMOs in the industry. My familyencouraged me to learn the insurance business from the ground up.Subsequently, that is what I’ve done.
|I remember working summers at Brokers, where I saw first-handhow brokers created long-lasting relationships with advisors acrossthe country and develop some of the most exciting products in theindustry.
|These experiences and values convinced me to enter the insuranceindustry. I am proud to be a third-generation member of thisbusiness, and now co-creator of Megastar Advisors, an IMO inpartnership with Brokers International.
|Describe what you do:
|I’m a founding partner of Megastar Advisors, a young,progressive IMO with business model platforms that give advisors acompetitive advantage over their competition. Some of these modelsinclude our Virtual Tax Platform, Social Security and RetirementWorkshops as well as an innovative Federal Benefits program whichare all trained by top producers in the country.
|At our home office, I’m responsible for the day-to-dayoperations of overseeing our recruiting, servicing and contractingdepartment. The market is always changing, so I spend a largepercentage of my time staying current on the industry and usingthat knowledge to find and create new opportunities for our agents.If they’re successful, we’re successful.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I’m proud that our team comes to work every day with one goal —help our agents get in front of more prospective clients. We dothis well because our models are successful! This has allowed ourcompany to grow by over 50 percent every year since its founding.When you fulfill your promises to agents and back up commitmentswith results, you get noticed.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you wouldchange?
|The biggest challenge that I see in our industry is that we havemany salespeople and not enough business owners. I find that manyadvisors constantly “hunt” for their next prospect instead of“farm.” And farming, or long-term growth, requires a strategic planand mindset.
|So it was clear that our biggest challenge was to changeadvisors’ way of thinking. We began to educate our agents aboutother successful business practices and models, outside of thecommon seminar. An example of this could be adding a tax practice,but where an advisor would lean on Megastar’s network of CPAs tocover the processing of the returns by using our secure cloud basedtechnology. We push both ourselves and our agents on how to worksmarter, not harder.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|According to the Office of Personnel Management, anindependent agency of the United States government, 60 percent ofthe four-million federal employee workforce will be eligible toretire by 2016. This means that there are approximately 2.4 millionpotential clients for professionals in our industry to serve. Thisis huge!
|Yet, there are very few advisors and IMOs that can understandand target the opportunities to help these prospects. That’s whywe’ve developed a program to help advisors capture their share ofthis rapidly-growing market.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Frankly, I think millennials are looking for an insuranceadvisor who will give them the time of day. Our industry tends tofocus on the senior and boomer market over the millennialgeneration, so I think this is an underservedmarket.
|Many millennials had their first taste of the stock market in2008 – I know I did. So how can agents better help them navigatethe ups and downs and prepare for their future? Advisors can helpput together a plan that fits their lifestyle and goals. They canalso educate them on the multitude of products that are availableoutside of the common 401(k) or the powerful advantages ofoverfunding Index Universal Life products.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Never stop reading and learning. In an industry dominated byolder insurance agents, I can’t tell how many of them have said,“If only I knew in my twenties what I know now.” I took thisto heart and constantly stretch my limits on unfamiliar topics, andyou should, too. There are many advisors open to mentoring youngprofessionals. Take advantage of this opportunity.
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Virginia A. McNeil
|Junior partner; director of case design McNeil, Ahrens &Lambert Financial Group, LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I grew up in the industry. I’m the fourth generation to join thefirm. When we were teenagers, our parents always made us have jobsin the summer once we turned 15. When I started coming in, Irealized very soon that this is what I wanted to do. I started tosee how people were coming in with their problems and my father andgrandfather would help them.
|Then, I went to college and studied financial planning. Afterthat, I worked for an insurance company for about a year and thenjoined the firm.
|Describe what you do:
|I am the director of case design. When we have new clients comein, I’m the one who analyzes everything and puts it all together.Then, when we go to present in the second meeting, I’m the onepresenting. I do a lot of the case work and designing financialplans.
|The best part of what I do is that I don’t have to come to workevery day and do the same thing. Creating a plan that fits theclient’s unique needs is the core of what we do.
|The other thing is that some days I do things that I’ve neverdone before. We treat our clients like family and I feel like whenit comes down to it … if a client is going through a death ortragedy we are going to do everything we can to help them and makeit easier for them.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|When I joined the firm in May 2012, I was the youngest by a longstretch. The partners are all in their late 50s and up. When Ijoined as an associate, I was very adamant about changing somethings, implementing some efficiency in the office, updating theCRM system and going paperless and things that they were notthrilled at all about doing. But after we really were able toaccomplish a lot more efficiency in the office, I feel like we wereable to do a lot more business and serve our clients better.
|Fast forward to two years later, I made partner in 2014. Now, in2015, we are on track to double our production from last year, so Ifeel like that has a lot to do with the changes that we made andimplemented. These changes have really helped the efficiency of thebusiness and have made us able to do more.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|When a new or prospective client has been burned by anotheradvisor. I think that is the biggest challenge to overcome becauseyou have to make up for lost time. We’ve had people come to us andtheir previous advisor has either misled them or put them ininvestments they don’t understand. That is the biggest challenge:trying to gain their trust back.
|What we really do is, when we sit down with our prospective andexisting clients on an annual or semi-annual basis, we take thingsvery slowly. We’re not trying to push and sell. We are very slowand thorough. We are doing things very clearly in their bestinterests. We really take the fiduciary approach, whereas it mightnot pay off right then, in the end it will because we’re going tokeep those clients for longer and they’re going to refer clientsfor us. We have a lot of referrals.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity is marketing to women. Just being theonly woman in the firm that is a partner, all the other partnerspointed out that when I was in meetings with the clients, how I wasable to connect with the wives. And a lot of times it’s the womanwho makes all the decisions and she usually has the final say onwhich way they’re going to lean.
|It used to be that the women weren’t making the money, but theywere controlling it, and now, that’s not true. Now, women aremaking just as much if not more than men and they areunderestimated.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think millennials are looking for an independent advisorwhether they know it or not. A lot of times, millennials don’treally know the value of life insurance. I think that they’relooking for an independent advisor because, really, it’s theunbiased opinion that you need. It is what fits in your plan, howmuch do you need, what can you afford. I think it’s reallyimportant for them to take all of these things intoconsideration.
|Advisors can best serve this market by educating their clientsearly. A lot of times we focus on retirement planning with ourclients because they are older, but sometimes our client will sendin their kids or grandkids, and so we’re dealing with that nextgeneration. And one thing that we do is that we’re educating ourclients early so that they can prepare for retirement, even if it’s30 or 40 years down the road.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|My No. 1 piece of advice would be to find a mentor. I am luckyenough to have my dad as my mentor. I know that most people aren’tthat lucky to get into the family business and not be forced intoit, but to actually have a mentor that cares and you know that theyreally have your best interests at heart.
|I think that finding a mentor is the most important thingbecause you really can’t be an advisor just by reading a book. It’sso much more than that. You have to be able to really immerseyourself in it and be able to witness it firsthand, witness it bysomebody else doing it and witness it over and over, the best wayto do it.
|My advice to young women entering the industry is to have theconfidence in yourself. That doesn’t mean that you necessarily knowmore than the other person in the room. It is not how much youknow. It is having the confidence, having the know-how and theresources available to find out what you need.
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Anthony Montenegro
|Partner, NEA member Freedom DreamTeam, Inc.
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|The untimely passing of my father is what ultimately led me tothe insurance industry. He was a hardworking, blue-collarindividual and, like so many Americans, he simply didn't have theproper tools or education to set up an effective financial plan forhimself and his family. The hardship of this experience is whatinspired me to begin educating individuals about safer moneychoices for their retirement.
|Describe what you do:
|Perhaps it seems like this answer should be longer but it'shonestly quite simple. I help provide my clients with safermoney solutions that protect their principal and interest frommarket declines.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I'm extremely thankful and proud of the position I'm in.I've had the good fortune to find success in my business career ata young age. However, more important than the success itself, arethe opportunities that success has provided me with. I feelblessed to be in a position to give back to those lessfortunate. My beautiful wife and I have donated to severalcharities. Although each one has been an incrediblygratifying experience, I would say the achievement thatespecially stands out was when we adopted a family of fivefrom the Candle Lighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Nevada lastChristmas. To be in a position to provide this family withboth gifts and meals to help them during such a difficult time wasbeyond rewarding. Seeing the family's reaction from the smiles tothe laughs was without question the moment I'm most proud of.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The lack of education and awareness can be a frustrating andfrankly sad challenge. I've had the pleasure of helping many peoplekeep their money safe, but unfortunately you also meet far toomany couples who were never aware of these products until theywere no longer in a position to benefit from them. Meeting withthose whom invested the majority or even all of their retirementsavings in a risky investment that fell apart is a very difficultand troubling challenge to deal with.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I believe the biggest challenge can also be the biggestopportunity, so I go back to education and awareness,specifically as it relates to safer money choices. Manyindividuals only offer products that contain risk, regardless oftheir clients’ age, goals and situation. Over the last few years,the financial landscape of America has changed immensely. There isso much uncertainty in the world today, and people fear goingthrough the same challenges they did in 2007 and 2008. Thebiggest opportunity I see is the ability to helpeducate consumers on products that can help keep theirmoney safer, and provide lifetime income in a time where people areliving longer, thus spending far more years in retirement.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I am in a unique situation as I am a millennial. I believethey're looking for an insurance advisor who is direct and keepsthings simple and easy to understand. Millennials move quick,and are used to technology that does the same. Being direct andkeeping it easy to understand is critical. Millennials typicallyseek instant gratification, they need someone to educate them as tothe importance of starting to save sooner rather than later.The sooner they can start planning for the future, the betteroff they will be down the road, and as one myself I do feelmillennials are becoming more aware of this than ever before.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|The insurance industry is tough. It’s even tougher for someonewho is young. I believe you have to work twice as hard to get thesame results as someone who is older. To be successful at a youngage, you have to be humble and understand that you do notknow everything. You must be coachable and learn fromothers that have had success.
|Perhaps most importantly, you MUST beconfident in your abilities. I'd say thick skin is anecessity as well. There will be people that won't want to workwith you because of your age, but you can't allow that to deteryou because most people care more about your knowledge andprofessionalism then your date of birth.
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Alan Moore
|Co-founder XY Planning Network
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I chose a career in personal finance because I realized early onthat I could help people live their great life, and we could usetheir finances as a way to support that life. Money is a reallysensitive topic, so the relationship we have with our clients isreally special. We know things about them that they wouldn't wantanyone else to know, sometimes even including their significantother. They also expose their financial flaws to us, many timesinvolving insurance protections (or lack thereof).
|Describe what you do:
|Until very recently, I provided comprehensive financial planningadvice to clients. We would work together on pretty much any topicthat touched their personal financial life including: cash flow anddebt management, student loans, retirement, investments, estateplanning, taxes, college planning, and insurance needs. I realizedthat it was impossible for me to do an insurance analysis withoutreally digging into the rest of my clients' financial life toreally understand where they were coming from.
|I say "until recently" because I recently merged my firm with alarger RIA so that I could step back from doing client work, andinstead focus on helping financial advisors serve next generationclients. I co-founded the XY Planning Network, where we helpadvisors launch their own financial planning practice to serve GenX/Y clients. We teach them how to work virtually, using newbusiness models such as monthly subscription services, and givethem the tools they need to grow their business.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|The launch and growth of XY Planning Network has beenstaggering. In a little over a year, we've brought over 100 firmsonto our platform. It shows the desire among younger advisors toprovide financial planning to their peers, and their desire to owntheir own business, and it has been a real honor to watch them growtheir practices.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|We are still so focused on assets under management as the gaugeof success, and I hope that changes sooner rather than later. Wecan't continue to only focus on providing services to wealthyindividuals, because that's such a small subset of consumers.Instead, what if advisors changed their business models and rolledout a service that allowed clients to pay their advisor monthly?How many people can afford a monthly fee of $100 - $200/month thatdon't currently have an advisor?
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I see the biggest opportunity in the personal finance spacebeing overcoming the biggest challenge of not serving youngerclients and those in general without assets. If you want to build asuccessful and profitable business working with clients thathaven't saved a lot in assets, you can, and there are very fewadvisors in this space. Very few advisors want the client in their30s tackling student loan debt, and balancing mortgage obligation,college savings etc.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|They are look for real advisor, not a product pitch. The days ofthe hard sales pitches is dead, and to serve next gen clients, ourapproach has to change. Helping them with their entire financialpicture, and seeing where insurance fits into that picture, is theservice they are looking for. And it's a service they are willingto pay for, despite what many older advisors will tellyou.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Be willing to learn from the experienced advisors, butunderstand that what made them successful isn't what will make yousuccessful. The sales pitch is different, the hustle is different,the marketing challenges and expectations of our clients are alldifferent. Learn everything you can, as fast as you can, but neverget sucked into believing that the old school methods will continueto be effective going forward.
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Sten Morgan, CFP, ChFC
|Financial advisor LegacyInvestment Planning of Franklin, Tenn. (a part of the MetLife PremierClient Group)
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|From a very young age, I wanted to help people with theirfinances. It’s amazing how a comprehensive financial plan thatincludes insurance planning can provide peace of mind andsignificantly reduce stress for a family. I am blessed to be in abusiness where I serve my clients daily and work with them tosecure and protect their financial futures.
|Describe what you do:
|We believe that it is becoming more and more complicated forindividuals, families and business owners to manage and protecttheir finances in an efficient manner. This complexity, in turn,makes it harder for people to make confident decisions, andtherefore many people are not creating and maintainingcomprehensive financial plans. Our team works closely with ourclients, along with their other professional advisors, to simplifythe complexity of financial planning in an effort to createsuperior financial outcomes for them.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I was a part of the founding group of Tucker’s House, a localnonprofit that retrofits homes for families with special needsdependents. We make improvements such as installing ramps, roll-inshowers, widening doorways, installing new flooring, etc. It wasdifficult in the early years to secure funding and keep up with thedemand in our community, but after more than six years of work, weare going strong and have helped over 80 families. As aspecial needs planner, I also provide some special needs planningguidance to the families we serve.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge I see in our industry is the low number ofnew advisors, with the average age of current advisors somewherearound 50. It is very difficult to succeed in this industry, asevidenced by the high attrition rate and aging advisor population,and I have a strong desire to help new advisors prepare themselvesfor this business. New advisors need to have a clear expectation ofwhat it means to build a practice and established advisors need toserve as mentors to help with that process. I’m currently workingwith industry coaches on a curriculum to help attract and retainmore young advisors, in part by providing greater clarity aroundwhat it means to build a career in this industry.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity I see in the industry is advisorteaming. It is becoming more and more difficult for one advisor tokeep up with all of the factors that impact his or her clients. Iformed Legacy Investment Planning for the express purpose ofbringing together a diverse group of advisors to deliver a higherquality product to our clients. Our clients reap the benefits ofthe expertise of a group of advisors through a single relationshipwith our firm, whereas in the past they may have been forced toenlist the help of multiple advisors and professionals from avariety of firms and companies.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I believe millennials need to be educated about how insuranceplanning fits into their overall financial strategy. Millennialsare researching on the Internet before they make most decisions andit can be information overload. Our team slows down the planningprocess in order to provide clarity around the big picture beforewe start implementing each piece of the plan.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Be ready to work harder than you ever have. I believe mostpeople that try this business and don’t succeed did not realize howdifficult it can be in the early years to educate yourself, build anetwork and create a practice. There can be great momentum in thisbusiness down the road, but you have to be willing to earnit.
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David Nicholas
|President & founder Nicholas WealthManagement
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I chose a career in financial planning because I wanted to makea positive difference in people’s lives. As I financial advisor, Ihave the ability to offer my clients a variety of servicesincluding financial planning, investment advice, insurance,retirement planning and active portfolio management. Beingan independent financial advisor gives me the freedom to giveunbiased financial advice that is in my clients best interests andnot the interests of a certain bank, investment or insurancecompany.
|Describe what you do:
|I help give objective advice to select individuals and familiesin or near retirement who want to protect and grow their assetswhile minimizing the risk of running out of money during theirlifetime.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|I had a client whose husband passed away suddenly. Shortly afterhis death, my client became the sole caretaker for her three younggrandkids. Paying the bills and meeting her monthly expenses with adecreased income and more mouths to feed almost becameimpossible.
|I was in Scottsdale for a Social Security training classfor financial advisors, and while I was there I learned about abenefit that is available for individuals who arethe legal guardians of children under 18. I couldn’t waitto get back from the trip to see if this benefit couldpotentially work for my client. We scheduled a time with the localSocial Security office and, after jumping through a few hoops, gotapproved for a survivors’ benefit for each of her threegrandkids. The Social Security benefit would be paid to my clienton each of the three kids until they turned 18. This was huge! Theextra income coming from the Social Security benefit wasenough to pay monthly expenses and left some available to start acollege fund for her grandkids. It was one of my proudest momentsas a financial advisor.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest problem I see in the industry is advisors who don'thave the proper licenses or designations to act in a fiduciarycapacity. I think it is a true disservice for the client.The incentives for all parties involved should beproperly aligned and acting in a fiduciary capacity would helpaccomplish that.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity I see is for young individuals enteringthe industry. TD Ameritrade recently released a study that showedhow less than 8 percent of advisors are under the age of 35. Thisis a huge opportunity for young Americans looking for a fulfillingcareer opportunity.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think millennials are looking for someone they can trust.Someone who has the ability to take complex issues and make themunderstandable. Also, due to the recent financial crisis of 2008, Ithink millennials are more risk averse than previousgenerations. Advisors must have a solutionfor millennials to get a reasonable return on theirinvestments while also protecting their principle.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|I can't reiterate this enough: Go and learn from someonewho is already successful. It is worth taking a cut in pay inthe beginning to learn from someone that isvery successful because you will learn principles and skillsthat will allow you to also be successful one day. Havinga successful mentor as a young person can be thedifference between making it in this industry or failing.Ultimately, if you provide a service that people need, aretrustworthy and work hard, you should do very well.
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Victoria Peterson
|Vice president of operations Wink,Inc.
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I was very fortunate when a career in insurance chose me! I wasjust beginning my college career, when Sheryl J. Moore (founder ofWink, Inc.) recruited me to come work for her a year after she’dstarted her business back in 2006. I took a leap of faith and beganmy insurance career nearly ten years ago (still attending andgraduating college with a degree in business administration).
|Over the years, I have been lucky enough to work with and learnfrom some of the greatest experts in this business. If I had to‘choose’ all over again, I would still choose insurance. It is sorewarding to work in an industry where I’m surrounded by others whochoose to live a life and career with a commitment to integrity andeducation!
|Describe what you do:
|I run the day-to-day operations at Wink, Inc. This could meananything from scheduling the fire extinguisher inspections toplanning office massages and team outings. Additionally, I managethe Wink staff and oversee the maintenance of LookToWink.com’sAnnuitySpecs and LifeSpecs tools as well as “Wink’s Sales &Market Report.”
|I am in charge of the upkeep and enhancements of our tools andcustomer service for our subscribers. I also foster an intimateknowledge of the fixed and indexed life insurance and annuityindustries and utilize this to help support, and preserve, strongrelationships with our clients.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|An achievement that I’m especially proud of is the success ofbecoming vice president of operations at Wink, Inc. Running thedaily operations at this great company is an honor and I am proudof my staff, the company rebranding, implementation of websiteenhancements and overall growth that have occurred in the pastthree years!
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I believe the biggest challenge in the insurance industry is thelack of awareness and education about these great products: lifeinsurance and annuities. There is a plethora of inaccurateinformation in the media about fixed and indexed insuranceproducts. This would be the No. 1 thing I wish I could change.Bringing awareness and testimony about these products to anyone andeveryone would not only be great for our industry but for ourcountry as a whole.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I believe the biggest opportunity in this industry is formillennials to begin a career in this business. According toMcKinsey & Co. the average age of an insurance agent in the USis 59. This opens the door to SO many opportunities for millennialsto begin a long and successful career as these agents begin toretire. There are countless agents and industry experts that arewilling to be mentors in this business. My hope is that other youngpeople will take this opportunity and change not only their lives,but others lives as well!
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think millennials are looking for someone they can relate toin an insurance advisor. Not necessarily someone their age orgender, but someone they have things in common with, that they cantrust, converse with, and learn from. Millennials are also lookingfor someone with a good online presence or someone they’ve beenreferred to. Vetting online is such a norm now, I think mostmillennials are looking for someone whose previous interactions canbe evaluated. Also, being able to have a relationship with youragent is something that I feel is important. Personally, I wouldn’twant to make large life decision, and place thousands of dollars ofmy hard-earned money, with someone I don’t trust or relate to.
|In my opinion, buying life insurance and annuities should not bea transactional experience; it should be a relationship-buildingexperience. I think this type of insurance agent would not only bethe best type of agent for millennials, but also for thisindustry.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Do it! Take a leap of faith and get into this business. Whetheryou become an independent agent or home office employee, you areultimately helping to educate people on the importance ofinsurance! It can, and will, be so rewarding for you to know thatyou helped save someone heartache during the death of a loved one,in retirement, while sending children off to college or in themidst of a health crisis. Not enough people know about theimportance or necessity of life insurance and annuities and we needYOU to help change the lives of these people!
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Melissa Pohlig
|Product manager, Solutions Team SEI
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I knew that financial services was a rewarding career, but mylove for it grew when I interned one summer at SEI.
|I also like that, in our specific unit, we work with financialadvisors, so I felt like I was working with small business ownersand entrepreneurs like my dad. To me, helping them build betterbusinesses and grow that business, that was my connection to thesmall business.
|Our whole gig is basically that the advisors outsource theiroperation, technology and investment management to us, so that theycan create better businesses. I like the business philosophy of,"If they’re successful, we’re successful." We are their businesspartners. To me, I just really bought in to that model and I thinkit’s a win-win.
|Describe what you do:
|I always laugh because if you look at my LinkedIn, technicallymy role is I’m a product manager on the solutions team, which meansabsolutely nothing to anyone. Basically, I always assume that theygive you these broad titles because it’s kind of a catch-all forall that we do in product development. What our team does is welook across the industry and ask, “What are advisors having issueswith that they’re facing today?”
|We do our own research and develop our opinions. Rather thanadmiring the issue, we actually do something about it, like my bosssays. We build some type of program or develop some type of productthat will help them address the issue.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|This always makes me sound like a geek, but I’m going to say itanyways. Earlier this year, we launched a workflow program and Iconsider that my biggest achievement at SEI.
|Basically the issue that we were trying to solve for was this:Advisors use a lot of different types technologies and they are notsure how to leverage them. These advisors are small businesses, andthey’re trying to become more efficient without adding more staff.Those two things combined, we were trying to figure out a way toleverage the technology to create more efficiency and help peoplewith the integration.
|Going back about 18 months ago when we first kicked off thisproject, our idea was basically, “Let’s take the high-end workflowsthat you would see in typical big corporations and sales forces,and let’s bring it to our 6,500 small business advisors via theirCRM," allowing them to be more efficient with the staff that theyhave, allowing them to be more efficient with the technology thatthey have.
|We went through a million project plans, feedback, testing … itwas a very long process. We finally launched this past May, and wehad our first group of clients go through the program. They sawspectacular results with their businesses in terms of making theirbusiness more efficient. I find it very rewarding that I was ableto build a program that has helped entrepreneurs. We have a betaclient that doubled their numbers in financial plans and clientmeetings because of these workflows.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The easiest way to explain this is by using the followingexample: Whenever I meet someone, they usually ask, “What do you dofor a living?” I usually kind of expect their reactions, but I tendto simplify the conversation and say, “I work in financialservices.” And their eyes typically glaze over and the discussionmoves on to the next topic.
|I think that reaction is a mixture of the bad image thisindustry has because it’s been tainted by Wall Street and all thepress they’ve gotten over the years about bad transactions andweird behavior. But also I think that a lot of people who aren’t inthe industry think a job in finance is a desk job, where you areprocessing paper and crunching numbers all day and it’s not anengaging career.
|I think the biggest issue is that we need to do more to attractthe younger generation to this industry from an employmentstandpoint. We should create more careers to attract and retainmillennials. We are brand loyal to the core for everything. We’realso do-gooders. We want to feel like we’re making a difference inthe world.
|And if we were to create more empowering career opportunities,we could pump new blood into the industry, and solve theseretention issues people are seeing. I think I’m a good example ofthat, but I don’t think workflows are the most exciting thing towork on. I do feel empowered because I’m helping small businessowners. But also, I am very loyal to SEI because I feel valued atmy job.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|Financial advisors should be looking at millennials and servingthis market. This is actually the area of focus right now for mynewest project: figuring out what millennials value and whatengages them to work with a financial advisor.
|This is a big issue in the industry, not because advisors shouldonly work with millennials because they’re the ideal clients;obviously, you should also work with boomers, the retirement baseand other typical clients. But the reason advisors should focus onmillennials is because they’re forward-thinking.
|There’s so much stuff going on right now with acquisitions andmergers, robo-advisors, the list goes on. I think that the industryis changing. If you can build something that caters to this groupthat is forward-thinking, then I think it can be scaled across anygeneration. If you are able to deliver something to this group, youare going to be able to scale it across all demographics and it’sgoing to be a forward way of delivering advice to themarketplace.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think millennials are super diverse, so you can go a millionways. In our research, I’ve zeroed on this group called “TheHenrys.” The “Henrys” stands for “high-earning, not rich yet”group. These are the go-getters who are coming in into high-payingprofessions, but don’t have a lot of assets yet.
|Advisors typically go for people with more assets, but the ideahere is that the “Henrys” could be your ideal client. For example,debt management is very high in their list of needs because theyhave a high education, and retirement planning is another bigneed.
|These “Henrys” are also about to go through a lot of lifechanges: marriage, house-buying, their first kid. I would say agood example of these “Henry” types is a young doctor that isending his fellowship and is about to go from making $40,000 to sixfigures. The doctor might not have a ton of assets, but he or shewill be a good client down the road.
|The “Henrys” need help to get back on track financially, butthey don’t realize they need it nor that advisors would even payattention to them. The areas of the advisors’ business that I wouldfocus on to cater to them is threefold:
- |
Lead generation and engagement are going to be keyhere: Millennials don’t even realize that they needan advisor. Breaking through and finding a way to engage them inthe first place is important. It’s just not enough just getting infront of them, is engaging them.
Fee structure and product packaging: Weare the most educated generation to date and we’re hyperaware ofour decisions. Advisors are going to have to cater not only to thefact that we want to know what we’re paying for, but also to thefact that we are price-sensitive because we don’t have a lot ofmoney. Transparency, a solid fee structure and service package willbe key for catering to this group.
Servicing and communications model: Howdo you interact with the millennial? In general, we’re driven,we’re working late, and we might have kids. Advisors might have togo down the path of meeting afterhours, meeting after work,shooting emails and texts back and forth. We need to come up with amore flexible service model where it’s not the typical “we meetonce a year and review our accounts” model.
What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|My dad always says to me, “You’re burning the candle at bothends,” and I think that’s a good piece of advice to tell people.You should be burning the candle at both ends. Meaning: Don’t beafraid to overextend yourself at this age. It’s how you’ll getexposure and how you get opportunities down the line.
|Be involved in other projects, groups, organizations. Theobvious thing is that they connect your skills and network, butmost importantly, you’ll feel fulfilled. Try to do things that makeyou feel good.
|Burn the candle at both ends. This is the time to do it. It’s OKto be selfish to put yourself in a bunch of different areas and getthese learnings and experience.
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Derek Prusa, CFP
|Vice president, financial planning FormulaFolioInvestments LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I enjoy analyzing data and helping people achieve their goals.In this industry, I get the best of both worlds. One of the mostenjoyable parts of my job is working on plans for clients who arein financial distress and finding alternative options that willhelp them to achieve their aspirations. Each time I am able tobetter a client’s financial situation, it reminds me why I enteredthe industry in the first place.
|Describe what you do:
|I create financial plans for numerous advisors to present totheir clients all over the United States. In the planningdepartment, we look at the clients’ current situations anddetermine a variety of ways they can improve their overallfinancial well-being and achieve their short and long-termfinancial goals. In order to achieve this, we look at multipleaspects of their financial life and use various products such asfixed annuities, fixed indexed annuities, and variable annuitiescombined with using different proprietary money managementstrategies as well as using multiple money managers. By blendingmultiple investment products/strategies together, we are betterable to increase the clients’ probability of success by achievingthe best risk/return possible for their complete portfolio.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|The achievements I am most proud of are passing the Level 1, 2,and 3 CFA Exams and the CFP Exam on my first attempts. I amespecially proud of this because I took the Level 1 CFA Exam assoon as I graduated college in June 2012.
|After passing Level 1, my former employer wanted me to forgetabout the CFA program and focus on my CFP designation. At theirrequest, I shifted gears and started the CFP classes in September2012 and passed the final CFP Exam in July 2013.
|After finishing the CFP Exam, I had to reset my mind again andstarted studying for the Level 2 CFA Exam. Although this may notseem too difficult, the CFA and CFP programs are extremelydifferent in the type of knowledge required. Even though they aredesignations within the same industry, the CFA and CFP programs donot overlap too much, which made switching back and forth extremelychallenging (as if they were not challenging enoughindividually).
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I believe the biggest challenge in the industry is being able toproperly educate clients. Clients are able to access moreinformation than ever due to advancements in technology and socialmedia. This is good to an extent, but more information is notalways better. A lot of the information available to clients todayis not reputable or may not necessarily be pertinent to theclients’ unique circumstances.
|An overload of irrelevant information can lead clients to havean illusion of knowledge, thinking they have a better understandingthan they actually do about a topic. This makes it more difficultfor advisors to educate the client on what is truly best for thembecause the client may believe they have superior information tothe advisor.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|I see great opportunity in the personalized financial advisingniche. People will always need advisors. Even with the increasing“Do It Yourself” mentality of the younger generations, people willstill need sound investment advice and guidance. There has been ahuge advancement in the robo-advisor movement to help capture this newage of independence, but these programs are still limited on theirlevels of customization. With the ever-increasing complexity of thefinancial industry, clients are going to be willing to pay apremium in order to receive a more holistic planning approach totheir unique circumstances.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Millennials are looking for an advisor who can be a partner tohelp them rather than an advisor telling them exactly what to do.They want to be educated with expert advice and guidance fromprofessionals in the field while maintaining the ability to maketheir own decisions. The millennial market is best served bylearning the unique circumstances of each individual client, thenproviding the client with multiple winning options. This allows theclient to maintain the independence of making their own decisionswhile implementing a strategy that fits their individual needs.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Keep pushing yourself to learn new things and be willing toadapt with new innovations. There is no “one size fits all” in thisindustry, so you have to be flexible to new ideas. It is easy to dothe same thing over and over again, but that is not how you succeedin the long run. You have to innovate to “winovate.”
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Lindsey Reale
|Marketing manager The Hartford’s Group Benefits
|Why did you choose a career in insurance?
|Being a Connecticut native, it was almost inevitable because thecity of Hartford is the unofficial “insurance capital.” I startedas an intern on The Hartford’s Group Benefits marketing team andwasn’t too familiar with the industry.
|I think a lot of young people initially overlook insurancebecause it doesn’t sound as exciting as other industries. But forme, it was more important to choose an industry where I believe inthe products and services that I’m marketing. Group benefits helppeople through difficult times, and knowing that the products makea difference when people need it the most really validates mydecision to work in the insurance industry.
|Describe what you do:
|I work on The Hartford’s Group Benefits marketing team, focusingon voluntary benefits. I concentrate on creating communications andtools that help inform consumers about their benefit options sothey can make an informed purchase decision.
|One of my main responsibilities is creating custom enrollmentcampaigns. I partner with The Hartford’s employer-clients to planand execute on marketing communications as a part of the overallenrollment strategy. I determine messaging, strategy, timeline andthe best ways to reach employees.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Through our consumer research we found that many people,particularly millennials, do not know what disability insurance is or how it can helpthem. I was involved in a project aimed to make the product morerelatable to these younger consumers.
|The Hartford engaged Second City Communications, a Chicago-basedcomedy group, to create humorous videos that engage consumers and demonstratewhy disability insurance is relevant to them. I worked as the mainpoint of contact for Second City and helped coordinate the projectfrom start to finish. The videos were central to an integratedmarketing campaign that included email, social and other targetedcommunications. I enjoyed being deeply involved from projectinitiation to final execution.
|The videos helped increase awareness and drove employees topurchase, so it was rewarding seeing the positive effect they hadon sales. Plus, the videos are funny and something that I am proud toshare with my friends and family.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|Many employers are switching from funding benefits, such asdisability insurance, to asking employees to pay part or all of thecoverage. So, this next enrollment period could be the first timethat employees need to make a purchase decision for these types ofbenefits.
|Since medical insurance is top of mind for most people, gettingtheir attention about voluntary benefits, such as disabilityinsurance, is an obstacle. Providing effective communications andsupport tools that empower consumers in making voluntary purchasedecisions is crucial. I’m glad to be part of a project thatintroduces new decision-making tools for consumers this fall.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The biggest opportunity in the benefits industry is a growingarray of voluntary products. With medical insurance moving in thedirection of higher-deductible plans, consumers are turning to waysto supplement this coverage. Products, such as critical illness andaccident insurance, provide additional coverage and peace of mindfor consumers. There’s a big opportunity to continue promotingvoluntary products that complement medical coverage.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|It’s pretty simple – millennials are looking for someone whounderstands their needs and is real with them. An insurance advisorshould be able to look at a millennial’s situation and explainwhich products are relevant in his or her current or futurelifestyle. Keep it simple, but be honest. Millennials don’t carefor insurance lingo, but they do want to understand the product andwhat it can do for them.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|You hear it all the time, but networking pays off. I landed myinternship (that led to my job) by sending my resume to someone Ishadowed while still in college. If you’re interested in theindustry, network through a common connection (like your alma materor LinkedIn). Don’t feel bad asking. People are happy to helpout!
||
Marty Tadman
|President Tadman Financial*
|Why did you choose a career ininsurance or financialservices?
|After graduating from college, I pursued a career in the NFL.However, a few months into my training, my wife and I discovered wewere pregnant unexpectedly. After a few months of thinking, andafter a brief stint in the NFL, we decided to give up that pursuitand move back to Boise to start our family and life afterfootball.
|I contacted all boosters and Boise State football supporters Iknew, as well as leaders in the community I had gotten to knowthrough the hundreds of public speaking events I participated in. Icame across a man who ran Principal Financial in Boise.
|He shared the pros and cons, the potential income, the flexiblehours in the industry, and most importantly, shared that it was anindustry where I could capitalize on my brand and minor celebritystatus from football that could jump start my career, as well asuse my gift and passion for speaking and being involved in others’lives in life-impacting ways, and that really stuck out to me.
|Although I had no idea about anything financially related, thejob description and potential sounded intriguing enough to try itout. I had no intention of it being my long-term career, andhonestly wasn’t thinking about it like that. I just needed a job,and fast, so I could provide for my new family.
|After the first few months though, I fell in love with being afinancial advisor and realized my experience from football ofleadership, hard work, and dedication, as well as my experiencefrom public speaking, aligned well with the job.
|Describe what you do:
|I am a financial advisor. I have my own small firm called TadmanFinancial. Our core mission is to lead our clients, not sell tothem. We are a comprehensive firm in the financial planning realm.We help clients with their overall financial goals and developplans and strategies that incorporate cash flow analysis, debtmanagement, real estate strategies, insurance, tax and estateplanning strategies and, of course, manage investments for shortterm and long term, including but not limited to retirementplanning or estate building and preparation.
|I have run my own office since 2011 on my own. My first threeyears in the industry…I literally had little to no assistance fromanyone in the way of mentorship and had to figure it out on my own.We slowly grew, and in the past two years, since joining andpartnering with my RIA, Cooper McManus in Irvine, California, ourbusiness has exploded and I finally have mentors that I can counton that have taken my practice to the next level.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|My achievements I’m proud of are mostly non-career related.Being a good husband to my wife of nine, almost ten years, who isalso my high school sweetheart. Being a good father to my two, soonto be three daughters. Being a man of faith and a leader in mycommunity.
|And having been able to share my life story and or inspirationalmessages over 500 times all around the country through churches,charities, schools, governments, media, TV, radio, newspapers,online, and in my everyday life. Just knowing my story and theplatform that football gave me has been utilized for the kingdom ofGod is the main goal in everything I do and have done.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenge is differentiating yourself from everyoneelse in the marketing realm. As well as how to attract newprospects and clients.
|I would change the complexity of regulation. I believe in strongregulation. However, from my experience, it seems that the moreregulation, the more disclosures, and the more complex the clientfacing documents such as marketing pieces, seminars, and simpleclient statements have become. Most clients don’t and can’t wadethrough the fine print that is overwhelming and, because of certainrequirements, most are left helpless in even understanding whattheir statements say, as there is far too much information in fartoo unfriendly formats.
|Clients want simple information and it’s unfortunate that we areforced to explain it simply, but every document they see isoverwhelmingly complex and complicated to understand. And theprocess to get our own marketing or client-facing pieces approvedthrough our regulators is expensive and difficult.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|There are two opportunities that I see. One is the youngeradvisors acquiring retiring advisors' practices, as the age of thefinancial advisor continues to rise. There needs to be viable exitstrategies and transitions set up to maintain those valuable clientrelationships.
|The other opportunity is proper retirement planning and, morespecifically, distribution planning. Almost every client I see hasstatements and investments that are built for accumulating assets,and not one I have seen actually can show me a written plan of howthey will distribute those assets over time, compensating forinflation, potential tax changes, health care costs, estateplanning, and potential long-term care assistance.
|Advisors need to get better at aligning clients’ assets for asafe distribution phase of life, taking risk in the long-termmoney, yet protecting the short-term.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|Transparency and a non-salesman approach. Our generation doesn’tlike the used car salesman and prefers just the facts … which iswhy our generation uses online resources so often where you don’thave to worry about trusting a human being selling yousomething.
|I think advisors need to become a lot more transparent, a lotmore relationship-based, and a lot less “salesman-like” in how theymarket, talk, and approach younger people. Young people want to seevalue, not be sold.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Build a fee-based business from day one. Or if you arecommission-based, always choose some sort of trail option.Commissions are great, but after your initial market runs out, youare left fighting monthly for your life. Grow slower. The first fewyears will be tough, but after those first few years, when you havethousands of dollars of trails and revenue continuing to come in,you will find security much quicker and be able to focus on propergrowth, instead of always selling clients products just tosurvive.
|Also, find an office that is willing to pay some sort of basesalary for the first few months or year. Be willing to do the gruntwork and make little to nothing that first year, but gain theexperience from a successful advisor, so that you are trained asyou build your business.
|I had to figure it out on the fly. Luckily, I made it, but itwas hard. No one showed me what a CRM was, or how to serviceclients, or what software to use, or how to market, or how todevelop a client communication system, how to brand yourself, builda website, advertise, hire staff, or run a proper first meeting,just to name a few.
|*Securities offered through Securities America, INC. Aregistered Broker/Dealer. Member FINRA/SIPC. Tadman Financial andSecurities America are not affiliated.
||
Jack Waldron
|Senior vice president of Five RingsFinancial President of Family First Insurance Agency
|Why did you choose a career in insurance?
|I didn’t; it really chose me. When I was 19, I knew before Ifinished college that I wanted to do something else. My father wasa small business owner, so I knew that was something thatinterested me.
|I tried getting a job at a couple different car dealerships anddidn’t get hired. I was waiting tables at Applebee’s and I decidedto create a résumé on Monster.com and the first company that calledwas a company in Lakewood, Colo. I went down there and it was afancy building with lots of nice cars parked there. I decided thatI didn’t really care what it was, I was doing it. It was a healthinsurance company.
|Describe what you do:
|The reason why I love my career now is that I have anopportunity to teach my clients how money works and how they canproperly handle their finances. Secondly, I get to fulfill mypromises to them by showing them safe alternatives to the marketand not lose their money. So they have an opportunity to build anincome stream that can sustain them throughout their lives.
|And third, I have an opportunity to show people the power ofliving benefits and how to prepare for the “what ifs” in life. Notall of us are designed to live to 100 years old. I help peopleprepare whether they become ill, die too soon, or live toolong.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Being able to go into business with my family and creating myown agency. My dad passed away in 2006 and only had healthinsurance. I didn’t sell life insurance at the time and my parentsdidn’t have any when my dad passed. Their retirement savings were100 percent invested in the stock market.
|In 2008, my mother had to liquidate the business to make endsmeet. That’s when I quit my job and started the Family First agencywith my mom and my best friend, Trevor.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|I think the biggest challenge in our industry is getting infront of "middle Americans," the people that need our help themost. I feel that we have a great solution at Five Rings Financialwith our Money 101 workshops. Our agency is built on an educationalprocess and not a sales process.
|As far as one thing that I would like to see change in ourindustry would be to figure out how to streamline the process forapplication and underwriting and also for the money transfers.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think that we are in it. I see middle (market) Americans beinggrossly underserved by the industry and that is the place where weexcel. There are 280,000,000 middle Americans and no one is helpingthem and the vast majority have no financial plans for the future.Our mission is to reach those people and teach them about personalfinance rather than just try to sell them the latest and greatestproduct. I cannot think of a better place to be than with a companywhose mission is to help all of these people and, more importantly,has the tools and resources to achieve this mission.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor?
|I don’t think that they are. I don’t think that they are reallygiving it much thought. The ones that I run into are activelyseeking an opportunity for a career in the industry. I think thatis one of the biggest challenges in serving that sector ofthe market.
|Most people wait way too long to start saving money. The bestway that we can reach out to the millennials is to have millennialsin the industry, so that they can reach out to their generation andteach them why it is important to start saving early and to protecttheir assets and how easy that it can be.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|When I interview younger people, I try to think what I lookedlike when I was 19 just looking to break into the industry andbeing self-employed. Lots of times I probably talk these kids’heads off because I’m so passionate about what I do in thisindustry. I explain to them that they are in an awesome opportunityto build a career, but it will be one of the hardest things thatthey will ever do and there most likely won’t be a single person intheir life that will think that you are going to be successful inthis industry.
|Everyone is going to say, “You’re too young,” “You don’t haveany experience,” “Who’s going to believe you?” and you are going tohave a lot of haters. You can either give in to that or you candecide to shut them up and go to work. What you lack in experienceand age you can make up for in your energy and your work ethic.
|If you’re willing to go to work, I’ll back you up. That’s whywhat we do at Five Rings makes so much sense, because all you haveto do when you start out is be a good inviter and get someone toone of our Money 101 workshops. If you can just do that, it doesn’tmatter if you are 19 or 20 years old; you'll have the age andexperience because we will help mentor you.
||
Casey Weade, CFP, RICP
|President Howard Bailey Financial, Inc.
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I grew up in and around the financial industry. My father was afinancial advisor for over 40 years and I had the opportunity tosee the value he added to the families he worked with. I saw himcomfort them in times of need and celebrate in times ofsuccess.
|I wanted to create those same relationships and help add valueto lives just as he did. But it also had a lot to do with mygrandparents and their philosophy we have lost touch with over thelast two decades.
|They weren’t rich people by any means and had more financiallydifficult times than many could even imagine. They never owned astock, bond, mutual fund, credit card, mortgage or any risk or debtof any kind. Most can’t imagine a life without risk or debt, butthey did it. They retired in their 50s without worry of the stockmarket or debt and left behind over a million dollars as a legacywhen they passed on.
|I think we forgot that we don’t need to take on large amounts ofdebt or risk to reach our goals and I aim to bring back some commonsense to the financial world.
|Describe what you do:
|I help the families I work with envision a purpose for theirretirement and find the most efficient way to reach thatpurpose.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|It’s difficult to say, but there are three that stand out aboveall the rest, professionally speaking of course. Achieving my CFPcertification, writing my first book (The Purpose BasedRetirement), and launching our local ABC primetime TV Show(“The Purpose Based Retirement”).
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|The barriers of entry into this industry are disgustingly low.If I could change one thing in the industry, it would be minimumhigher education levels for financial advisors. Currently you candrop out of high school, take your insurance and/or securitiesexams and within two weeks you can advise clients on their lifesavings.
|This should scare the living daylights out of the consumer. Yourlife’s savings are equally as important as your health and youwould never work with a doctor that didn’t pass his boards and havea minimum of six years of schooling. The financial industry shouldbe no different.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|The financial industry is built on selling products. If you canoffer a truly unbiased approach based on your clients’ needs ratherthan on your own, you are leaps and bounds ahead of your closestcompetition.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in anadvisor? How can advisors best serve this market?
|Millennials are looking for someone they can trust. In the age of the Internet, the consumercan learn anything they want, and that includes theirinvestments.
|Bring them value in your education and planning withouthesitation to tell them absolutely everything. Milllenials cravetransparency, so don’t hold back.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|I was told many times I would never succeed in this businessuntil I had gray hair, but I was also told in order to succeed at ayoung age I would have to work harder and be smarter than anyoneelse was willing to do or be. This is one of the most difficultbusinesses to succeed in, so be ready and willing to sacrifice – itwill be your only path to unparalleled success.
||
Brian Willet, CMFC
|Associate managing principal Waddell & Reed,Inc.
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I never planned on it. I was an accounting major in college. Igrew up in the blue collar industry of construction, so thefinancial industry was a totally different world, but I knew acouple of guys like the manager of a financial firm here in town.So then I started interviewing, where I thought was everywhere, atall the wirehouses and insurance companies. I remember going homeand told my dad, “I don’t think I can do what they’re asking me todo. I don’t think I can get into that industry.” But the one partthat made me get into it was when he said, “So, go fix it.” Eversince then, that’s what I’ve been doing.
|I kind of developed this passion of really wanting to make a bigimpact in the industry, and influence it and try to fix some of thereputation issues it is going through.
|Describe what you do:
|The best way I can describe what I do is that I’m trying topositively change this industry. It’s more than titles, it’s morethan job responsibilities, that kind of thing. I’m trying topositively change this industry and the way how it works.
|My official title is Associate Managing Principal. I cover thestate of Nebraska outside of Omaha, all the way out to Colorado. Ihave about 40 advisors that I lead. I’m a full-time manager, but Idon’t work with any clients anymore. I did start in the industry asan advisor, so I built my book of business first.
|But I really saw this need for financial planning and providinga different definition of what a lot of my industry peers use forfinancial planning. I understood that there is a bigger need tomake an impact and change this industry quicker if I could become aleader and start influencing others who are in the industry andchange the way they do business.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|My retention rate. I’ve been in a leadership role with Waddell& Reed coming up on six years and I have a 78 percent retentionrate with anyone that I’ve hired over that whole time-frame.They’re not employees; we hire independent contractors. They areall independent advisors, they own their business with Waddell& Reed.
|The industry average for new advisors’ success ratio is 11percent. It was my own nightmare that got me into leadershipbecause I started as an advisor in 2007 and, even with all thestruggles that came with that, I was still successful. I look atthat and the 11 percent ratio of people who aren’t successful and …it’s not that hard to succeed. The big reason I got into leadershipwas to fix that ratio.
|It’s an ongoing daily battle. Just because I’ve done it so fardoesn’t mean I can let up, but that just proves that we’re makingprogress.
|The other one that sticks out is I qualified for Chairman’sCabinet in 2013. In our organization, we have three levels that youcan qualify for: Circle is the lower level where the top 600 peopleof our firm qualify. Then, Crest is the second level, whichincludes the top 100 people. And then Chairman’s Cabinet is anextremely small group. They don’t give me an exact number, but whenwe got together, there were about 20 of the top people in our firm.I don’t think that there were any other people younger than 40 inthat room but me.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in ourindustry or what is one thing you would change?
|I would change our reputation as an industry. We actually havethe reputation we deserve because of the way we have treatedpeople, but that’s what I would change. If we don’t fix thereputation, we’re in trouble. It’s a huge thing that we’re tryingto work on.
|This year, is -- by far -- the year I’ve heard the most peoplethat I thought should be in the industry say, “I’m really not goingto join the industry because of its reputation.” This year has beenthe worst in those terms.
|We’ve been having a great year at our firm; I brought in sevenpeople and six people have already hit their goal for the year andare successful. But, until this year, I’ve never heard people ingeneral or people I’m recruiting say that they’re not interested inthe financial industry because of its reputation.
|That comes from the 11 percent: They always have this story ofthat person who started in the insurance business that was therefor three months. Then, this manager came along with them and soldlife insurance, but the new agent failed out of business and hasbeen burned. That is killing our reputation.
|I just hired my district manager who is coming from one of theseinsurance companies and he can speak from that level. He says,“Just go higher X amount of people (to sell to).” It’s not quality,it’s quantity. And I’ve always had a different philosophy.
|If we’re going to fix that 11 percent, we have to haveretention, we have to hire quality people, we still need quantitytoo because we have to fix the 43 percent of advisors over age 55,but you don’t fix quantity by hiring 20 people. You fix quantity byhiring great people and help them be successful in theindustry.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|Bill, who was here for 30 years and was the manager before me,had the vision of a lot of this stuff, but didn’t have theopportunity to change it because all these guys have always donebusiness a certain way. But now, we have the opportunity to changeit because a lot of clients are going to lose their advisors toretirement in the next ten years. Talk about opportunity!
|And you think about that opportunity that’s never been therebefore for somebody like me, in my role. All those clients arecurrently working with a product-sales advisor. They’re not workingwith an advisor that is helping them with a written financialplan.
|Here’s the chance to completely revamp the financial industry,change the reputation and, more important than the reputation, ischanging people’s lives.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I think that millennials are misunderstood because they are adiverse group. You can’t put them as a unit as you can withboomers. There’s a diverse mindset there, from my experience.
|The other thing is you have to have technology up and running.They are looking for tech integration in their life, and everythingthey do is somehow connected to an app or technology in some way.It is for me: I don’t keep anything in paper; everything isconnected electronically.
|Our firm is doing a lot of work to be a leader in that andmaking sure that we have all the technological tools to work withthat. Millennials will want constant access to their financialplan. If you have can make it so that they can have instant accessto their financial plan and can update it live with their advisor,that’s what they’re going to pay attention to.
|I think a lot of millennials are really not looking forrobo-advisors because they get the importance of a person and theyactually enjoy the social part of it. But they expect everything tobe done electronically.
|What is the No.1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Make sure they don’t fall for old tricks. If you go back andlook at the history and the evolution the industry has beenthrough, companies are constantly rebranding the same thing, whichis: We will pay you to sell your products. Now, they don’t saythat, but that’s all it is.
|They say the words "financial planning" right now and a youngperson thinks, “Wow, I get to do financial planning.” But theproblem is they’re just rebranding the same thing which is you’regoing to be paid on selling products, therefore, you’re a productsalesperson, you’re not really going to be doing planning.
|Make sure you know in-depth what you’re getting into and thatyou actually have this passion that you want to help improve thisindustry and take on that challenge.
|On the more positive side, make sure you work as an independent,so that you’re in control of your situation. That fixes a lot ofthe issues because when you’re independent, you’re not given quotasor forced to do certain things. And make sure that you aregoing to get trained.
||
Justin Wisz
CEO Vestorly
|Why did you choose a career in insurance or financialservices?
|I wanted to bring a traditional industry into the digital agewith cutting-edge technology to better connect consumers withadvisors.
|Describe what you do:
|I lead the team behind Vestorly, a technology companymaking it easier for the financial industry to communicate withconsumers and expand their networks to build better businesses. Onthe day-to-day, I work with larger institutions and enterprisesrepresenting many professionals to bring Vestorly to more who needit.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Our software helped an advisor identify a family in need of somevery specific special needs planning based on the data we showedher in Vestorly. The encounter ended up changing a lot ofpeoples' lives for the better and we're proud to facilitate momentslike that.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in theindustry or what is the one thing you would change?
|Loyalty to legacy technology and traditional practices breedsfear of new ways to engage consumers and improve workflows.Financial professionals remember long learning curves back whenthey bought into now out-of-date tools. The industry now has accessto far more advanced and simplified ways to communicate and engageconsumers, and more financial professionals needto learn about them.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|There's an opportunity in this industry to enhance how thefinancial professional is viewed by the everyday consumer. Are theya salesperson or are they a trusted resource? Do theycommunicate a few times per year or are they real-time, mobile, andpersonalized? Are they part of the consumer's everyday digitalhabits, or just sending a newsletter four times per year? Newtechnology is available to enable every professional to become areal-time digital brand without increasing overhead.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|To serve millennials, financial professionals mustconvey credibility in a high-tech economy. They will need tocommunicate in real-time, mobile, and personalized ways withinformation that helps their clients understand how their servicesare making a difference in their lives every day not just a fewtimes a year. Technology is available to enable financialprofessionals to do so now.
|What is the No. 1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|Industries with long histories are full of opportunities toreinvent and have an impact, but you have to enter with respect forits history and its influencers who came before you. Take your timeto observe the ways things are done, and look for disconnects whereyou can reduce friction and make peoples' lives better.
||
Jordan Witt
|Vice president, wealth advisor Witt FinancialCorp. LLC
|Why did you choose a career in insurance orfinancial services?
|Like many kids growing up, I wanted to be a professionalbaseball player. When reality set in, I realized my dream as abaseball player was out of the picture.
|My dad, and lifetime mentor, has been in the industry on and offsince he was a young kid. I had the privilege of growing up aroundthe financial industry and knew I could always follow in myfather’s footsteps. I started doing an internship with my dad inthe summer of 2009. It was then I realized this was not only what Iwanted to pursue, but what I would be doing full-time once Igraduated college.
|Describe what you do:
|I help people preserve their wealth, protect their legacy andplan for their future. My job as vice president at Witt FinancialGroup is to conduct periodic reviews with current clients, assistin new client meetings, marketing and handling all of the lifeinsurance at the office.
|In today’s world, investing and insurance are very complex, somy goal is to deliver world class customer service, productknowledge, and to help simplify client’s overall financial plans.Also, I pride myself in acting as a fiduciary to all clients.
|Share an achievement you are especially proudof:
|Being one of the top young insurance and investmentprofessionals in my local area. Also, being a qualifying top youngagent for a major insurance company.
|What is the biggest challenge that you see in ourindustry or what is one thing you would change?
|The biggest challenges I see in the industry is lack of consumerknowledge and regulations surrounding our industry. The industryneeds to do a better job of educating consumers.
|What is the biggest opportunity that you see in theindustry?
|With studies showing that many advisors and insurance agents areover the age of 55, this makes for a tremendous opportunity foryoung agents to begin a career in the insurance industry and mentorunder an agent who has been in the business for 20-30 years.
|What do you think millennials are looking for in aninsurance advisor? How can advisors best serve thismarket?
|I believe millennials are looking for someone they can trust.While technology is also a big part of what millennials are insearch of, nothing can substitute for trust and building along-lasting relationship with their advisor. Advisors can bestserve this market by networking in their local communities andintegrating technology into their businesses.
|What is the No.1 piece of advice you would give to ayoung person looking to enter this industry?
|As most young agents will tell you, beginning a career ininsurance is challenging. If you are committed to beginning acareer in insurance, be ready to work long hours, study theindustry and learn from your mistakes.
|The first piece of advice I would give to everyone is toseek out a mentor and learn the business from top to bottom. Amentor can help you with business knowledge, marketing, productknowledge, how to conduct meetings, and most importantly, how toprovide world class service to clients. Lastly, if you decided topursue a career in the financial services or insurance industry,have fun and be passionate about helping others achieve theirfinancial dreams!
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