Financial Advisor Success Michael Kitces

Meg Bartelt is the Founder and Lead Financial Planner for Flow Financial Planning, a virtual RIA serving mid-career women in tech that oversees almost $60 million in assets under management for 60 client households. Meg has transformed her business over a period of 7 years since its inception by continually adjusting her niche focus, exploring various fee models, testing different meeting schedules with clients, and altering her support team size and structure. 
Listen in as she reveals how she raised her minimum fees from $150 per month to $10,000 per year, why she chose to focus on women in tech as her niche market, and why she eventually evolved her niche focus from working mothers to early-to-mid-career women with a specialization in pre-IPO and IPO planning. We also discuss how she realized that she could create better efficiencies in her practice by simplifying her client offerings, how she became okay with having to let go of a team member due to financial constraints, and how she is transitioning into a new stage of life that prioritizes relationships and creating more space and freedom.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/334

Jim Dew is the Co-Founder and CEO of Dew Wealth Management, an independent RIA based out of Arizona that provides virtual “family office” style financial planning on a monthly retainer for 150 small business owners. Jim stands out for his ability to expand his boutique firm, which operates on a retainer basis, to generate over $7 million in revenue and attain a valuation of $31 million. His firm is also experiencing a remarkable organic growth rate of 40% and has achieved this success by offering a comprehensive and personalized advice service to his niche clientele of business owners.
Listen in as Jim discusses the success of his retainer-based pricing model that has led to his firm being independently valued at $31 million in enterprise value, how he arrived at his retainer fees that cover a wide range of financial services, making it easier to communicate services to clients, and why they charge an upfront fee of $25,000 to prospects for a deep-dive financial planning assessment. He also shares how he has structured his firm by building a list of external tax, legal, and other professionals that have been thoroughly vetted rather than providing these services in-house, and why he has no plans to sell his firm in the near future despite its valuation.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/333

Liz Hand is the co-owner of Pleasant Wealth, a hybrid advisory firm based out of Ohio that oversees over $140 million in assets under management for 522 households. Liz stands out for her exceptional ability to manage the transition of her father's large commission-based practice with over 1,500 clients into a fee-based financial planning practice, along with her brother. What sets them apart is their dedication to ensuring that long-term clients—even those with smaller or more transactional needs—receive fair treatment throughout this transition process.
Listen in as Liz shares how she and her brother refocused their niche and client loads after taking over their father’s business to realize the future vision of their financial planning firm, as well as why they made the strategic decisions to sell a portion of the business and change their broker-dealer relationship. You'll learn why Liz chose to become the successor for another advisor before becoming the successor for her father, the three tiers of service they have implemented for clients, and how a mindset coach not only helped Liz gain confidence, but also inspired her to become a mindset coach herself.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/332

Jake Northrup is the Founder of Experience Your Wealth, an independent RIA based out of Rhode Island that advises 78 client households with a small team supporting nearly $700,000 of ongoing revenue. Jake stands out for his impressive achievement of generating that top revenue within just four years of starting his business and for recognizing the need to hire employees early on to avoid time constraints and capacity limitations as he scaled.
Listen in as Jake shares his reason for hiring an associate and a lead advisor early on in his business, the four-meeting financial planning process his firm follows, and why he outsources investment management despite being a CFA charter holder. Jake also discusses how he grew his firm quickly, as well as how he intentionally built and staffed his practice to give himself more flexibility, allow his employees to thrive, and help his clients pursue their passions while enjoying their money.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/331

Ari Weisbard is Managing Partner of Values Added Financial, an independent RIA based out of Washington that oversees $143 million in assets under management for 75 client households. Ari and his partner Zach distinguish themselves by not only implementing fee minimums to ensure profitable service for clients, but also by deliberately adjusting their fees and minimums to control and accelerate their business growth according to their firm's advisor capacity—and to allow for a sustainable work-life balance.
Listen in as Ari shares how he and his partner have implemented and adjusted minimum fees for new clients, as well as why they have positioned their firm as one that serves clients with progressive values. We also discuss how Ari has overcome fear and imposter syndrome, why he feels more fulfilled as an advisor than he did as a lawyer, and how he is focusing on the human aspect of financial planning and connecting with clients beyond economics.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/330

Charesse Spiller is the Founder and Principal Consultant for Level Best, an operations and process strategy consulting firm based out of Houston that helps advisory firms evaluate and improve their operations and processes by focusing on three pillars: streamlining, automation, and delegation. Charesse has established a distinctive consulting firm that sets itself apart by not only educating financial advisors on how to systematize and automate their processes, but also serves as an outsourced provider that builds and implements systems on behalf of clients.
Listen in as Charesse discusses her approach to evaluating an advisory firm’s technology, processes, and systems, why a lack of clear accountability for team members as the firm grows is often the real blocking point for larger RIAs seeking to scale, and why she created her educational resource and community to educate operations professionals on how they can optimize their systems and processes on an ongoing basis. We also discuss why she hired a financial coach to avoid burnout and improve her leadership skills, what it was like scaling a service firm and transitioning from employee to founder, and how she leveraged local mentoring programs, read business books, and formed two Mastermind groups to develop her own skills as she and her business grew.
For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/329