The Wealth Advisor

For most RIAs, the advisor piece of running a financial advisory firm comes easily. Building strong client relationships, guiding progress toward goals, managing portfolios – all of these skills fall squarely in an advisor’s wheelhouse.

But what about running the business? Those executive leadership, decision-making and strategizing skills are just as important for the success of the firm, and advisors who are also RIA firm owners can’t afford to view their businesses solely through an advisory lens.

As any good financial planner knows, gathering all the details necessary to make thoughtful and strategic recommendations for your clients is paramount to helping them achieve their financial dreams and goals.

To gather everything they need, many advisors utilize a fact-finding tool. At CPAlliance®, we created a tool called the Financial Planning Questionnaire, or FPQ for short.

Smartleaf Asset Management, LLC (“SAM”), the RIA subsidiary of Smartleaf, has announced a strategic partnership with private wealth management and institutional investment consulting firm Clearstead Advisors (“Clearstead”). This collaboration, which will afford Clearstead clients with greater access to personalized and tax-efficient investment options – including direct indexes – marks a milestone in SAM’s ongoing efforts to empower financial professionals and firms to deliver outstanding portfolio management. 

Veteran financial advisors Taylor Hart, Mimi Dunn, and Amy Drinkard have engaged Dynasty Financial Partners and Fidelity to launch a newly independent firm called Steadmont Advisors.

Based in Birmingham, Alabama, the team previously managed $420 million in assets at Merrill Lynch. The team includes the three advisors and Tyler Decker, Senior Associate Client Advisor.