plus the four attributes each must have.
by anthony glomski
your $5 million high-net-worth practice
take a look at the chart below showing an example of the type of professional network to use in your client’s financial life. you can see that the personal cfo is at the center, acting as the coordinator of the team and the single point of contact. his or her primary relationships are with the four other core experts: private client lawyer, accountant, life insurance specialist and the property and casualty agent. these team members then have relationships with the other types of specialists you may need from time to time.
more: five experts your wealth management team needs | why you need a team of experts | plan for your client to exit their business | enhance wealth by mitigating taxes | what clients need to know | what level of advice do entrepreneurs need? | three components of collaborative wealth management
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
finding the right people to help
if you are building your own expert team from scratch, you will need to do your homework and identify good candidates in the key areas in which you need help.
keep in mind that there are four qualities that every member of a professional network must possess:
- technical competence/expertise
- integrity/professionalism
- teamwork
- compatibility
experts who possess these qualities will be true assets to your overall team and will be key to coordinating and integrating your client’s entire financial life. if you’re meeting with a specialist who doesn’t possess all four of these attributes below, you need to move on, no matter how much you like him or her.
- the right expertise. you need to work with experts who deeply understand the issues your clients face, including the issues that surround impending liquidity events if your client is an entrepreneur. don’t work with a “so-so” attorney just because he or she’s a friend of a friend, for example. you owe it to your clients and their families to bring in the highest level of expertise that you possibly can.
- integrity and professionalism. each member of the network must bring a high standard of personal and professional integrity to the table. each specialist must handle every aspect of his or her work (within the network and with you) with a consistent and high degree of professionalism.
- the ability to work well together. there should be good rapport between any professional you work with and the other members of your expert network. think about it: you need your entire team to work together so that your client’s financial life is well coordinated and all the pieces work in concert. no matter how many awards someone has won, if that person on your team isn’t able to play in the same sandbox as the other team members, you run the risk of having key information fall through the cracks. you increase the risk that some solutions you implement won’t be coordinated with the others – potentially leaving you and your client vulnerable. it’s like having a star coder at your tech company with whom nobody wants to work.
- the ability to work well with you. the professionals on your team should be easy to work with and respectful toward you and your staff. you may get in spirited discussions with your advisors about their ideas and recommendations, and you might not take their advice every time. that’s ok. but if you find yourself constantly butting heads with them, there may be a problem in terms of how much you trust and like them – and how devoted they are to helping you.
the best way to find potential specialists for your team is most likely through your professional colleagues and associates – people you can trust who have been in your shoes. of course, the experts you work with may have professional networks of their own to which they can refer you.
key questions to ask when vetting outside professionals
there are no hidden tricks here. you have to ask good questions and listen very carefully. get prospective members of your expert team to tell you stories about their practice. here are some probing questions that have worked very well for me:
- “tell me about a recent success that you’ve had.”
- “tell me more. how did you collaborate with other professionals?”
- “tell me about your practice.”
- “what are some of your challenges?”
- “what’s been working really well for you?”
- “can you tell me the best experience you’ve had with a cpa?”
- can you tell me about the worst experience you’ve had working with a cpa?”
note: if they don’t answer this question, they’re not a fit and it’s time to move on.
you want to walk away from each meeting with a really good sense about the person you just met with and imagine him or her working closely with other members of your team. if you can’t imagine them in your team situation, keep looking.
building your network of experts
the good news is that you already have a robust list of people to whom you can reach out – people that your clients already work with. this can be a great starting point. for instance, tell your client: “i see that you already had an estate plan done. great. what was your experience like working with your estate planning attorney?”
you can literally go down the list of professionals, and from that list source several names of people. you also want to look for people who are thought leaders – people who are actively writing and speaking to their professional peers.
make a list of all the people you know and google them to see who emerges as a thought leader.
if you source experts locally, i recommend getting together for lunch with these professionals on a quarterly basis to review client case studies with them. everybody eats lunch no matter how busy they claim to be. they’ll find the time to eat lunch with allied professionals in your area and there’s a tremendous amount of value that comes from getting together regularly with your peers. you can bring food into your office, meet at a restaurant or rotate between different professionals’ offices.
if you’re going to step up in this role, then having those collaborative resources is going to drive the optimal outcome for your clients.
those professionals can give you guidance and weigh in. they may or may not execute that strategy for your client. when you go to your client, you essentially announce who is going to do the work, whether it’s another professional or you.
make the mental leap from cpa to quarterback/personal cfo
you need to develop a systematic process. it’s a focused effort to go out within your world and find the “best of the best” professionals to work with. these are people who are elite not only in terms of technical ability, but in terms of chemistry (the ability to work with you and your clients) and strong communication skills. also look at their core values, which should be based on the clients that they serve.
the agenda is to look at a few case studies and then collaborate as a team to come up with the best ideas for the client. somebody has to do the case study, which is driven by the total client profile.
for clients with net worth of $10 million and above
at a minimum, your clients who are successful entrepreneurs should be working with a true wealth manager – someone who is serving as a bona fide personal cfo. however, your clients with more complex needs – typically those with net worth of $10 million and above – might better be served by a virtual family office. in this case, there should be someone functioning as the coo supervising the efforts of all the experts working on a client’s behalf. many experienced cpas i know are well suited for this role. cpas can also assume part of this role, or you can partner with other professionals who serve in the role of the coo for the client’s virtual family office.
your role as quarterback of the virtual family office is to communicate that message. when you run a team meeting with this group, a handful of things come up. after the team meeting, your role is to go back to the client, present them with a handful of considerations and prioritize which two or three of these are most important. ask your client: “how do we want to get this done? do you want my team of experts to do it? do you want your current professional to do it?” reiterate that your goal is to get things done for your client so they can move on with their lives.
again, not all entrepreneurs need (or should have) a virtual family office. level 3 (true wealth manager) tends to use a local team. because of the increased level of complexity and solutions required, a virtual family office (level 4) tends to engage specialists on a national, and sometimes international, level.
decision matrix for cpas:
does my client need a personal cfo or virtual family office?
| question | yes | no | comment
|
| 1. is my client a successful entrepreneur or someone with a complex financial situation (e.g., approaching or experienced a liquidity event, early employee with rsus or isos, etc.)? | if no, skip to next section | ||
| 2. does my client have a true wealth manager acting as a personal cfo with a local coordinated team?
|
we know from experience the answer is generally no. this is the gap. cpas can fill the gap. if you are not comfortable filling the gap alone, you can partner. if you do wish to partner, what role do you want to play in the client relationship? |
||
| 3. does my client have a net worth of $10 million or more? | if yes, proceed to next question. if no, consider serving as client’s wealth manager/ personal cfo. | ||
| 4. could my client (with a $10 million+ net worth) benefit from advanced capabilities, opportunities and solutions by creating a virtual family office? | if yes, what roles and responsibilities can i play in their virtual family office? if no, consider wealth manager approach. |
if you checked yes for each of the questions above, ask yourself this question: “who are viable partners i can work with to create the virtual family office for my successful clients with $10 million+ net worth?”
conclusion
by now, you can see that your financial future and the financial well-being of your family are too important to leave in the hands of a single person – regardless of how talented, smart or hard-working that person is. to give yourself the best chance of achieving all the goals that are truly important to you, you should surround yourself with an a-team of professionals who possesses the deep skills you require. it should be a network of experts motivated to work in your and your clients’ best interests at every step of your journey toward financial freedom, comfort and peace of mind. they deserve nothing less.