Practice Management

Strategy, operations, and growth metrics for advisory firms.

M&A Strategy

Financial Advisory Practice Valuation Guide (2024)

How to calculate the true enterprise value of your RIA or fee-based practice. EBITDA multiples, revenue multipliers, and common deduction traps.

Growth Metrics

Calculating True Client Acquisition Cost (CAC) for Advisors

Stop relying on referrals. How to calculate and benchmark your CAC across digital marketing, seminars, and COI networks.

Transition Strategy

Internal vs. External Succession Planning

Evaluating the mechanics, tax implications, and timelines for selling internally to junior partners versus a third-party roll-up.

Pricing Strategy

Combating AUM Fee Compression

Data on falling basis points and how top-decile RIAs are restructuring their pricing models to maintain margins.

Operations

The Optimal RIA Technology Stack (2024)

Integration maps for CRM, Portfolio Accounting, Financial Planning, and Risk software. Avoiding vendor lock-in.

Vendor Review

Evaluating Portfolio Management & Reporting Tools

Orion vs. Black Diamond vs. Tamarac. Feature parity, API access, and implementation costs.

Regulatory

Surviving an SEC Mock Audit

Common deficiency letters, ADV Part 2A updates, and off-channel communications (WhatsApp) compliance.

Investment Strategy

Direct Indexing vs. ETF Model Portfolios

Tax-loss harvesting alpha, tracking error, and the operational burden of managing custom indices in-house.

Growth

Building a Niche Advisory Practice

Moving from a generalist to a specialist. Case studies on practices focused on tech equity, physicians, and business owners.

Lead Generation

Structuring CPA Revenue Sharing Agreements

Legal structures, solicitor rules, and economic splits for partnering with accounting firms.

Investments

Accessing Private Credit & Alts for Retail

Interval funds, BDCs, and platform aggregators (iCapital, CAIS). Due diligence on liquidity provisions.

Vendor Review

Schwab vs. Fidelity vs. Pershing

Service levels post-TD Ameritrade merger, API integrations, and pricing for sub-$100M RIAs.

Operations

The 90-Day Client Onboarding Experience

Process mapping the critical first 90 days to prevent buyer's remorse and secure outside assets.

Practice Management

Compensation Models for Associate Advisors

Base salary, revenue share, and phantom equity models to retain top CFP talent without giving away the firm.

Service Expansion

Integrating Estate Planning into Wealth Management

Using software like Vanilla or EncorEstate to scale document review and trust funding without practicing law.