Join Ameriprise

Dependable infrastructure and proven processes will help you determine what to leverage and what to build.

Firms that support teaming and offer resources to help you along the way can provide a meaningful advantage as you expand. Technology platforms that provide access to all team members can deliver cost savings and drive efficiencies so you can spend more time focusing on your clients.

It’s important to organize hierarchies so they’re compliant, rewarding and mutually beneficial.

Tailoring a team’s compensation structure to match its unique business model is essential — whether it’s simple or complex. For instance, splitting revenue at the account or product level (versus the client level) helps support specialization among teams. This can result in more objective overall compensation.

To support long-term success, develop and document your compensation philosophy — explain the “why” behind team members’ pay, and create a framework for consistency.

Building the right team requires recruiting new talent and developing existing talent. Having the right tools can make all the difference.

• Efficient onboarding of new team members is critical. Ramping them up on team procedures and integrating them into the culture can lay a foundation for success, boosting both employee satisfaction and retention.
• Peer-to-peer sharing opportunities and learning tools that build upon individual strong points can really strengthen a team.
• Having regular meetings and forums where team members can share their expertise and encourage growth motivates everyone in the practice and reinforces the team mentality.

Access to effective digital tools helps clients appreciate the value and expertise of their advisor team.

• Digital planning tools enable a strong and collaborative advisor-client planning process, keeping goals front and center.
• Clients appreciate — and expect — being able to track goal progress and view performance when, where and how they want.
• During market ups and downs, a quick log-in shows clients their long-term plans are still on track, minimizing concerns over market movements.
• Every time they log in, they’ll be reminded of the broader team that is there to support them.

As your business grows, having the right agreements and insurance in place to help protect your practice is crucial.

Look for a firm that offers support for protecting your practice as it evolves or changes hands, that could include referral services for legal support. Legal guidance can be especially helpful with continuity plans. While approximately 30% of advisors don’t have a business succession plan in place,² building a team practice can be a good initial step toward planning and minimizing future disruption to clients.