Traditional models will no longer suffice, and innovation is now compulsory for a roadmap to operational efficiency. Reimagining your approach and finding a balanced strategy to integrate technology, simplify processes, and prioritize people is key to your firm’s success.

Julia Stuart, COO of Retirement Planners of America, highlighted the challenges of today’s fluctuating environment before diving into solution strategies. “There's always change in our industry. It never stops. We’re continuously having to adjust and create new efficiencies.” However, Stuart turns to a client-centric approach to help guide smooth transitions. “We always look at the potential impact on the client before we make decisions. We have to start with them and ensure they're not going to be disrupted by the change and then reverse engineer it from there.”

Dawn Kalinowski, COO for Northwestern Mutual’s Wealth Business, discussed the role of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation in operational efficiency. “We're using artificial intelligence, bots and Gen AI in order to be more efficient, but we're doing it in some really thoughtful ways,” Kalinowski explained. “We’re looking at high-volume, low-complexity tasks. We want to help our advisors have the time to do more meaningful work.” This approach not only enhances productivity but also addresses employees’ concerns about job security by demonstrating that technology can complement rather than replace their roles.

Kalinowski wasn’t the only panelist to envision tech as a path to streamlined processes, not as a proxy for advisors. “We want technology to make every task more efficient, turning us into exception processors,” said David Levine, COO of Arete Investments. “The routine responsibilities should get quicker, better, easier.”

Something all the panelists agreed on was that effective change management hinges on clear communication and inclusivity. Kalinowski described Northwestern Mutual’s approach: “We have individuals across the company — change champions — that are involved in implementing the change, talking about the change, and having peer-to-peer discussions.” This strategy ensures that employees are part of the transformation journey from the very beginning.

Mariela Arana, Head of Client Relations at Insigneo Financial Services, echoed the sentiment of inclusivity, stating, “We used to assume what would be good for our advisors, but we’ve stopped that. Now they're part of the decision-making process.” This approach has worked well for Insigneo, Arana reported. “Our last survey showed that 90% of advisors feel that their experience is excellent or good.”

Product Innovation and Management

Insights from the session: Product Innovation and Management 

Fostering a culture of innovation, rethinking product sets, and balancing operational and transformation initiatives are essential for companies to thrive in the modern business landscape. By embracing these strategies, firms can navigate the complexities of the market, deliver exceptional client experiences, and drive sustainable growth.

"For us it's really around building a culture of learning and experimentation and deep understanding of our clients." said BNY Pershing Chief Product Officer Sareena Dalla Brookshire. "So much of innovation is really just about falling in love with that problem as opposed to the solution. Being able to 'kill things early' in service of solving that problem. There's just so much benefit and so much credibility gained when you're able to remove that emotion from the solution."

Scott Smith from Hightower Advisors believes that considering the needs of the advisor can help push product innovation. “We realized that what drives us has to be centered around the advisor experience. We need to be forward-looking, making sure our products and services will be relevant to the advisors and their clients.” This sentiment was echoed by Jonathan Batt of BMO Wealth Management, who shared that they also tend to focus on the advisor. “We ask ourselves: ‘How quickly can we deliver meaningful experiences that make customers happier and make the advisor job easier?’”

The value of a “build, test, learn” mentality was promoted by Theresa Crist of Cetera Financial Group. She advocated for iterative development processes, where teams validate ideas through early and continuous feedback. Crist also highlighted the significance of retrospectives in agile frameworks. “It's not just, ‘okay, that was successful, let's move on.’ What made it successful? What could we have done differently?”

Venkat Rapaka from Arta Finance revealed two things he’s found made all the difference for his company when it comes to innovation: “First is having a culture where it's okay to admit that you made a mistake — and leadership must model this behavior. Second is having the right processes and infrastructure in place so you can fail while still salvaging value out of what you've built.” He also pointed out that building underlying platforms with flexibility allows for rapid development and iteration of new products.

Balancing the day-to-day operations of a business while keeping an eye on the frontier is a common challenge for leaders. According to Jonathan Batt of BMO Wealth Management, sometimes the right partnerships can help. “We find it’s often more convenient to partner than to build something from scratch.” Batt added, “We really think about who these partners could be, and if they’ll make the kind of investments in the platform that we think would help us grow.”

Final Thoughts: Innovation as an Industry Standard

These sessions highlighted the critical need for wealth management firms to embrace change and push innovation to experience true growth in an increasingly competitive environment. By adopting a holistic approach to transformation, leveraging technology thoughtfully, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement, firms can navigate industry challenges effectively and achieve long-term growth.

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