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All of these are good questions. And all of them can be answered by thinking of team building as a strategic process, rather than something that just "happens." At the centre of this process is an understanding that a top performing team is comprised of three components, or "sub-teams."
(a) The Team Director™: The visionary leader who ensures all elements of the team are working together according to plan, and motivates team members to continually further business goals;
(b) The strategy team: Helps the Team Director set appropriate short-term and long-term business goals and formulate the core team;
(c) The core team: Individuals who excel at their specific tasks necessary for the business to accomplish its goals, yet can work together to achieve the Team Director’s vision.
With this concept in mind, you can see team building is more than simply matching an individual to a job description. Rather, it’s a systematic search for appropriate people who can competently help you through a new phase of growth.
Let’s take a look at each of these sub-teams, in order to better understand their roles and how they work together. Keep in mind that while large, established advisory practices may have a single person filling each of these roles, it’s entirely possible that one or two people may wear several hats in any of these sub-teams (in fact, that’s how most advisors start out in the business).
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The Team Director™ This is the leader of the business, and the most important member of the team-in other words, you. A team cannot function properly if they don’t understand the vision for the business. They can’t support you if they don’t know your style and approach. As team leader, this is your primary responsibility-to align your team with your process and your business vision in order to achieve your business goals. If for whatever reason you feel you lack the skills to successfully communicate a business vision to team members, you must find a partner who has these skills.
The Strategy Team
In addition to you, the Strategy Team can include one or all of the following:
Business coach: A like-minded, experienced expert who understands the operating challenges of the business, and can help capitalize on new opportunities
Professionals: HR professionals, business consultants, etc., who bring upper-level strategy and thinking to specific business challenges
Branch manager: A guide to help you utilize the firm’s strategic and marketing resources to build your business
Peers and mentors: A set of business owners and entrepreneurs from both inside and outside the financial industry
Marketing associate: Your internal marketing expert, who has a natural "knack" for co-ordinating and systemizing marketing efforts
Industry wholesalers: Select mutual fund company representatives who have demonstrated themselves as an excellent resource for strategic marketing and business-building ideas
Client focus group: A small group of trusted clients who can give you honest, objective feedback on what you’re doing right and what needs improvement
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Recent colums from Jeff Thorsteinson |
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The Core Team These are the people who get the job done day in and day out. While the strategy team deals with higher-level strategy, your core team delivers wealth management and client service systems. In addition to you, the common positions are:
Business manager: Who ensures business processes and systems are running smoothly and who handles day-to-day issues with team members
Executive assistant: A versatile, detail-oriented assistant who can keep the team leader organized and ensures that all constituencies follow procedures
Articling advisors: These are your advisors-in-training; junior staff members who show promise and can be molded in your image
Associate advisors: Well-trained and qualified advisors who handle specific areas of your practice, and may have a small group of their own clients
General administration assistant: Who deal with paperwork, general client requests, and general office duties
Professional centres of influence (COIs): Accountants, lawyers, private bankers, and other professionals who can function as "partners" on specific client accounts
In-house specialists: Estate planning professionals, portfolio managers, and other experts who perform specific tasks for your clients Marketing associate: A key position which executes day-to-day marketing tasks and long-range marketing projects (co-ordinating the client newsletter, setting up media appointments, booking seminars, etc.)
Marketing writer/designer: Outside brand-building and positioning experts who can help you attract ideal clients and distinguish yourself from the competition
Vendors: Printers, caterers, vendors, gifting-experts, and other companies who you can count on to support your client service process and deliver world-class service to your top clients
At first glance, this list seems a bit daunting. But what’s even more daunting is the prospect of doing all of this yourself. If you can’t find a way to delegate these tasks, that’s exactly what you’ll be doing.
Keep in mind that top performers all face the same issues that you do — including the harvesting of big opportunities. And they all found a way to get there. Top performers recognize that becoming the Team Director is the secret to success: they treat team building as a strategic process, one that demands serious planning, a multitude of teams, and a good deal of investment.
(12/19/05)
Jeff Thorsteinson is the creator of the YouFoundation, an organization that helps investment advisors advisors build world-class practices through innovative concepts, tools, and systems since 1993. With over 3,000 investment advisor marketing projects and business cases behind him, Jeff has become a well respected speaker in the industry and over the last 3 years, delivered his practice-building programs to thousands of financial advisors throughout Canada. Contact strategicadvisor@youfoundation.com or 1 800-223-9332, ext. 1, for more information about YouFoundation, or visit the website at www.youfoundation.com.
