Conversation Starters for Sellers & Successors

Dear Advisors,

Financial planners of all ages have asked me when and how to have the succession planning conversation. Younger advisors want to become successors but often feel that it’s “not their place” to bring it up. Senior advisors want to pass the torch but may not know how to start the conversation. 

Slow down and take a breath. There doesn’t need to be a lot of pressure! We’re not signing any papers today, just having a conversation. I get that it can be intimidating to talk succession. So here are my conversation starter tips for sellers and buyers to gain the insights needed to start the succession dialogue!

• Questions Every Seller Should Ask

  • I want to talk to the sellers for a minute. If you have a young, driven advisor in your firm, they could be waiting for *you* to start the succession conversation. Take it upon yourself to bring it up during your next meeting. If you don’t feel ready, think about what you’ll need to do in advance so you are ready.  

  • You don’t have to have your whole transition strategy already drawn up. Before planning the transition, you need to have that conversation with your potential successor so you know what your prospective successor wants before, during, and after the transition of the business. That will help you create the right succession plan. The most important thing right now is to have an open mind and two open ears. Ask the younger advisor plenty of questions so you can understand what their needs are, where they want to go, and where their mind is in the moment. You might find that there are more questions to be asked and more thinking to be done before succession planning can begin. 

  • What questions should you ask your potential successor? Try these on.

    • Is being a partner or successor something you want in your future? 

    • What expectations do you have from a successful transition strategy?

    • What are your biggest concerns about a transition strategy?

    • What are your biggest questions about a transition strategy? 

    • What boxes do you need checked to proceed with a transition strategy? 

• Conversation Starters for Potential Successors

  • Now I want to talk to the future successors. If you’re a younger advisor with your eyes on succession, don’t wait around for the conversation to come to you. Meet with the senior advisor to start that conversation. If you don’t feel ready, think about what you need to do in advance to feel ready. Consider what you believe it takes to be a partner. Arm yourself with a list of ideas and questions to begin a conversation with the seller. Try drafting your own version of this conversation opener: 

    • “When I became part of the team, it was mentioned that there were potential partnership opportunities in the future. I have a few questions and ideas about that, so can we have some face time soon to talk about it?” 

  • Or try this one: 

    • “One of my career goals is to be a partner in an advisory firm. I want to explore this with you to learn what the requirements are to become a partner or owner. Can we put our thoughts together and talk about it soon?” 

• Adopt an Ownership Mentality

  • I’m reminded of a few recent situations which demonstrate how this works in real life. One of my new advisor clients wants to hire an associate advisor to become her successor. She wants to invest in this person by training them over the next 3-4 years. She’s made a job posting but hasn’t mentioned anything about ownership opportunities in it, because that’s not the right time or place. She probably won’t even bring it up in an interview. But the “ownership mentality” is definitely one of the criteria she’ll be using to select the top candidate. Once hired and through the initial trial period, she and the associate advisor will be having regular conversations about their career track and progress on the succession plan. 

  • By using an ownership mentality as part of her screening process, my client will be able to more quickly recognize her successor and their other ideal traits, like responsibility, tenacity, and heart. 

When I was just getting started in the financial advisory industry. I was learning how to shape my career and my future, and I still am, but those years were hard ones. Fast forward to current times. I was recently invited to moderate the NAPFA Genesis Conversation Circle. I am both honored and humbled to be a mentor to young advisors, helping them design their own career paths as well as learn from my wins and losses along the way. 

One of the topics several of these young advisors have questions about is succession planning. Seeing them prosper, become partners, and/or acquire their own firms is my goal, as well as seeing sellers place their firms in skilled hands. I’ve been able to schedule mentorship calls with these younger advisors to help them do exactly that. If you have succession on your mind, whether as a successor or seller, contact me and let’s talk about how to secure the future of your advisory firm.

Warm regards,

Brooklyn

P.S. At Ellevate Advisors, we believe that advisors deserve to retire too. What does that look like for you, your family, and your business? Let’s figure it out together! Check out our services here, get to know me on my bio here, or schedule your free consultation call here.