AmeriFlex, Genesis execs: Name successor before client handoff

Goodson of AmeriFlex and Tanglis of Genesis both told Wealth Solutions Report that succession planning turns on when clients meet the advisor who will take over their accounts. The roundup, published Oct. 15, asked four executives how their firms approach the process from initial conversations to execution.

Goodson's answer: the step that makes a succession plan successful is identifying and starting a new advisor to take over the practice well ahead of the transition, so clients have time to get to know that person before the handoff. That, he said, requires significant, coordinated long-term planning across nearly every aspect of the process.

AmeriFlex gives each advisor considering retirement one team that supports them from the very early planning stages to the final days of their career. Goodson said that approach mitigates much of the execution risk that appears when different providers support a range of critical components of a succession plan.

Tanglis said succession planning at Genesis starts and ends with the client. When an established advisor is ready to transition out of the business, he said, the goal is for clients to experience the same level of trust and expertise.

The roundup frames the stakes as a succession crisis in independent wealth management, listing demographic trends, insufficient formal planning by firms and advisor-owners, difficulty attracting college students and career transitioners, and the cost of entry for second-generation advisors among the commonly cited causes.