InvestmentNews column: independent firms can develop associate advisors through strategic projects

An InvestmentNews opinion column published Oct. 20 argues that independent advisory firms already have the professional development opportunities their associate advisors need. The task, it says, is to recognize those opportunities rather than fund new ones. The piece pushes back on the assumption that limited resources cap what independent firms can do for the next generation of advisors, contending that smaller firms often offer opportunities larger organizations cannot match.

The column's case rests on exposure: associates at independent firms, it says, often get early contact with firm leadership, strategic decisions, client relationships and operations. That proximity is the asset. The question the piece puts to owners is how to convert day-to-day work into assignments that build judgment.

Its most concrete example is a CRM conversion, which the column argues can put associates in front of strategic thinking, change management, communication planning and business development. The recommendation is to ask more of the associate than fluency in the new system: have them examine how the conversion could improve client segmentation, marketing, reporting and the firm's long-term growth plan.

That habit generalizes. Every major project, the column notes, has an operational side and a strategic one, and an associate who implements workflows and reports can also be asked to weigh the business implications. Suggested questions are short: could this improve marketing, could it identify client niches, might it argue for a different service model. Smaller assignments, including vendor evaluations and client-service improvements, get the same treatment.

The column's most direct instruction concerns ownership: leaders reflexively solve problems for their teams, it says, but growth comes from handing associates meaningful challenges, difficult client conversations and operational obstacles included.

The column's actionable takeaway is a question set a managing partner can put to an associate at the next project kickoff. The constraint it identifies is a leader's willingness to widen an associate's remit, not a training line item.