10 Tips for Managers to Lead a Team of Top Performing Advisors

Introduction: Leading with Purpose

It is not just about managing daily activities, but being in charge of a team of financial advisors means having vision, nurturing growth, and creating an atmosphere that encourages each advisor to perform their best. Below are the top ten tips that every manager needs to work with in developing the team of best-in-class financial people who will help achieve results and grow professionally.

These leadership tips can take anyone—an adviser just entering the field or a veteran from decades past—and have his or her team reach success. The best leadership strategies are those that engender high performance through continued learning, communication, and teamwork.

Tip 1: Clearly Define the Objectives and Expectations

Team members will perform best when what is expected of them is clear and unambiguous. Further, they will excel when their efforts are recognized and they understand how they positively add to the goals of the team and the firm. It is the manager’s job to provide clear objectives and ensure the team’s efforts are rewarded.

Setting personal and team-wide goals ultimately keeps everyone on track, moving in the right direction. It ensures accountability, fostering stronger commitment from advisors, as they feel more involved in objectives they own.

But I’m going to throw a monkey wrench into this idea for you that’s going to transform how your advisors go about achieving their “goals.” It’s the difference between goals and desires. 

This is a distinction you must review. People often co fuse the two. It’s not your advisor's goal to make $150,000 this year. It is their desire to make $150,000 this year. 

And to achieve that desire, they need to set specific goals such as:

1. Book at least 3 appointments per day
2. Attend 2 networking events each week
3. Make 30-50 calls per day

You see the difference? This gives advisors a path to reach their desired revenue target, whereas if you don’t break it down like this, you end up overwhelmed with the big number and no discernible path to achieve it.

“When you’re sitting in a client meeting and you hear yourself saying the words that Eszylfie says, and seeing the reaction out of the client, that’s when you see The Taylor Method in its glory—when you realize this is powerful stuff that you’re learning and giving to somebody.”

— Alon Zak, Financial Advisor

Note to Managers: Master the Objection-Free Sales Process

If you're a manager looking to better understand my objection-free sales process and want to teach these valuable tips to your team, watch this video for actionable insights:

Tip 2: Enable Continuous Learning and Development

One of the fastest-changing industries is financial services. A manager has, therefore, influenced his team on continuous learning so that they become relevant and able to adapt. Encourage advisors to attend any accredited education, webinars, or industry events that allow them to hone in on their skill set and performance.

Being abreast of current trends, regulations, and techniques places advisors in a better position to build rapport with clients. 

Question:

Which training opportunities have you pursued for your team this year? How did you document this professional development?

Exercise: Individualized Learning Plans

Sit with each of them and identify personalized learning plans for the next six months. Individual learning plans are to be made, specifying any certification, courses, or learning activities for career development. Regular progress monitoring and revision of plans against changes in the market dynamics and individual requirements.

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”

— Alvin Toffler, frmr Assoc Editor, Fortune magazine & writer

Note to Managers: Unlock 7-Figure Shifts for Advisor Growth

To ensure your team is not just learning, but also experiencing breakthrough growth, watch this video on the key shifts advisors can make today to drive 7-figure results:

Tip 3: Give Constructive Feedback and Mentor

While constructive feedback is the most effective way of bringing improvements, to be of any worth, it needs to be specific and actionable. Ongoing feedback, whether positive or developmental, shows advisors where they excel and where they can improve. Beyond that, mentorship is one very important feature in career development that arms them with what they need to grow.

The mentors' relationship could be life-changing. It offers a chance to match less-experienced advisors with seasoned industry pros, unparalleled opportunities for knowledge transfer. The mentored advisors tend to achieve goals much faster and often develop stronger, longer-lasting relationships with their clients.

Question:

How regularly do you provide feedback to your mentors? Have you instituted some sort of mentoring system that is formalized?

Exercise: Mentee Program Development

This could be facilitated through more experienced team players serving as mentors or other mentors outside the organization who have professional development effects on the advisor. Avail frequent feedback and coaching sessions aimed at furthering the development and growth of advisors.

Tip 4: Let a great, inspiring work culture develop on its own.

A positive, empowering culture is key to building a high-performance team. The latter would keep advisors motivated to do their job and committed because they valued and supported doing something big besides themselves. You as a manager can enhance this culture of appreciation for accomplishments by providing encouragement through collaboration and building in time for opportunities for team building.

This will help you foster a healthy and supportive atmosphere by encouraging open communication and promoting individual and team achievements. A positive culture reduces turnover, increases engagement, and allows your team to perform at a higher level.

Question:

What are three specific actions you’ve taken in the last month to recognize and motivate your team?

Exercise: Team Culture Survey

Do a flash survey on what your team feels about the workplace culture right now. Take that in, an idea of what needs to be fixed, and then think about what some initiatives with your advisors may help change the dynamics of the team.

Say You Go Into The Office Every Day And Don’t Like 40% Of What You Do. This Method Allows You To Like 90% Of What You Do. It Inspires Me Not Only To Help People But To Actually Go Out And Do It.” — John Lytell, Financial Advisor

Tip 5: Encourage Teamwork and Collaboration

Collaboration fosters a high-performing, cohesive team. Those advisors who share ideas, strategies, and solutions can help one another while fostering an environment which makes a team where all benefit from collective knowledge. Encourage regular team meetings where advisors are invited to discuss challenges and successes.

Teamwork creates room for problem-solving innovations for better service provision to clients. Promoting an open environment fosters peer learning, allowing advisors to share both successes and failures to learn from each other.

Question:

When did your team last engage in any project work? How does your group share ideas and encourage collaboration?

Exercise: Collaboration Problems

Provide them monthly challenges where advisors will work in tandem to resolve complex financial scenarios, which will naturally promote teamwork and enable advisors to play on the strengths of others to find creative solutions for their clients. Debrief afterwards about dynamics of teamwork and key takeaways.

Tip 6: Recognize and Reward Successes

Recognition motivates advisors, whether through formal awards or simple acknowledgments in meetings; recognizing effort will ensure positive behaviors and reinforcement. Peer recognition programs go a long way in achieving this since advisors will get an avenue to highlight each other's contributions and successes.

Appreciated teams are so much more likely to be motivated and engaged teams. Of course, formal recognition programs through an employee of the month or quarter awards can be effective, but it is just as impactful with small things: a note of appreciation or acknowledging in public that a job was well done.

Question:

What types are your recognition programs? There needs to be a balance between formal recognition and praise.

Exercise: Peer Recognition Program

Establish a system of peer-to-peer recognition whereby advisors could be nominated by their peers for good work. This shall also inculcate a helpful team culture wherein the advisors feel valued by peers and management alike.

“Get Out Of Your Own Way; So Many People Want To Make Coaching A Head Decision; Dollars And Cents When It Has To Be A Heart Decision. That’s Why They Should Sign Up For The Taylor Method” — Andrew Mortenson, Financial Advisor

Tip 7: Encourage Open Communication

Trust is gained in many ways, but one of the most important is probably open communication. Advisors must feel free to share their challenges and ideas with their managers without feeling they are being judged. By allowing open dialogue, the manager might understand the needs of his or her advisers and, in doing so, aid an adviser in solving issues earlier.

Conversely, the managers who allow a free flow of information will find their advisors eager to share their ideas and participate in problem-solving processes, which continue to fine-tune the performance of the whole team for the development of better outcomes for clients.

Question:

How transparent are your communication channels with the team? Are your advisors comfortable raising issues and sharing ideas?

Exercise: Open Communication Workshop

Conduct a workshop for the advisors on active listening, open-ended questioning, and constructive feedback. The consequence of communicating that way is close relationships—a thing very important within this team and hence assurance of smooth workflow.

Tip 8: Be open to change and be an example to follow.

The sphere of financial services is in a state of constant dynamic development, where success will be enriched by the possibility to adapt to changes and take the team through transition: from changing regulations to just-emerged technologies to changed market conditions. Managers must show elasticity and toughness.

The other most important component in leadership is flexibility. It enables the manager to lead his team through tough times with uncertainty, yet keeps a firm, steady hand on his head. Change ensures that your team remains competitive, and is led by yourself as a trusted advisor from the front in times of testing.

Question:

How does your team embrace change? What would you do to more fully model flexibility and adaptability?

Activity: Leadership Reflection

Have each advisor reflect on a leader whom they admire and identify the characteristics they would like to emulate in their work practices. Meet with them regularly to discuss how those leadership traits are being applied and evaluate their progress. This will encourage self-awareness and promote a stronger leadership mindset across your team.

"Take The Jump. Have Skin In The Game, And You Will See Results!"— Alon Zak, Financial Advisor

Tip 9: Work on Yourself as a Leader

It is a journey, not a destination; as a manager, you would always be in the process of building those competencies associated with effective leadership. As a matter of fact, it is one's investment in themselves through professional development courses, self-directed assessment, or professional coaching that leads to success within a team.

First, develop yourself to be an example for your advisors. When you start to develop yourself as a consistent leader, even your team will be motivated to focus on development. For sure, leadership is about growth and setting higher standards for both self and team, not managing work.

Question:

Now what exactly are you doing to practice your leadership skills, how are you helping a team grow along with you?

Exercise: Personal Leadership Plan

Develop a personal leadership development plan that elaborates on the issues of communication, conflict resolution, and delegation. Review progress against the plan periodically and revise as necessary to provide a consistent path of learning.

Tip 10: Allow Ownership for Advisors to Take Authority

Give ownership to your staff: it creates confidence, creativity, and accountability. When these advisors feel empowered to make decisions about their work, then they feel more motivated to do a better job. Empowerment is not just delegation; it is about professional judgment of the advisors; it is giving them the wherewithal to succeed.

Empowerment has larger effects on higher productivity and innovation in teams: when you can give your advisors more freedom, permit them to handle their client relationships independently, give them decisions they can be self-sufficient about, then they feel valued and satisfied, thus trying to do their job more effectively.

Question:

Where can you empower your advisors to have more independence? What tools or resources do they need to own this space further and take hold of their work?

Exercise: Empowerment Program

Think of specific responsibility areas for each one of them and let them own those: The basic idea is—deal with some new segment of clients, drive some internal project, or something like that. Equip and guide them, but give autonomous drivers with the projects. Check in periodically to offer support and guidance where needed but let them take ownership.

Next Steps: Implement to Succeed

Now it’s time to start implementing these ideas. The following steps will help you get started on the right foot:

1. Review and Refine Goals

Meet with each advisor individually; talk about their goals. Align them with the bigger goals of your team, as well as the company objectives; and then refine them to be more specific and attainable by using the SMART framework.

2. Development of Learning and Mentorship Plans

Co-create an Individual Learning and Mentorship Plan with each advisor. Make sure the plan is action-oriented and leverages both self-learning and professional development opportunities balanced by mentorship.

3. Ownership and Empowerment: Encourage It

Specify clearly what each advisor can be responsible for and can directly impact. Whether it's new opportunities with clients or even leading such initiatives themselves, give them the reins while offering full support where needed.

Time to Act: Accelerate Your Career

The Taylor Method has choices designed for financial advisors at whatever stage they are in their career. From teams just getting started to seasoned veterans, our self-serve plans provide flexibility and at-your-own-pace learning, while our Hands-On Workshops take deep dives with coaching, delivered in an intimate small-group setting.

Take action today and sign up for one of our virtual workshops, or avail yourself of our self-serve content, to unlock the potential of your team and set them on the right footing with the help of Eszylfie Taylor.