Managing Your Practice

Catherine Williams sits down with Mark Sparvell, author of Good Brain Bad Brain and head of social learning initiatives at Microsoft. Together, they explore the neuroscience behind leadership, emotional intelligence, and the human capacity to thrive amid stress and change. Catherine and Mark discuss how understanding the brain's survival wiring—and learning how to reframe stress—can unlock motivation, improve firm culture, and foster better decision-making as firms face time and capacity constraints.

Dennis Moseley-Williams, founder of DMW Strategic Consulting, brings a fresh lens to the financial services industry through the concept of the “experience economy.” Dennis shares how financial advisors can grow their business by shifting from delivering services to staging experiences. Learn how the experience economy can help you deepen client relationships, drive referrals, and create a brand that stands out.

Casey Jacox, sales leader and author of Win the Relationship, Not the Deal, turned his experience in sales and leadership into a career of coaching and mentoring professionals on building authentic relationships. He shares his expertise in building confidence, communication, and business development, offering strategies for advisors to strengthen client connections, differentiate their services, and develop the next generation of industry leaders.  

Scott Highmark, President of Mosaic Wealth, shares how his firm's mission, vision, and values have become the foundation for driving growth, shaping culture, and delivering a transformational client experience. From fostering a team-first environment to aligning financial strategies with clients' personal values, Scott breaks down how Mosaic integrates purpose and accountability into every decision. Catherine Williams, Head of Practice Management at Dimensional Fund Advisors, and Scott explore leadership, coaching, and building a purpose-driven business that not only grows but creates lasting significance for clients and team members alike.

How can financial advisory firms successfully transition to the next generation of leadership? In this episode, host Catherine Williams talks with Jessi Howe of Silver Oak Advisory Group and Yusuf Abugideiri of Yeske Buie about their journeys to firm leadership. They share key lessons on succession planning, developing future leaders, and balancing ownership with firm growth. Whether you're a founder preparing to step back or an advisor looking to step up, this discussion offers valuable insights to help you navigate the path forward. Tune in for expert advice on securing your firm's future!

In this episode of the Managing your Practice podcast, Catherine Williams of Dimensional Fund Advisors is joined by Brady Fineske, president of TFO Wealth Partners, and Richard Stott, CEO and CIO of Connectum Capital Management. They explore the critical connection between health and wealth, sharing personal stories and strategies for helping clients align their finances with their life and health goals. Covering topics from fostering trust to using innovative tools like fulfillment indices, this conversation offers actionable insights for advisors seeking to make a lasting impact. Learn how holistic financial advice can truly transform lives.

Join Dimensional's Practice Management team as they recap the top trends that shaped advisory firms in 2024 and share insights to help you succeed in the year ahead. From strategic planning and business scaling to managing talent and enhancing the client experience, this year-end podcast highlights key takeaways, actionable strategies, and emerging opportunities. Hear expert perspectives on what worked, what didn't, and how to position your firm for growth and success in 2025. Don't miss this comprehensive look back—and forward—at the evolving world of practice management.

In this episode, George Bernhardt and Scott Oeth discuss how storytelling and incorporating their own personal “why” into various interactions can support deeper client relationships and drive growth in their advisory firms. Bernhardt, a wealth manager and principal with Modera Wealth Management, and Oeth, a wealth manager and principal for Cahill Financial Advisors, dive into the connection between personal passion and professional success—hear how Bernhardt's Camino de Santiago journey plays a role in client conversations and the ways that Oeth's wilderness survival skills shape his approach to wealth management and leadership.

Helen Stephens, president and CEO of Aspen Wealth Management, has more than three decades of experience serving investors across various client profiles. Her firm has developed several personas for those clients that they serve best, and Stephens attributes success to advisory councils that match those personas. The councils provide a dedicated venue for soliciting feedback, communicating with the most engaged clients, and even creating growth opportunities through referrals. Hear how Helen's team runs a network of advisory councils that helps to collect, process, and incorporate direct feedback into the strategy of the firm.

Helen Learmonth, director and financial planner at WealthFlow, and Matt Hall, cofounder and CEO of Hill Investment Group, put the client experience at the forefront of their business operations to increase retention and drive referrals. They have each incorporated their firms' mission and values, as well as a higher level of service and presence, to encourage client engagement and satisfaction within their teams. Hear how they do it, why trust is at the core, and what it can mean for the bottom line.

Mark Johnson, CEO of Wealth Architects, and Rob Greenman, Chief Growth Officer of Vista Capital, both live, breathe, and bear the responsibility in their respective firms for managing growth, and with it, creating a culture and sales cycle that fosters a business development mindset. They talk through their leadership styles and some of the ways their firms are driving behaviors on their team, including incentives like compensation, encouraging healthy competition, and promoting psychological safety, all with the goal of creating a level of influence with their prospects and clients.

Art Markman, PhD, is vice provost for academic affairs at the University of Texas at Austin and the author of more than 150 scholarly works on cognitive science and related topics. In this podcast episode, he shares his expertise on “smart” thinking and decision-making. With tens of thousands of decisions to make every day, what allows us to move from basic functions to strategic thinking and, as business leaders, form innovative ideas? Hear how you can actively optimize those thoughts to build effective habits and approach problem-solving in advisory firms. Markman's book Smart Thinking: Three Essential Keys to Solve Problems, Innovate, and Get Things Done is listed on Dimensional's Summer Reading List, which you can download here.

With more options than ever, how do advisors decide on a custodial partner? Ben Harrison of BNY Mellon Pershing, Gabe Garcia of SEI, and Thomas Moore of Betterment for Advisors join us in a roundtable discussion on how their custodial firms are going beyond asset security to offer services in other major operational and strategic capacities. They each offer internal perspective on what advisors should look for, priorities to consider, and key questions to ask when choosing a partner.

Jennifer Climo, CEO of Milestone Financial Planning, and Martine Lellis, chief talent officer at Mercer Advisors, work in advisory firms that are vastly different in size  but have the common goal of creating an environment that fosters growth in both revenue and talent. They share their experience in bringing on new employees, how their firms continue to develop internal opportunities for progression, and the importance of clearly defined career paths that emphasize advocacy on the part of both the employee and manager, as well flexibility in roles, all while prioritizing the bottom line of the business.

David DeVoe, founder of DeVoe & Co., appropriately nicknamed the "RIA M&A Guru," has spent 15 years helping advisors buy, sell, and merge their firms. With so much to consider in a deal, how are advisors avoiding analysis paralysis when preparing for a transition? Hear from the expert on why you should get purposeful and have a succession plan in place today, what might affect a firm's value in the current landscape, and how to retain your talent and culture, all while continuing to grow.

Dr. Moira Somers, founder of Money, Mind and Meaning, is a financial psychologist, family wealth consultant, executive coach, and author, specializing in areas like neuroscience and behavioral economics. Her body of work helps financial advisors facilitate follow-through on recommendations and advice to clients. She poses important questions to identify true client priorities, mitigate procrastination, and ensure your firm can operate at a high level without compromising the client experience.

Daron Roberts, founding director of the Center for Sports Leadership & Innovation at the University of Texas, is a Harvard Law School graduate turned NFL coach who now guides students, athletes, and business leaders on stepping outside their comfort zone, practicing discipline, and hiring and managing teams. In this special live episode, hear insights honed on the gridiron that translate to how advisors can approach their own firm's goals.

Arabella Macpherson, director of Resonate Communications, turned a passion for acting into a career coaching, mentoring, and training leaders and teams to overcome communication obstacles. She shares her experience in influencing, negotiation, and conflict resolution; ways that advisors can manage difficult conversations with clients and employees; and the impact that communication styles can have on your business. 

Michael C. Bush, CEO of Great Place to Work®, has found data-driven ways to connect the dots between human-centered leaders and good business. He shares how a focus on trust in the workplace correlates with business performance, what leaders can do to enhance the employee experience, and insights from his own 30-year career that have had a lasting impact on how he's approached new roles and leadership positions. 

Lisa Salvi, Managing Director of Advisor Services at Schwab, manages advisor benchmarking studies that have collected data for over a decade on key business metrics for financial advisory practices. Listen as she shares focus areas for firms to measure and what actually matters for performance. She also discusses how firms differentiate when it comes to those areas with the greatest impact, such as talent, succession planning, referral programs, and value propositions.

Ben Slater of Buckingham Strategic Partners works closely with advisory firms that are near critical growth points and considering outsourcing or partnering to manage the expansion. As you approach the next level of growth, you may ask questions around when to hire, what functions to outsource, and how you can thrive as you grow. Hear how to evaluate cost vs. time, determine where you can relinquish decision-making, and return to the areas of the profession that bring you joy.

Shandel Sutherland and Liv Olson share more than four decades of combined experience helping build highly effective teams. In this episode, they define key characteristics of those teams, ways to identify gaps in your own firm, and actionable steps to enhance performance. Learn why they believe investing in employee and team development is an essential aspect of achieving long-term success and creating an exceptional client experience in your advisory firm.

Robin Wigglesworth, editor of FT Alphaville and author of Trillions, describes his career as “geeking out” on all things finance, writing to great depths on investing and markets. Hear how he connected with some of the greatest minds in finance to tell the origin story of index funds, his take on integrating corporate cultures through M&A, and what's next in the evolution of financial advice and incorporating AI. Trillions is included on Dimensional's 2023 Summer Reading List, which you can view here.

Nirav Batavia, co–managing partner and chief technology officer of Forum Financial has used technology to build systems and processes that increase efficiency, enhance the employee and client experience, and scale the business, all while maintaining a focus on profitability. He shares his expertise on how advisors can combine technology with human interaction to support growth goals, determine areas of opportunity and improvement, and spend time doing the parts of their job they enjoy most. Nirav Batavia is not affiliated with Dimensional Fund Advisors. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP does not endorse, recommend, or guarantee the services of any advisor, certification organization, advisory or consulting firm. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and Forum Financial are separate unaffiliated entities.

Michael Goodman, president of Wealthstream Advisors, founded a lifestyle practice that evolved into a $1 billion ensemble practice after combining the skills of multiple professions and taking on partners to facilitate the firm's growth over the past three decades. Hear the pros and cons of running an ensemble practice; how hiring, team structure, and business processes transform through the progression; and why it's important that your long-term goals and motivations match those of your people.   Michael Goodman is not affiliated with Dimensional Fund Advisors. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP does not endorse, recommend, or guarantee the services of any advisor, certification organization, advisory or consulting firm. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and Wealthstream Advisors are separate unaffiliated entities.**

Peter Lazaroff, CIO at Plancorp, knew from a young age that he would have a career in investments and wealth management. Now, he helps deliver financial planning advice to clients in various life stages and offers his perspective on how advisors can engage with clients in ways that foster a long-term investment mindset and referability. Hear how he approaches these conversations with clients, solicits feedback on their experience, and his thoughts on the evolution of an advisors' role. Peter Lazaroff is not affiliated with Dimensional Fund Advisors. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP does not endorse, recommend, or guarantee the services of any advisor, certification organization, advisory or consulting firm. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and Plancorp are separate unaffiliated entities.

Joe Stephan of Stephan Independent Advisory experienced a familial succession firsthand when his father passed his advisory firm on to him. The transition left him with a desire to help other advisors in strategically planning for succession, either within the family or externally. He shares key considerations for advisors preparing for succession, the nuances of a transition within a family, and how succession is impacted by the current state of the RIA industry in Australia.

Julie Littlechild, founder and CEO of Absolute Engagement, has spent over 25 years finding ways to measure the client experience in financial advisory firms. She shares how advisors can analyze feedback from clients around engagement and satisfaction to anticipate needs and wants, and ultimately help clients drive business growth through referrals. 

Allen Darby of Alaris Acquisitions and Jason Carver of Pure Financial Advisors have sat on both sides of the M&A table and experienced some of the recent, record-breaking years of deals done across the wealth management industry. They share their thoughts on when and how to start planning for a deal and searching for a partner, what each side considers deal breakers, and why you should always be prepared to sell. If you are buying, selling, merging, or simply beginning to think about the future of your firm, their insights could provide valuable information for taking those next steps.

Louis Diamond, of Diamond Consultants, guides advisors through major career transitions like launching RIA firms, scaling independent businesses, and succession planning. He joins Dimensional's Catherine Williams to discuss how advisors can prepare for movement across the industry, best practices for building a successful advisory firm, and what strategic moves they should consider today. 

Emily Binder of Beetle Moment Marketing and Taylor Schulte of Define Financial have both built successful businesses by leveraging digital marketing and technology. Schulte's advisory firm focuses on attracting their ideal clients through curated digital strategies while Binder's agency helps advisors grow their practices with new tools and technology like voice marketing. In this podcast, they discuss the latest digital tactics advisors should focus on to differentiate themselves and allow them to reach their desired audience.

Senator Bill Bradley is a former professional basketball player, Olympic gold medalist, three-term US Senator, and author of seven books. He shares personal and professional stories on the driving factors and experiences that led him to success. Dimensional's Catherine Williams leads the discussion on the values Bradley has emphasized throughout his career and how financial advisors can implement those same values to help build a successful team and business.

Chip Roame, founder and managing partner of Tiburon Strategic Advisors, joins Dimensional's Catherine Williams to discuss the shift in wealth from Baby Boomers to Gen X and Millennials. They will cover steps advisory practices can take today to meet the needs of younger investors and win them as long-term clients. 

Carrie Delgott, Kate Juelfs, and Robert Bowers, three chief operating officers (COOs) from thriving advisory firms, join Catherine Williams to discuss the impact that clarity and flexibility in career pathing and recruiting can have on the employee experience, and why it matters to your business. (Recorded April 22, 2022.)

We welcome our very own Lisa Dallmer, COO, and David Jones, head of our UK and Ireland Advisor Group, to share their favorite reads, provide personal and professional-development book recommendations, and discuss the impact that reading has had on their careers in financial services and their personal lives. See these books and more on Dimensional's full 2022 summer reading list here.

Kamila Elliott, board chair of the CFP board and CEO and founder of Collective Wealth Partners, and Kara Duckworth, managing director of client experience at Mercer Advisors, join Dimensional's Catherine Williams to discuss how their firms are approaching diversity and what it means to not only serve women and other underrepresented investor clients, but also the importance of building a more diverse pool of candidates for financial services professions.

Craig Wortmann, CEO of Sales Engine and a clinical professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, discusses how top-performing firms may emulate the way elite athletes or musicians enhance performance through deliberate practice. He shares a five-step framework built on purposeful action that may help you become more effective in your role as a financial advisor and business leader. 

Investing early in the next generation of leaders may be the key to your firm's longevity, but it can be difficult to balance short-term revenue and profit objectives with long-term business goals. Cameron Passmore, portfolio manager and executive chairman of PWL Capital in Canada, shares from more than 20 years of experience in creating a culture that focuses on both ambition and humility, and emphasizes investing in and developing employees as an integral part of the long-term business plan.

As a business leader are you focused on the systems or the soul side of your practice? Are you building a team that focuses on both? Benj Miller, co-founder of the business operating framework System & Soul, joins Dimensional's Catherine Williams to share the six key elements leaders can focus on to support client satisfaction, employee development, and growth in their business. Learn more in Miller's book The Clarity Field Guide, available at www.clarityfieldguide.com.

As the world becomes more comfortable with rapid technology advancements, has your firm considered how the client experience is changing as a result? With seemingly endless options, how do you know where to make investments that have a lasting impact? Doug Fritz, CEO of F2 Strategy, joins Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, to discuss areas of technology advisors should consider to support firm growth, and how to determine which ones best fit your unique business needs.

Compliance plays a critical role in financial services, but keeping up with regulations from the SEC, FINRA, and individual states can be overwhelming. How do you ensure that you're interpreting them correctly? Do you have processes in place to protect your clients and team? Are you prepared if you get audited? Leila Shaver, founder of My RIA Lawyer, joins Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, to discuss compliance concerns and regulatory changes you can prepare for now.

Every founder of a financial advisory firm will at some point face the question of succession. If looking internally, who is the heir apparent and when should they begin handing over the reins? The process can take years and may be difficult to navigate for the founder and successor. Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by Eric Hehman, CEO of Austin Asset, to talk about his journey from intern to CEO and the successful succession plan he helped develop along the way.

In a competitive market, it can be tempting to continuously seek new ways to provide value to clients in order to stand out and grow your firm. But often, these aren't scalable offerings, and trying to serve more than one niche can allow your ideal clients to slip through the cracks. Michael Kitces, of Buckingham Wealth Partners, joins Catherine Williams to discuss how advisors can build a successful practice by developing a clear vision for their firms and by focusing on financial advice and education offerings for a specific market segment.

It can take a range of skill sets to start and build a successful financial advisory firm. But whether that firm remains a smaller, lifestyle practice or grows into a larger self-sustaining enterprise can depend on the culture and the right mix of personality types. Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by Jon Jones, co-founder and CEO of the wealth management firm Brighton Jones, to explore how you can identify, hire, and align the right personalities with the goals of your firm.

Most advisors are excellent at evaluating investment options for clients but can fall short in assessing their own financial statements and what they are saying about the health of their businesses. Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by Philip Palaveev, founder and CEO of The Ensemble Practice, to explore how assessing a firm's profit and loss (P&L) statement and other financials could possibly be the key to growing faster, achieving greater profitability, and creating more opportunities for advisors and their teams.

Many advisory practices use the popular “diamond team” structure to expand their capacity, add more clients, and effectively service those clients. But how do you implement a diamond team, and is it right for your organization? Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by Angie Herbers, founder and managing partner of Herbers and Company and originator of the diamond team concept. They discuss how having the right people in the right roles can create a high-functioning team that benefits both the organization and its clients.

How do you differentiate yourself in a competitive market and build a profitable practice working with the types of clients that you want to help? Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by four-time Olympian Lauryn Williams of Worth Winning to discuss her path from gold medal-winning athlete to financial planner focused on offering advice and education to an underserved market segment.

Sharing equity can help attract and retain talented team members, create a clear succession plan, and help de-risk ownership for advisory firms. But what's the best way to price and distribute equity to meet a firm's strategic objectives? John Furey of Advisor Growth Strategies joins Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, to discuss current trends in compensation and equity planning.

As founder and CEO of CEG Worldwide, John Bowen has spent decades coaching thousands of elite advisors. So what separates top financial advisors from the rest? In this conversation with Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, John shares the four business development strategies that he believes all elite advisors should follow. As an added bonus, you can visit www.cegworldwide.com/fasttrack to receive a complimentary copy of John's book “Become the Expert the Wealthy Want,” and to arrange a business development strategy call with his team.

In 2020, we learned the importance of developing a team that can deliver value to your clients while implementing a systematic growth plan to guide the future of your business. Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by Stacy Francis of Francis Financial and Dave Welty of Avier Wealth Advisors to discuss how they approach their unique market niches and use social media and other tools to drive growth in their businesses.

Managing the culture and shared values of your organization is a key element of driving employee development and ultimately the long-term value of your business. In a virtual environment, goals-based management can help you deepen engagement with your teams and prioritize the values that create results. Catherine Williams, Dimensional's Head of Practice Management, is joined by J.D. Bruce of Abacus Wealth and Stacey McKinnon of Morton Capital to discuss how they successfully manage human capital at their firms.