Sten Morgan is the owner of Legacy Investment Planning, a hybrid advisory firm based in Franklin, Tennessee, that oversees $220 million in assets under management for 90 client households. Today Sten joins the show to share how he made the difficult decision to turn over his entire original team and rebuild with a new director of operations to create a stronger foundation for future growth. He explains how he identified cultural and operational misalignments, navigated tough conversations with employees, and structured his hiring process to ensure the right people joined his firm. 

Listen in as Sten walks us through his firm’s five-step hiring process, why he insists on interviewing at least 4-6 candidates before making an offer, and the strategies he uses to work effectively with recruiting firms. He also shares why he's focusing on operational efficiency before engaging in a period of growth, how he proactively hires for roles before the need becomes urgent, and his structured approach to iterating on business ideas. If you're looking for insights on building the right team for long-term success, this episode is for you. 

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/427 

Jennifer des Groseilliers is the CEO of The Mather Group, an RIA based in Chicago, Illinois, that oversees $15 billion in combined assets under management and advisement for approximately 4,400 client households. Today Jennifer shares how her firm has designed an program of broad-based equity awards across the firm to align the interests of employees with the firm’s long-term client service and growth goals. 

In this episode, Jennifer breaks down how her firm sets performance targets and ensures that employee incentives are tied to the firm’s enterprise value. We also discuss how The Mather Group streamlines operations through goal-setting systems like SMART goals and HR tracking tools, separates sales and advisory roles to optimize client acquisition and service, and fosters leadership development through emotional intelligence. Listen in to learn how strategic equity grants can drive business success while empowering employees. 

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/426 

Sebastian Guerra is the President of Guerra Wealth Advisors, a hybrid advisory firm based in Miami with nearly $15M of revenue and almost 60 team members, supporting over 1,700 client households. What's unique about Sebastian is how his firm has implemented a quality control system where a team member follows up with clients right after their advisor meetings to gather feedback and ensure high service standards. This approach not only improves the client experience, but also encourages referrals, online reviews, and social media engagement by prompting clients to act immediately after providing positive feedback.

Listen in as Sebastian discusses how the firm attracts and consolidates assets from new and existing clients—onboarding nearly 480 households in a single year—with educational events and a streamlined process enabling advisors to handle up to 35 weekly meetings. He also highlights how his firm has benefited from using the Entrepreneurial Operating System amidst its rapid growth, how his firm leverages an in-house recruiter to find top talent, and how he balances his business commitments with his evolving priorities as a new husband and father.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/425

David Grau Jr. is the president of Succession Resource Group, an advisory consulting and valuation business based out of Oregon that serves independent financial advisors with RIAs and broker-dealers. What sets David apart is his two decades of experience supporting financial advisory firms, which has allowed him to identify best practices for founders and successors navigating increasingly complex internal succession plans. This is especially valuable as founders face growing challenges due to frequent, high-valuation offers from private equity-backed acquirers.

Listen in as David shares best practices for preparing firms for internal succession, including establishing defined career tracks, organizing business metrics, and breaking ownership transitions into manageable tranches to ease financial commitments for successors. He discusses why internal successions remain viable—despite the allure of high valuations from private equity-backed buyers—highlighting how these deals often include challenging growth targets and less favorable terms hidden in the fine print. David also explains how preparing for internal succession can actually boost external valuation and why founders may find greater satisfaction in leaving a lasting legacy through their firm by transitioning it to internal successors.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/424

Cristina Livadary is the CEO of Mana Financial Life Design, an RIA based in Los Angeles (that works virtually with clients nationwide) overseeing approximately $70 million in assets under management for 119 client households. Cristina's firm helps “sandwich generation” clients by crafting financial plans that address their personal needs and goals while also offering optional add-on planning engagements to tackle the financial challenges of their aging parents, who may require support in the future. This dual-focus approach ensures comprehensive support for clients navigating intergenerational financial responsibilities.

Listen in as Cristina shares how her personal experience navigating the challenges of caring for aging parents and young children inspired her to focus on serving this niche. She also discusses how she transitioned her firm to a complexity-based fee structure, how she conducts 20-minute “fit” meetings to determine whether prospective clients will be a good fit for her firm’s services and fee model, and the lessons she’s learned about creating defined roles for new hires in order to build a cohesive team.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/423

Kay Lynn Mayhue is the President of Merit Financial Advisors, a hybrid advisory firm based out of Georgia that oversees approximately $13 billion in assets under management for 26,000 households. What’s unique about Kay Lynn is how she cultivated her advisory, management, and leadership skills to progress to become president of a national RIA enterprise. In her role, she now spearheads the firm’s proactive mergers and acquisitions strategy.

Listen in as Kay Lynn shares her journey from client-facing advisor to firm leader, including the pivotal lessons she learned about leadership after her team once threatened to quit due to her early management style. She also discusses her approach to mergers and acquisitions, how her firm uses personality assessments to strengthen hiring and client relationships, and her firm’s “organic growth tracks” for advisors.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/422

Daniel Friedman is the CEO of WMGNA, a hybrid advisory firm based out of Connecticut that oversees approximately $270 million in assets under management for 200 client households. What’s unique about Daniel is how his firm offers “in-house” tax return preparation as part of its one-stop-shop service, while outsourcing the actual preparation work to trusted CPAs paid from his firm’s revenue. This allows Daniel’s team to focus on delivering tax planning analyses and strategies, which are central to the firm’s value proposition for clients.

Listen in as Daniel discusses how his firm combines a subscription-based planning fee with an AUM charge on investments it manages and how it has implemented a money-back guarantee with very few clients taking them up on the offer. Daniel also explains how his firm embraces the concept of "Restylement" to help clients redefine their next life chapter, the key role of a “director of first impressions” in fostering client relationships, and how persistence and exceptional service have fueled his firm’s long-term growth and success.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/421

Michelle Underwood Gass is the Founding Principal of Paradigm Advisors, an RIA based out of Dallas that oversees approximately $110 million in assets under management for 80 client households. What’s unique about Michelle is how she developed a structured meeting process to guide new clients through her in-depth planning system, ensuring a standardized experience while retaining the flexibility to customize each client’s financial plan, prioritizing their unique needs and goals.

Listen in as Michelle shares her 5-part planning process, beginning with a “Get to Know You” meeting that incorporates Life Planning exercises to uncover client priorities and ensure a mutual fit, followed by a tech-enabled “Uncluttering” process to streamline document collection and onboarding. She explains how her “Intrinsic Discovery” and “Discovering Opportunities” meetings prioritize key planning areas, avoiding overwhelm for busy working-age clients, while tools like eMoney’s Decision Center and Hubly workflow management software support efficient plan implementation. Michelle also discusses her combined flat planning and AUM-based fee structure that allows her to serve high-earning professionals and hedge fund veterans, and how launching her financial planning business brought her a renewed sense of purpose after stepping away from managing a hedge fund.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/420

Peter Krull is the Director of Sustainable Investing of Earth Equity Advisors, an RIA based out of North Carolina that oversees approximately $200 million in assets under management for 250 client households. What sets Pete apart is his ability to grow his firm by helping clients align their portfolios with their personal values, turning investments into a reflection of the businesses they want to support. He achieves this while maintaining well-diversified, market-aligned portfolios that are prudently allocated to sound businesses.

Listen in as Pete shares how his sustainable investing approach focuses on identifying sectors and companies poised for future success, differentiating it from socially responsible and ESG investing by taking a bottom-up, forward-looking perspective. He explains how he uses a combination of industry insights, quantitative metrics, and third-party evaluations to construct client portfolios with a mix of equities and fixed-income investments that align with sustainability criteria while meeting clients' risk tolerances. Pete also discusses how serving a well-defined niche has expanded his business opportunities, enabling him to attract clients who want their investments to support the future they envision, and how merging with a larger firm has allowed him to scale his offerings and reach even more like-minded investors.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/419

Stacey McKinnon is the chief operating officer of Morton Wealth, an RIA based out of California that oversees approximately $3 billion in assets under management for 1,300 client households. Stacey has spearheaded a leadership training program at Morton Wealth to support middle managers, many of whom transitioned from hands-on roles to managerial positions, equipping them with essential communication and management skills. This initiative was crucial as the firm's workforce doubled from 30 to 60 employees over four years, surpassing the capacity of senior leadership to manage a growing team.

Listen in as Stacey shares how she tackled common managerial challenges at Morton Wealth by identifying problematic archetypes and integrating the Admired Leadership Program to elevate managerial skills across the board. She discusses the firm's shift from a rigid to a flexible client meeting schedule—facilitated by WorkBoard's OKR tools—to better accommodate the dynamic work environment and enhance client interaction. Stacey also reflects on personal productivity strategies and the invaluable leadership insights gained from U.S. Women's National Soccer Team Head Coach Emma Hayes, emphasizing the importance of nurturing a self-sustaining team that can thrive even in her absence.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/418