The COO Roundtable

By Coldstream Wealth ManagmentBusiness Education Arts

The COO Roundtable episodes

May 18, 2022EP 41 - Lauren Oschman, Tommy Martin, & Brad Quick of Vestia Personal Wealth Advisors
For the 41st episode of The COO Roundtable, Matt welcomes three special guests from Vestia Personal Wealth Advisors – CEO and Co-founder, Lauren Oschman, Co-founder and board member, Tommy Martin, and Partner and Chief Operating Officer, Brad Quick. Vestia has offices in Fort Wayne, IN, Indianapolis, IN, Los Angeles, CA, and Omaha, NE. They currently manage $500M and specialize in serving physicians. Together, Matt, Lauren, Tommy, and Brad have an insightful discussion about how focusing on their niche has helped Vestia become more efficient, knowledgeable, and consistent in providing stellar service to their clients’ unique needs. Other topics of conversation include:
Each guests’ career paths and the skills they bring to Vestia’s leadership team
How Vestia uses the EOS framework in their firm
Their approach to succession planning
The specific metrics Vestia uses to gauge the health of the organization (their answers are amazing, and we suggest you have a notepad handy!)
How they use a physician’s heart transplant model as a roadmap for their employee development
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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1 hr 4 min
April 05, 2022EP 40 - Yonhee Gordon of JMG Financial Group & Christine DeMao of Gibson Capital
In the 40th episode of The COO Roundtable, Matt welcomes two extremely thoughtful and strategic guests, Yonhee Gordon, Principal, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Marketing Officer of JMG Financial Group, and Christine DeMao, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Partner of Gibson Capital. JMG Financial Group is headquartered in Downers Grove, IL just outside of Chicago. They recently celebrated 38 years in business, have 86 employees, and currently manage $4.7B in AUM. Celebrating 33 years in business, Gibson Capital is headquartered in Wexford, PA, currently manages $2.3B, and has 15 employees. Together, Matt, Yonhee, and Christine have a comprehensive discussion on the many ways a COO impacts the firm, including culture, creating a consistent and outstanding client experience, and much more, as they cover:
Their firms’ respective backgrounds, including ideal clients, service offerings, and growth trajectories
Their professional backgrounds, including Yonhee’s lengthy tenure at JMG and the experience Christine brings with her 15 years at Gibson Capital
How to promote RIA ownership within the firm for not just those on the advisor track, but for those in operations roles as well
Which Key Performance Indicators each guest keeps their eye on
Steps each firm is taking to balance in-person vs. remote work to ensure everyone is on the same page
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
Read the full transcript here.
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55 min
March 01, 2022EP 39 - Rob Ziliak of Buckingham Wealth Partners and Ryan Armock of Thrivent Advisor Network
This month’s episode features two incredible guests: Rob Ziliak, Chief Operating Officer at Buckingham Wealth Partners and Ryan Armock, Head of Operations at Thrivent Advisor Network. Founded in 2019, Thrivent currently has 450 employees, and manages $6.5B in AUM. Buckingham Wealth Partners, a well-known RIA founded in 1994, currently manages $65B in collective assets between Buckingham Strategic Wealth and Buckingham Strategic Partners and has 540 employees. Together, Matt, Rob, and Ryan discuss the effect their respective roles play in creating and ensuring a great client experience and much more, including:
An overview of each firm and their respective strategies for growth
How each firm has adapted their business throughout the pandemic and the long-term effects of these changes
What our guests are doing to attract the best talent in the current job market
How our guests’ roles in operations impact their firm’s M&A strategy
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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Investment advisory services offered through Thrivent Advisor Network, LLC., (herein referred to as “Thrivent”), a registered investment adviser. Advisory Persons of Thrivent provide advisory services under a “doing business as” name or may have their own legal business entities. However, advisory services are engaged exclusively through Thrivent Advisor Network, LLC, a registered investment adviser. Thrivent Advisor Network reported over $5.3 billion in AUM in its latest annual Form ADV filing. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans is ranked 369 on the Fortune 500. (Fortune Magazine, June 2021).
Correction: When Ryan Armock states, "…and that brings us to where we are at today with about six and a half billion in assets under management, about 450 employees and about 300 IARs.” the correct number is 200 IARs.
50 min
February 15, 2022EP 38 - Jennifer Wagoner Kirksey of Tolleson Wealth Management and Trevor Phillippi of 6 Meridian
For our latest episode, Matt welcomes two fantastic guests: Jennifer Wagoner Kirksey, Managing Director of Wealth Operations at Tolleson Wealth Management, and Trevor Phillippi, Chief Operating Officer of 6 Meridian. Originally founded as a single family office, Tolleson Wealth Management currently has $10B in assets under oversight and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas. 6 Meridian, founded in 2016, is located in Wichita, Kansas and currently manages $1.8B in AUM. Matt, Jennifer, and Trevor discuss how their role is critical to “running the business,” what excites them about the future, and much more, including:
An overview of each firm, and how they have both grown organically
Each guests’ professional background, specifically looking at Trevor’s long tenure at Meridian and Jennifer’s path from entry level to Managing Director
The role of the performance reporting analyst and the importance of reliable, high-quality data
The services each firm offers their clients beyond traditional investment management
The challenges each firm contends with in acquiring talent in today’s market
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
To read our article, “Adding to Your Team? Consider a Performance Reporting Analyst” published in Wealth Management.com, click here.
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The views and opinions expressed here today do not necessarily reflect the view of Tolleson Wealth Management. The information discussed is for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation or an offer to buy a security or instrument or participate in any other service offered by the firm.
33 min
January 04, 2022EP 37 - Jason Mirabella of WealthSource Partners & Tom Preston of Brighton Jones
For our first episode of the new year, Matt welcomes two highly accomplished guests: Jason Mirabella, Chief Platform Officer of Wealthsource Partners, and Tom Preston, Director of Client Service of Brighton Jones. Founded in 2009, Wealthsource Partners is headquartered in San Luis Obispo, California, has 35 employees and manages $1.8B in AUM. Brighton Jones was founded in 2000 and currently has 225 employees. They are headquartered in Seattle, Washington and manage $8.5B in AUM. Matt, Jason, and Tom discuss how operations plays a key role in firm growth, client experience, and much more, including:
An overview of each firm, including how each guests’ role fits into their overall firm structure
Our guests tackle the “Sales vs. Operations” divide in the industry
KPIs each guests calculate to gauge the health of their organization
How to create actionable steps from those KPIs and implement them in a firm
Where both guests see the industry trending in the next 18 months
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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46 min
December 01, 2021EP 36 – Karl Heckenberg of Emigrant Partners
For our special three-year anniversary episode, we put a twist to our regular format and Matt was joined by Karl Heckenberg, CEO and President of Emigrant Partners for a compelling conversation on the RIA industry. Known for their strategic partnership with RIAs, Emigrant Partners is currently invested in 19 firms and has close to $90B in cumulative assets. Matt and Karl talk about industry trends including the investment outlook for RIAs, the role of the COO moving forward, RIAs now being run as true business, and much more, including:
The history behind Emigrant Partners
After a bit of teasing by Matt, Karl shares an in-depth version of his professional background
Karl shares the signs he looks for to determine if an RIA needs operations help
What role the COO plays in an RIA’s M&A pitch to other firms
The “gating issue” Karl sees when it comes to onboarding clients of different generations and how operations can enhance that client experience
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
Click here to read our article “Why Professional Management Fails for RIAs”.
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40 min
November 02, 2021EP 35 – Amanda Green of Matrix Private Capital Group & Gary Davis Jr. of Satovsky Asset Management
In the 35th episode of The COO Roundtable, Amanda Green of Matrix Private Capital Group and Gary Davis Jr. of Satovsky Asset Management join Matt to discuss all things RIA operations and change management. Matrix Private Capital Group manages nearly $600 million of AUM, is headquartered in New York City, and has offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, Newport Beach, and Palm Beach, Florida. Satovsky Asset Management manages $700 million from their headquarters in New York City. Matt, Amanda, and Gary discuss how an operations professional who is new to their firm should conduct an early assessment of the RIA and much more, including:
A history and overview of each firm
Each guest’s experience in the RIA industry, including Amanda’s time at BNY Mellon | Pershing and Gary’s time as a consultant
How they each attain buy-in from management and staff when suggesting changes to the organization
How each guest positions their firm for growth in a profitable fashion
What opportunities they see in the RIA industry in the coming 18 – 24 months

We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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39 min
October 06, 2021EP 34 - Jennifer Papadopolo of RegentAtlantic & Matt Wiles of Crestone Capital
In the 34th episode of The COO Roundtable, Matt welcomes two amazing guests: Jenn Papadopolo, COO of RegentAtlantic, and Matt Wiles, COO of Crestone Capital. RegentAtlantic is headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey and has a satellite office in New York City. They have 70 employees and manage $6B in AUM. With 50 employees and approximately $3.5 billion of AUM, Crestone Capital is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado and has offices in Denver, Austin, Los Angeles, and a brand-new office in Salt Lake City. Matt, Jenn, and Matt discuss the intersection of HR and Operations and much more, including:
An overview of each firm
Each guest’s career background, including Jenn’s long tenure at RegentAtlantic and the unique perspective Matt has gained from being both an advisor and COO
The different services each firm offers their clients beyond traditional wealth management
How each guest acknowledges and empowers their ops teams
The biggest challenge they are each facing today
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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26 min
September 08, 2021EP 33 - Jandy Rowe of Wipfli Financial Advisors & Brad Hixson of Lido Advisors
In the 33rd episode of The COO Roundtable, Matt welcomes two highly respected operations professionals: Jandy Rowe, Principal and Chief Operating Officer of Wipfli Financial Advisors, and Brad Hixson, Director, Mergers and Acquisitions of Lido Advisors. Wipfli Financial Advisors has 90 employees, is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with 19 offices around the country and manages $5B in AUM. Lido Advisors has 110 employees and is headquartered in Los Angeles with an additional 22 offices across the United States. Lido manage $10B in AUM. Matt, Jandy, and Brad discuss how operations plays a key role in growth by attracting both ideal advisors and clients, and much more including:
Background of each firm, including Wipfli Financial Advisors’ use of the CPA services from Wipfli LLP and the development of their AVID platform for smaller clients, and Lido Advisors’ approach to bringing “family office style investment philosophy to the high net worth space”
Our guests’ professional background, including how Brad’s career “started at the gym” and Jandy’s unlikely start with Wipfli 20 years ago
How each firm structures their back office for maximum efficiency and growth
What other outside resources our guests leverage as they manage multi-billion dollar enterprises
How each guest manages to “do everything” with the help of their team
Click here to read the Advisor Perspectives article Matt mentioned during this episode, M&A Requires More Than Securing Financing.
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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38 min
August 05, 2021 EP 32 - Overview of Our New Digital Consulting Platform
For the 32nd episode of The COO Roundtable, we wanted to pause from our regular interview format and answer some questions we have been receiving about our new digital consulting platform, The COO Society. PFI Advisors offers one-on-one consulting services on a project or retainer basis, but we also wanted to create a DIY consulting platform for RIAs looking to gain access to our insights at a lower price point. Our industry does a great job of providing sales training to advisors, and there are a lot of certifications investors and even compliance professionals can pursue, but we felt there was a void in educational and training resources available for those trying to educate themselves on how to run an RIA and position it for growth. We are driven to fill that void with our latest consulting offering, The COO Society.
Be sure to listen to the end of the episode, where we provide a promo code to get a discount on your first month’s membership!
You can watch a promotional video and learn more about The COO Society here.
For a sample of what the course material looks like, please watch this 4-minute clip from our latest course detailing Key Performance Indicators.
You can view a PowerPoint presentation highlighting the key components of the platform here.
Thank you for being a continued listener to the COO Roundtable Podcast!
We hope you enjoy, share, and subscribe!
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Sign up here to be notified of new practice management content added to our blog on a regular basis.
20 min

About The COO Roundtable

From the publisher's feed

Join host Matt Sonnen and a panel of COOs, as they share an open discussion about operational and technology best practices for the RIA industry, and shed a light on the tremendously important work…