Maybe You’re Doing it Wrong – Why Advisor Recruiting Isn't Working...

Being wired for survival, we have a tendency to unconsciously perform the same actions over and over again if they had led us to success in the past – similar to those experiments with mice finding cheese in a maze. While this trait had often been convenient long ago, the rate of change in today’s world leaves us open to many surprises if we attempt to go through life unconsciously and don’t make the effort to evaluate each situation independently. And living life unconsciously is so-o boring!

The approach to talent acquisition is NO exception. The rules of engagement have changed, and what worked in past, rarely works today. Why? Because the employment landscape is drastically changing due to the 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 every day, increasing numbers of independent workers hired for the short-term (the “gig economy”), social media and the rise of the millennial workforce. If you want to be successful at acquiring talent, you’ve got to work it - and there are strategies to do it efficiently and effectively so that it doesn’t cut into the rest of your day-to-day responsibilities as a manager.

Needless to say, when Sarano and Brooke Kelley of the Kelley Group approached me to contribute to their book, “A Guide to the Recruiting Conundrum: A Consistent, Disciplined Approach to Attracting Top Talent,” I jumped at the opportunity.  After all, this would be the first book written on effective financial advisor recruiting, and there was never a greater need for it!

Sarano and Brooke share a clear, systematic and approachable recruiting model based on countless hours of research and decades of highly regarded and successful training and coaching of elite branch managers and teams of advisors at premier wirehouses and wealth management firms.

I had the distinct opportunity to author two chapters. One chapter provides all the necessary steps (and only what’s necessary) to developing a presence on social media and the key elements required to be considered by advisors, expanding on the sentiments of Claudio Pannunzio, I-Impact Group, who crafted the forward…

 “Your personal brand is one of your greatest assets, the catalyst that leads advisors to you and makes them feel they will gain greater benefits of being associated with you”  -Claudio Pannunzio 

My other chapter on filling your pipeline using social media educates managers on how to use social media, in particular the most powerful, yet hardly known features in LinkedIn, to zero in on their most ideal recruits, perform research, build a recruiting pipeline that even alerts them to new prospects meeting the criteria, and use “social listening” to nurture the relationship and bring those ideal recruits closer.

If you’re looking for a book that not only explains why it’s so important to modify your game plan, but also provides resources, tools, knowledge and guidance on how to effectively attract talent, then check out the free PDF download, available now from The Kelley Group website.

Laura Virili is a leading social media influencer, speaker, and private coach who has spoken in front of tens of thousands of people over the course of her career. In demand and ahead of the curve when it comes to leveraging social media for professionals, she has developed a keen understanding of the world of a financial advisors by working with the best of the best for over 20 years in the financial services industry. LauraVirili.com