Guest: Integrated Partners’ CCO Matt Ackermann and President Andree Mohr. Matt, Andree, and Integrated’s Founder and CEO, Paul Saganey, CFP®, are the co-authors of Center Stage: How to Become the Star of Your Practice.

In a Nutshell: What can Elton John, Van Halen, and Taylor Swift teach financial advisors about running a successful firm?

On today’s show, Matt Ackermann and Andree Mohr discuss their unique spin on writing about practice management, which examines stories about how famous musicians hone their craft and applies those lessons to what we do as advisors.

Matt Ackermann, Andree Mohr, and I discuss:

  • Does a firm need a superstar or a group of high-performing team players?
  • The importance of building for the long run and having a succession plan.
  • Why Van Halen banning brown M&Ms backstage wasn’t about ego, it was about quality control.
  • Using personality assessments to match the right people with the right jobs.
  • What Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off” can teach us about moving past mistakes and maintaining focus.
  • Elton John, George Michael, and the power of generosity.
  • Why so many advisors struggle with delegation.
  • The evolving nature of practice and mastery.
  • Which famous musicians would make good professional mentors?
  • How Matt and Andree complement each other’s distinct leadership styles.

Quotes:

Andree Mohr on building an all-star team:

“I think our team is all made up of stars, but ‘stars’ means different things for different people. So we have an operational person who’s an all-star at what she does, but she doesn’t want to be front-facing. She wants to be back-of-the-house doing her thing, and she’s fantastic. And I never have to worry about what’s happening in her world because I trust her and I know her role and she does it phenomenally well. When you think about the word ‘star,’ how is that person a star to you in your business? Not necessarily, ‘I’m in the limelight and I want the stardom.’ Matt is the star of Integrated Partners and he loves being a star and he plays that role very well, but there are amazing humans around Matt who support Matt and make what Matt does possible. And that is the beauty of an all-star team.”

Matt Ackermann on continuous improvement:

“One of the great things about working with Andree is she gets you to ‘shake it off’ when there’s a problem. But she also can help you stay focused on the vision ahead and customizing, tailoring — no pun intended — our solutions. There’s really no end to better. And I think that’s something that Andree has really instilled in me here at Integrated, is this vision and this ability to keep pushing the ball forward together. As we grow together and both make this organization better, and help advisors to get better, they can keep pushing ahead too. They can be quick starters and try new things and get excited about things because there’s no end to better. If you continually are looking to improve your firm to get better, that’s when ultimately a true success happens.”

Andree Mohr on the human connection:

“When you win over someone’s heart, you win over their mind, you win over their wallet. Technology will change our industry in the next five years. I believe that we are geared up for significant but much-needed change within our industry. And those advisors who adopt technology will be able to significantly grow their business. But technology can never take away the human connection that you have with your clients. So, as an advisor, being focused on compassion and being warmer and creating these really deep connections with clients is super important as our industry evolves.”

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