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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2018
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM
Registration and Networking Luncheon with MMI Women in Distribution Symposium Attendees
12:45 PM – 1:00 PM
Opening Remarks
Arlen Oransky, Executive Director, MMI Center for Distribution Excellence
Forum Co-Chairs:
John Moninger, Director of Retail Sales, Eaton Vance
Mark Spina, Head of U.S. Private Client Services, Russell Investments
Brett Wright, Co-Head of Client Group, Macquarie Group
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Opening Keynote Presentation: Elevate Your Sales Success with the ‘16X Factor’
Your top clients and top prospects are 16X more valuable to your business. So how do you make sure you are spending time on the “right” opportunities and maximizing them with “high impact” activities to drive results? This dynamic presentation will lay out specific action steps and practical guidelines to help you:
- determine the actual value of your top clients and prospects and what they mean to your practice;
- develop a profile matrix that utilizes quantitative and qualitative attributes to qualify your best opportunities within your current roster of clients and prospects; and
- systematically identify – and maintain focus on – the most effective tasks to move those clients and prospects through the various stages of the sales process.
Steve Meier, Senior Vice President, Executive Program Director, Sequoia Systems International
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Designing the Modern Sales Organization
To remain competitive in the asset and wealth management landscape, national sales organizations need to restructure their current organizational strategy around advisor coverage, territory design and management, sales roles and skills, and advisor engagement. The redefined, more modern sales organization will heavily leverage data and technology, focus greater attention on training and development, experiment with organizational structures, leverage enterprise resources, and update compensation plans to optimize the firm’s approach to the market. Lee Kowarski of DST Research, Analytics, and Consulting will share insights from DST’s thought leadership on the paradigm shifts that are occurring in sales distribution and what they mean for firms and their sales teams. A panel of top wholesalers will then weigh in on these trends – the opportunities and challenges they present, and what the sales organization of the future will look like.
Moderator:
Lee Kowarski, Vice President, DST Research, Analytics, and Consulting
Panelists:
Tige Hofer, Regional Director, Delaware Investments a member of Macquarie Client Group
Debbie Simon Michaelson, Vice President, OppenheimerFunds
3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Networking and Refreshment Break
3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
How Wholesalers Can Grow Their Business by Simplifying Their Strategy
Wholesalers are exposed to countless hours of high-quality product and skills training. Additionally, they work with their managers to put together comprehensive business plans for their territory. This session explores using the Pillar System to turn a wholesaler's knowledge, skill set, and business plans into a simple, but proven weekly strategy. Key takeaways will include:
- how wholesalers across multiple channels and product lines have grown sales significantly by using a strategy so simple it fits on an index card;
- designing a wholesaler strategy that achieves results as opposed to simply "getting more done;" and
- developing a weekly strategy using the Pillar System that allows managers to understand what is happening inside a wholesaler’s business beyond just recent sales and meeting counts.
Moderator:
Jeff Welday, Executive Vice President, National Sales Director, Invesco
Panelists:
David Ingram, Regional Vice President, Hartford Funds
Brian Margolis, Founder, PGwholesaling.com
Lance O'Neal, Regional Vice President, Sammons Retirement Solutions
4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
Amplifying Value through Peer-to-Peer Partnering
Collaborating with advisor consultants who represent distribution platforms and/or single distributors is an important leverage point for asset management investment specialists. There is no proven single approach, but those who excel at even the most fundamental forms of partnering will gain a competitive advantage. This expert panel will explore a wide range of best practices, including how to be relevant to each other, approaching advisors as a team, and delivering impactful joint meetings.
Moderator:
Ryan Dahm, Vice President, Senior Regional Director, BNY Mellon | Lockwood
Panelists:
Bob Gray, Senior Vice President - Institutional Sales & Marketing, Dana Investment Advisors
Ted Hellmuth, Senior Vice President, Portfolio Strategist, Boyd Watterson Asset Management
Garrett Pierce, Vice President, Schafer Cullen Capital Management
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Networking and Cocktail Reception
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2018
8:00 AM – 8:30 AM
Breakfast
8:30 AM – 9:30 AM
The New World of Asset Management Distribution
Data and analytics have come into the financial services industry like a bull into a china shop, forcing us to rethink efficient product distribution from all angles. In this session, panelists representing three different roles within a distribution team discuss how these new tools are impacting everything from rotation construction and firm segmentation to initial advisor engagement, the structure of advisor meetings, ongoing service models, and internal partnering.
Moderator:
Terry Riordan, Vice President, Senior Regional Director, Private Wealth & Advisory, Voya Investment Management
Panelists:
Jeff Carlin, Senior Managing Director, Head of U.S. Retail Distribution, Nuveen
Jeff Robinson, Associate Director, Digital Sales and Service, Russell Investments
9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
Concurrent Breakout Sessions – “Peer-Led” Channel Discussions (choose one of three)
What sales channel do you focus on? Join one of three discussion groups—Wirehouse, Regional/Independent and RIA or Dechannelized—for a deeper dive on important topics. You’ll have a chance to swap information and ideas with your peers from across the industry.
Wirehouse
Moderator:
John Moninger, Director of Retail Sales, Eaton Vance
Panelists:
Mike Matarazzo, Regional Vice President, Columbia Threadneedle
Paul Pezza, Senior Vice President, Account Manager for Chicago Market, PIMCO Investments
Christy Ryan, Vice President, Advisor Consultant, Nuveen
Regional/Independent and RIA
Moderator:
Bill Rader, National Sales Manager, External Sales, American Century Investments
Panelists:
Matt Boren, Regional Investment Consultant, T. Rowe Price
Joe Clancy, Senior Advisor Consultant, Franklin Templeton
Sri Vemuri, Senior Vice President, Director Internal Sales and Support, American Funds
Dechannelized
Moderator:
Mark Spina, Head of Advisor & Intermediary Solutions, Russell Investments
Panelists:
Tim Halverson, Regional Director, Northern Illinois, Advisor & Intermediary Solutions, Russell Investments
Austin Weichbrodt, Vice President, Account Manager, PIMCO Investments
Cary Zborovsky, Regional Director, Wells Fargo Asset Management
10:30 AM – 11:00 AM
Networking and Refreshment Break
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
FA Spotlight: The Evolution of Advisor Needs and Expectations
As financial advisors evolve their practices to keep pace with changing client demands, what they expect from wholesaler relationships is evolving as well. This diverse FA panel will provide perspective on how they are future-proofing their practices, what is – and isn’t – effective in getting their attention, and what makes their “go-to” wholesalers stand out.
Moderator:
John Nersesian, Head of Advisor Education, PIMCO Investments
Panelists:
Danielle Hennesen, Certified Financial Planner, Responsible Investment Group, LPL Financial
Paul Rashid, Investment Manager, SAGE Private Wealth Group
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
Networking Luncheon
1:00pm
Closing Remarks
Forum Co-Chairs:
John Moninger, Director of Retail Sales, Eaton Vance
Mark Spina, Head of U.S. Private Client Services, Russell Investments
Brett Wright, Co-Head of Client Group, Macquarie Group