Charles Schwab Corp : Schwab Expands Practice Management Consulting Program to Help RIAs Implement Change in Their Firms

Schwab Advisor Services announced today the expansion of its 'Insight to Action' practice management consulting program, offering registered investment advisors (RIAs) hands-on support and guidance on practice management challenges that often hamper the successful growth and management of their businesses. The curriculum is available in select cities throughout the country on these topics: strategic planning, managing profitability, technology integration and succession planning. After a successful launch last year, Schwab has added more topics and dates to the program. To date, over 600 advisors have participated in at least one of the programs.

Scott Slater, Managing Director, Business Consulting, Schwab Advisor Services Addresses Mastering Strategic Planning Audience (0812-5093) (Photo: Business Wire)

"Rapid firm growth and increasing competition have made running an RIA more complex," said Nick Georgis, vice president of Schwab Advisor Services. "We recognize that advisors need in-depth help to address their critical business issues. Through the 'Insight to Action' program, Schwab business consultants and relationship managers work together with advisors to address business challenges and drive toward actionable solutions tailored to their unique needs. The investment in time by advisory firms can be rewarded many times over as they are able to achieve goals and implement change in their firms."

Schwab's development of the 'Insight to Action' program is informed by the firm's annual RIA Benchmarking Study, the largest study of its kind focusing exclusively on RIAs, capturing trends and best practices in the RIA industry based on data from participating firms. According to the Study, Best-Managed Firms (firms of all sizes and business models in the top 20% based on profitability, productivity and growth) have seen double the revenue growth rate and margin and almost fifty percent higher revenue per professional than all other firms in the Study. Actionable insights taken from working with the Best-Managed Firms helped shape course curriculum.

The 'Insight to Action' curriculum covers:

• Mastering Strategic Planning - According to the 2012 RIA Benchmarking Study, strategic planning is a crucial element of business development and reveals a range of opportunities RIA firms can pursue to promote growth more aggressively. Best-Managed Firms place a high priority on strategic planning. In fact, strategic planning rates in the top three initiatives for many advisors in the coming year.
  
  For advisors seeking to complete and implement a strategic plan, this curriculum breaks down the process into manageable steps and allows advisors to walk away with a written strategic plan that they can use to start building the future of their firm.

• Managing Client Profitability - This curriculum helps firms analyze and optimize client profitability and determine the cost to serve clients. Working with Schwab, advisors create a dashboard that guides resource allocation, evaluates potential pricing models and creates a segmented client service roadmap. The dashboard serves to help improve advisor productivity, optimize resource allocation and maintain a high-touch service model.
• Transition on Your Terms - This curriculum is designed to guide an advisor through the process of creating a written succession plan. The curriculum helps advisors to establish their vision for transitioning their firm and take the first steps necessary to implement a plan. Advisors review valuation measures, deal structure and the drivers of value for an RIA firm.

Each session is delivered via a multi-week curriculum that includes pre-work, onsite intensive learning workshops and disciplined, detailed implementation steps along with ongoing Schwab consultation. The programs are delivered by Schwab's core team of business consultants in conjunction with regional relationship managers around the country including onsite RIA office visits. Each program can last three months or more depending on the advisors' needs.

In addition to these three sessions, Schwab has also created a workshop to target the technology challenges that RIAs face. In these events called "Driving Productivity: How Best-Managed Firms Leverage Technology," Schwab shares industry best practices for using a CRM, provides an overview of the solutions offered through Schwab Intelligent Technologies?, and facilitates interactive exercises. This session helps RIAs enhance the client experience, streamline business processes, manage profitability, and begin to outline a technology action plan for their firm.

RIAs interested in participating in an 'Insight to Action' program can find out more information by contacting their relationship manager or a Schwab business development officer.

Schwab's Business Consulting Services for advisors

Schwab's Business Consulting Services is a comprehensive practice management platform that draws on more than two decades of experience working with advisors. Through one-on-one support, online resources, and consultative events, Schwab provides independent investment advisors with comprehensive practice management solutions including insights, tools and resources to help them drive growth, improve scalability and efficiency, and focus on client service. Schwab's Business Consulting Services, provided to advisors who custody with Schwab, is comprised of six comprehensive offerings that cover key areas of running an independent advisory firm: business strategy and planning, marketing and business development, human capital, transition planning, technology and operations, and compliance resources. Schwab's relationship managers and business and technology consultants work closely with advisors to identify areas of need and leverage solutions to support the advisor's business.

About Charles Schwab

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) is a leading provider of financial services, with more than 300 offices and 8.7 million active brokerage accounts, 1.52 million corporate retirement plan participants, 822,000 banking accounts, and $1.80 trillion in client assets as of June 30, 2012. The company was ranked "Highest in Investor Satisfaction With Self-Directed Services" in the 2012 US Self-Directed Investor Satisfaction Study^SM from J.D. Power and Associates. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides a full range of securities brokerage, banking, money management and financial advisory services to individual investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer subsidiary, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (member SIPC, www.sipc.org), and affiliates offer a complete range of investment services and products including an extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and investment advice; retirement plan and equity compensation plan services; referrals to independent fee-based investment advisors; and custodial, operational and trading support for independent, fee-based investment advisors through its Advisor Services division. Its banking subsidiary, Charles Schwab Bank (member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender), provides trust and custody services, banking and lending services and products. More information is available at www.schwab.com and www.aboutschwab.com.

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Photos available of a past "Mastering Strategic Planning" session in Dallas.

The RIA Benchmarking Study ("Study") from Charles Schwab comprises self-reported data from advisory firms that custody their assets with Charles Schwab. The Best-Managed Firms are the top 20 percent in productivity, profitability, and revenue growth, calculated after removing those with less than $1 million in revenue.

Schwab Intelligent Technologies ("SIT") provides technology solutions to independent investment advisors, while Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. (Schwab) provides them and their clients with custody, trading and related support services. SIT and Schwab are separate companies affiliated as subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation, but their products and services are independent from each other.

All information contained in the Study is provided for general informational purposes only. All data is self-reported by Study participants and is not verified or validated. Each participating advisory firm submitted only one set of responses. The 2012 RIA Benchmarking Study was fielded February and March, 2012. The Study contains self-reported data from 1,025 firms spanning 2008 - 2011.

Independent investment advisors are not owned, affiliated with or supervised by Schwab. (0812-5093)

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50368457&lang=en

Charles Schwab
Anita Fox, 415-667-1308
Anita.Fox@schwab.com
or
The Neibart Group
Sarah Gormley, 718-875-2122
sas@neibartgroup.com