Financial Services – The Flexible Advisor

Generative AI in Finance – With Darren Tedesco (Ep. 107)

By The Flexible Advisor | August 19, 2024

How can financial advisors embrace generative AI?

Today on The Flexible Advisor, Laura Gregg and David Partain welcome Darren Tedesco, President of Advisor360°, to explore generative AI’s impact on the financial services industry. They talk about how most advisors see AI as an opportunity, not a threat, with the potential to serve more clients efficiently. However, data quality and compliance are significant concerns. Darren highlights AI’s current use in client communication and process automation, and its capacity to aid in making decisions that involve processing large amounts of data.

Darren discusses:

Overview of Advisor360°, a wealth tech company
Generative AI’s impact on the financial services industry
Findings of Advisor360°’s research study on AI
Current use of AI in client communication and task automation
The potential of AI to help advisors serve more households
Challenges and compliance issues in adopting AI for advisors
And more

Resources:

Connect With Darren Tedesco:

Connect With Laura Gregg:

Connect With David Partain:

About Our Guest:

Darren Tedesco, President, Advisor360°

Darren is one of Advisor360°’s founders and is responsible for guiding the vision of the platform, technology strategy, and company direction. Darren focuses on elevating the customer experience through the application of new technologies to solve client pain points. He has been part of the software development since its inception, bringing together the thinkers, creators, and visionaries that help power our clients’ productivity, profitability, and growth.

Darren began his career at Commonwealth Financial Network in 1994, starting as a member of the finance team and transitioning to the company’s newly formed technology department in 2000 where he became Managing Principal of Innovation and Strategy. He regularly speaks at conferences and is often quoted in industry publications for his FinTech expertise in the financial advisor community. Darren received his MBA from Bryant University and a BS from the University of Connecticut.

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Ep 87: Take Your Passion To Work Today with Regina Huber

By The Flexible Advisor | November 25, 2022

How can your favorite pastime — running, cooking, travel… whatever — boost your performance, increase job satisfaction, build a stronger team culture?

In this episode, Laura Gregg and David Partain speak with Regina Huber, the CEO and founder of Transform Your Performance, about the powerful connection between our hobbies and our professional lives.

Regina discusses:

Her personal experience of integrating her passion into her career
How the lessons and skills derived from passionate pursuits can serve our professional pursuits
What business leaders can do to invite passion into the workplace
And more

Resources:

Connect With Regina Huber:

Connect With Laura Gregg:

Connect With David Partain:

About Our Guest:

Regina Huber is the CEO and founder of a coaching, speaking, and training business, Transform Your Performance. Through her firm, she drives transformational leadership and coaches value-driven, open-minded leaders to implement a powerful new business consciousness paradigm, so they can effectively build trust, increase their influence, and impact and create more human-centered workplaces. Regina believes doing so will result in higher employee engagement and more fulfilling work for employees. She is also fluent in multiple languages and has worked globally during her career on 5 continents, getting her start in Germany. Regina is also a prolific writer and is a published author of multiple books and articles on courageous leadership. Her latest book, Speak Up, Stand Out and Shine, was featured in the Huffington Post.

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Ep 56: Assess Before Building A Diversity & Inclusion Program – With Kemy Joseph, CEO of F.E.A.R.S Advantage

By The Flexible Advisor | June 25, 2021

“Assess before you make a mess,” is what Kemy Joseph, CEO and DEI Strategist at F.E.A.R.S. Advantage tells Laura Gregg and David Partain in this episode of The Flexible Advisor.

Kemy talks about the stress that firm leaders face when it comes to the topic of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and why it’s critical that firm leaders understand the current culture that exists within their firm before implementing DEI change. Once existing staff and leaders feel safe, trusted and included, then consider adding other diverse hires in an intentional way to strengthen your firm’s culture. The conversation covers data from FlexShares latest diversity study and how Kemy works with firm leaders identify appropriate goals for their firm’s DEI program that lead to measurable business benefits

Listen to learn:

Why trust is a critical underpinning for building a successful DEI program.
Confusion that DEI is just about hiring people of different skin colors or genders
The difference between DEI committees and DEI clubs
Building a DE&I program based on specific outcomes firms desire
The four measures of safety within an organization
And more

Resources:

Connect With Kemy Joseph:

Connect With Laura Gregg:

Connect With David Partain:

About Our Guest:

Kemy Joseph is the CEO and DEI strategist at F.E.A.R.S. Advantage LLC. He works with firm owners and leaders within the financial services space to help them better understand how to create diversity, equity and inclusion programs that will yield results, both business and social. He’s on a mission to help around 5 million business leaders advance equity in their organizations by 2030 to create company culture where people of all backgrounds can work safely and thrive.

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Ep 55: Consumer Preferences In Hiring a Financial Planner — With Dr. Miranda Reiter, CFP®, Texas Tech University

By The Flexible Advisor | June 11, 2021

What’s most important when choosing a financial planner? Does race and gender outweigh other characteristics like age, years of experience or levels of trust?

Dr. Miranda Reiter, CFP®, from Texas Tech University, is studying this topic and shares her findings on what’s most important to consumers. Listen as Laura Gregg and David Partain compare and contrast data with Dr. Reiter’s about her work and the FlexShares’ 2021 study on diversity in advisory. Where were findings similar and where did they diverge and why?

Topics covered:

Dr. Reiter’s journey from banker to financial planner and entrepreneur to college professor.
What sparked her curiosity to study the impact of race and gender in hiring a planner?
Where does trust rank in the decision process?
How planning students are engaging in digital advisor technology
Covid’s impact on virtual engagements and reach in finding a planner
Why to consider improving your cultural competency
And more

Resources:

Connect With Dr. Miranda Reiter

Miranda Reiter’s Linkedin

Connect With Laura Gregg

Connect With David Partain

About Our Guest:

Miranda Reiter, CFP® is an assistant professor of financial planning at Texas Tech University. Her research interests in financial planning and consumer finance include race, diversity, and gender issues. She has worked as a financial planner and a banker at several Fortune 500 firms. Miranda recently received recognition for her work including 2020 Omicron Nu Research Fellowship, 2020 Center for Financial Security Junior Scholar, 2019 Financial Planning Association Best Research Award and 2019 Under 40 Award!