Traditionally, financial advisors have served their clients by managing assets and investments that their clients have entrusted to them. And for good reason — it takes a lot of specialized expertise, experience and focus to do that successfully.

But client needs and expectations are changing. Many are looking for a more holistic, planning-focused relationship with their advisors that considers their total wealth — including assets held away from their advisory accounts. For most Americans, the greatest percentage of those held-away assets are wrapped up in 401(k) plans and other workplace-based benefits.

The opportunity to fill an unmet need

Any smart advisor will input the balances of a client’s employer plan and other held-away assets into a sophisticated allocation analysis. That’s table stakes. And when you stop there, you’re missing out on an opportunity to take the relationship to another level.

Your clients need much more than table stakes. From a tactical perspective, they need help making the right choices to maximize their workplace-based wealth opportunities. And from a strategic perspective, they need help understanding the ins and outs of their options in complicated compensation-based benefit programs.

Right now, your clients are confronting a vacuum of expertise, resources and solutions when it comes to their workplace wealth-building needs. They either have to figure things out on their own or stitch together information from their employer and plan administrator. When you provide a holistic view and tailored advice, you can fill this vacuum for both your clients’ and your own benefit.

You can start broadening your value now

We know you’re not a workplace compensation expert (at least not yet). But that doesn’t mean you can’t start talking about workplace-based assets with your clients today — a conversation your clients might not even know they need to have. Once you have a workplace compensation conversation and discovery process in place, it’s easy to scale it — and add it to the toolkit of value you offer to both your new and existing clients.

Take the next step

To get started, visit our workplace compensation resources page. There, you’ll find everything you need to become a workplace compensation specialist, including articles on client challenges and solutions, Q&As with workplace compensation experts, client conversation toolkits, courses that offer CE credits and more.

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