For Candidates:  Prepping For A Performance Review In A Wealth Management Practice

As we approach year end, many practices will be conducting their year end employee review processes.

It is best to remember going into a review or development conversation that your career progression is your responsibility.  In interviewing candidates daily who are career disenchanted, many feel as though it is their employer’s responsibility to find, create and push the employee through a growth path.  I am sure the practice owner is far from perfect on employee engagement, development and may have even painted a rosier picture of the business during different points in the relationship, however, you own your career progress!

Here are a few items to best prepare for your review:

• Understand the pulse of the firm heading into year end. Was their explosive growth?  Was there absolute turmoil?  And use objective measures.  Did total AUM grow?  Did net new assets grow?  Did number of fee-based plans grow?  Did overall revenue or profits grow? 

• Share your accomplishments and how you feel it has directly, and in some times more importantly, indirectly contributed to the firm’s success. How have you influenced processes, other co-workers and of course actual results.?

• Be prepared to share your misses and what may be helpful to get better results in the future.

• Be prepared to show how you wish to improve and grow as a professional in the new year and what specific areas would be mutually beneficial for you in your career and for the growth of the firm. See if your supervisor or firm owner agrees.   Also share the new skills, learning and experiences you want to obtain in 2024. 

• It’s a review so you would think there would be ample feedback! This is your opportunity to ask for it if it’s not plentiful.  If in a small practice and you are dealing directly with the owner, keep in mind they may have never been on the “employee” side of the conversation as a business owner.   Some other reasons for lack of feedback could be:  no intra-review format, not close enough to your work to give immediate feedback, life gets busy or just hesitancy to give it because of a relationship.  This may seem ridiculous but it may be helpful if you ask for more feedback in a review if feel you aren’t getting enough!