7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
1 Hour | Networking Breakfast | |
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
10 Min(s) | Day Two Welcome Conference Co-Chairs:
- Sharon Wong Hughes, Director, Asset Manager Network, Morningstar Wealth
- Russell Tipper, General Partner, Investment Advisory, Edward Jones | |
8:40 AM - 9:00 AM
20 Min(s) | President's Update
Craig Pfeiffer provides an update on MMI’s strategic areas of focus and key initiatives on behalf of member firms and the investment advisory industry. - Craig Pfeiffer, President and CEO, Money Management Institute | |
9:00 AM - 9:50 AM
50 Min(s) | Leading Through a Storm of Uncertainty
In December of 2022, Southwest Airlines faced an enormous challenge. In this session, Dr. Sean Martin discusses his research and collaboration with the airline, what we can learn about leading through difficult circumstances, and how Southwest got back to being a beloved brand. Professor Martin will also share cutting-edge research about the science of leadership and how to respond when the odds seem against you. - Dr. Sean R. Martin, Associate Professor of Business Administration, Darden School of Business, University of Virginia | |
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
50 Min(s) | SESSION: DISTRIBUTION TRACK - Generation AI: Why Emergent Technology Will Remake the Way We Go to Market
While the industry evolves towards more personalized solutions and personalized preferences for how and where clients and partners interact, we are all being asked to do more with less because of growing fee compression. It has become clear that the only way to scale is through technology, and it now appears that the best path forward will be with emergent technology, like Generative AI. In fact, a recent Ipsos survey found that 16% of Americans report having used a text-based or visual generative AI system. Learn how this technology will finally unlock digital marketing, better enable sales teams to focus on the best opportunities, and free up capacity to allow us to deliver client service at scale for all those personalized solutions. It is not something that’s down the road – it is here now, and it will transform the way we work. Join us to find out how you can get started.
Moderator:
- Rubesh Jacobs, Managing Partner, Jacobs & Company
Panelists:
- Nitesh Kadakia, Director, Head of Innovation & Advisor Platforms, Bank of America Merrill Lynch
- Nathan Stevenson, CEO and Founder, ForwardLane
- Vanessa Touma, Head of CX Strategy, Intelligence, and Digital Sales, Invesco
SESSION: LEADING THROUGH DISRUPTION TRACK - How We Make Bad Decisions
Professor Martin leads participants through a highly engaging interactive discussion that explores how people in leadership roles often make decisions that take them further away from the people they say they want to be – and how to identify when they do it. Learn about the scientifically identified mechanisms that lead our brains to disengage our moral reasoning centers, and how we can begin to spot those mechanisms in real time, ultimately improving our leadership brand.
- Dr. Sean R. Martin, Associate Professor of Business Administration, Darden School of Business, University of Virginia
ELECTIVE - MMI Membership Survey Deep Dive: What's Behind the Numbers?
This session is an interactive follow-up to the general session presentation, “A Tale of Two Cities.” Tim Kresl and Matt Schiffman from Broadridge’s Distribution Insight team facilitate a conversation to further explore where and why there are divergences of opinion on the future of distribution and product development. Using the wrong assumptions in assembling your strategy for growth can have significant consequences downstream. Join us to learn more and get ahead of the curve.
- Tim Kresl, Principal, Distribution Insight, Broadridge
- Matt Schiffman, Principal, Distribution Insight, Broadridge
ELECTIVE - Yield is Back (for now): Current Income Opportunities Outside of Equities and Ahead of a Fed Pause
On the heels of a historic Fed rate cycle over the past 18 months, investors and wealth managers are reallocating across higher-yield assets such as fixed income, money market funds, insurance, annuities, and other instruments. As these asset classes pick up steam, portfolio managers are personalizing accounts and exploring how to enhance their offerings around guaranteed income products. This session looks at the best opportunities for investing in income-generating asset classes outside of equities.
Moderator:
- Kristen Griffin, Head of Investment Manager Analysis, UBS
Panelists:
- Geoffrey Bowers, Senior Vice President, Credit Product Strategist, PIMCO
- Gavin Romm, Senior Vice President, Head, Separately Managed Accounts, AllianceBernstein
- Amber Williams, Senior Vice President, Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of Client Investment Strategies, Lincoln Financial Group
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10:50 AM - 11:20 AM
30 Min(s) | Networking Break
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11:30 AM - 12:20 PM
50 Min(s) | SESSION: DISTRIBUTION TRACK - It’s Not What You Say, It’s How You Say It: How Optimizing Messaging Optimizes Results
For many asset managers, a saturated and commoditized industry has made for an arduous sales process. Data saturation and information fatigue are very real challenges for sales teams as their firms and research departments are overrun with products, data, and information. This panel of industry sales and marketing leaders discusses the invaluable relationship between sales and marketing, how optimizing messaging will optimize results, and how effective communication can cut through the noise to position your firm and products with gatekeepers.
Moderator:
- Beth Nardi, Head of Model Portfolio Distribution, J.P. Morgan Asset Management
Panelists:
- Leslie Checkman, Vice President, Director of Client Marketing, MFS Investment Management
- Matt Coldren, Executive Vice President, Financial Institutions Group, Natixis investment Managers
- Wendy Strutt, Senior Vice President, Head of U.S. National Accounts, PGIM Investments
SESSION: PORTFOLIO & PLATFORM SOLUTIONS TRACK - Who is in the Best Position to Deliver on Personalization?
Without a doubt, advisors have the most direct understanding of their clients’ evolving personal goals, values, preferences, risk profiles, other asset exposures, and individual tax situations. But how well-equipped are they to translate those insights into solutions and outcomes? And how and when does scale come into play? Not everyone views this debate through the same lens. Our panel of industry leaders – each of whom brings a different background and point of view – discuss and explain their distinct approaches and perspectives for delivering on clients’ ever-increasing expectations of personalized advice.
Moderator:
- Rob Battista, Senior Vice President, Advisory Solutions, Vestmark
Panelists:
- Katie D’Angelo, Head of Global Relationship Management, Intermediary Sales, Allspring Global Investments
- Gary Gallagher, Head of Wealth Management and Advisory Solutions, Fidelity Institutional
- Steve Harris, Principal, Strategic Initiatives Leader, Edward Jones
SESSION: LEADING THROUGH DISRUPTION TRACK - From Brainstorm to Excellence: Unleashing the Power of Innovation in Teams
Explore the art of leading through innovation and driving rapid change. Learn from the successful Executive IQ innovation team, who transformed brainstorming into an award-winning project in just eight weeks. Discover the secrets behind their success and leave ready to inspire transformative change within your own organization. You will gain practical strategies to supercharge your team's ideation and innovation capabilities.
Panelists:
- Kate Boucher, Vice President, Head of Alternative Investment Advisor Sales, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
- Eugene Eignor, Senior Vice President, Channel Head, Financial Institutions Group, Macquarie Asset Management
- Aoife Sullivan, Vice President, Client Delivery, Vestmark
- David Tondreault, Vice President, Private Client Group, American Century Investments
ELECTIVE - Advisor-Client Engagement: A New Wave of Tools for a New Generation
Better advisor-client engagement can be an advisor's biggest value-add to combat the increasingly commoditized aspects of our business. To accomplish this, there is a new wave of tools and approaches that have emerged to improve prospecting, profiling, planning, and communications, which in turn can lead to enhanced advice generation and portfolio management. These tools also help advisors expand from wealth management into financial wellness – including non-investment advice – helping them become their clients’ truly trusted advisors on all things financial. This session explores what’s new in client engagement tools and practices, how to turn better client engagement into a feedback loop with advice and ongoing portfolio management, and how engagement models differ across wealth and demographic segments.
Moderator:
- Anton Honikman, CEO, MyVest
Panelist:
- Marc Butler, Founder and CEO, Wealth Management GPT
- Heather Holmes, Chief Evangelist Officer, Lumiant
- Christina Hurley, Senior Vice President, Head of Advice, Planning, and Product, Citizens Wealth Management
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12:20 PM - 1:15 PM
55 Min(s) | Networking Luncheon | |
1:15 PM - 1:35 PM
20 Min(s) | MMI Industry Leadership Award Presentation
The 2023 MMI Industry Leadership Award is presented to an individual whose visionary leadership and accomplishments have made a significant and lasting contribution to the asset and wealth management industry and the stakeholders it serves.
Introductions:
- Craig Pfeiffer, President and CEO, Money Management Institute
- Jennifer Ball, Head of U.S. Marketing, Franklin Templeton
Honoree:
- Jenny Johnson, President and CEO, Franklin Templeton | |
1:45 PM - 2:35 PM
50 Min(s) | SESSION: DISTRIBUTION TRACK - Investing for Growth: Weighing the Opportunity Costs
With both asset and wealth managers seeking target margins and growth for their businesses, it can become a balancing act when competing priorities come into play. Undoubtedly, the industry’s North Star focus must be on the client/consumer, ensuring that superior solutions are being delivered to meet their needs. At the same time, firms are increasingly faced with weighing opportunity costs and making difficult choices dictated by finite resources. Decisions around partner programs, sponsorship/meeting opportunities, data packs, competing collaboration platforms, and optimizing sales teams to meet the needs of an ever-changing wealth management landscape must all be considered to ensure relevance moving forward. This panel of leading wealth and asset managers delves into how they are navigating the cost of doing business in today’s environment, repositioning and investing in their business/sales models, and how they view the future of the financial services industry.
Moderator:
- Lee Kowarski, Head of Distribution Solutions, SS&C Technologies
Panelists:
- Rachel Jacobs, Managing Director, Head of Client Solutions, AMG Funds
- Michael Keenan, President, Head of Global Strategic Accounts, Global Client Service and Global Platforms, MFS Fund Distributors
- Ryan Robertson, Managing Director, Co-Head of U.S. Distribution, FS Investments
SESSION: PORTFOLIO & PLATFORM SOLUTIONS TRACK - Enhancing the Wealth Management Experience for HNW Clients
High-net worth clients expect a differentiated wealth management experience. Join us for a discussion exploring the intersection of wealth management products and insurance strategies, and how – together – they can offer an enhanced level of service and outcomes for high-net worth individuals.
Moderator:
- A.J. Jorg, Head of Retail Insurance Field Distribution & Key Accounts, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
Panelists:
- Doug Mantelli, Vice President, RIA & Growth Markets, Consumer Markets Division, Pacific Life
- Phil Pellegrino, Head of Wealth Planning & Insured Solutions, UBS
- Bebe Wilkinson, Vice President, Head of Wealth Management Product, MML Investor Services, a MassMutual Company
ELECTIVE - How Can We Improve Key Elements of Digital Product Distribution?
Exposure, diligence, contracting, and implementation are all critical – and time-consuming – elements of product distribution for asset managers and wealth managers. Isn't it time we streamline and digitize these processes? In our personal lives, we can do complicated things on apps like Zillow and Bumble, where we are able to quickly and easily filter based on specific criteria and get personalized recommendations. Wouldn't it be a huge step forward if we could uncover the best product distribution opportunities between asset managers and wealth managers and make connections in just as straightforward a manner? Join us to learn more.
Moderator:
- Cheryl Nash, Chief Customer Executive, InvestCloud
Panelists:
- Ben Blaisdell, Managing Director, Solutions Oversight & Data Analytics, Bank of America Merrill Lynch
- Melissa Jakubowski, Senior Vice President, BNY Mellon | Pershing X
- Rob Sanders, Co-Founder and CEO, Door Ventures
- Anne Steer, Head of Distribution, Congress Asset Management
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2:35 PM - 3:05 PM
30 Min(s) | Networking Break | |
3:15 PM - 4:05 PM
50 Min(s) | SESSION: PORTFOLIO & PLATFORM SOLUTIONS TRACK - Why Are We Still Asking How Alternative Investments Can Be More Integral to Client Portfolios?
Alternative investments have been labeled the next big thing in the intermediary channel for decades, and yet the numbers show something different. What is causing the gap between available alternative investment products and allocations? This panel discusses how the alternative investment landscape has shifted over the years, the lessons learned, what has worked, the distribution challenges asset and wealth managers still face, and which alternative asset classes are likely to experience growth in coming years.
Moderator:
- Daniil Shapiro, Director, Product Development, Cerulli Associates
Panelists:
- James Hannigan, Managing Director, Product Development & Innovation, Apollo Global Management
- Jackson Long, Director, Private Markets Lead, Alternative Investments, Raymond James
- David Shyu, Managing Director & Co-Portfolio Manager, iCapital
SESSION: LEADING THROUGH DISRUPTION TRACK - Unlocking Growth Through Personalization: Leveraging Customer Intimacy to Drive Growth and Transform Your Business
Join us for a thought-provoking session where we invite you to gain an outside industry perspective from a senior leader at Meta on the potent forces of customer intimacy and personalization. Discover how the application of data science is driving remarkable growth, transforming businesses, and delivering incremental value to all stakeholders.
- A. Charles Thomas, Vice President, Strategy, Operations and Analytics, Meta Platforms
ELECTIVE - Debating Discretion: Strategies for Mitigating Home Office Concerns and Establishing Advisor Success
A 2023 Cerulli survey found that providing better portfolio construction support for advisors, increasing the use of home-office discretionary managed account products, and expanding the use of third-party asset allocation strategists/model providers were the top three priorities for managed account sponsor firms. Given this backdrop, how will portfolio construction and management evolve as the industry moves to a fee-based model and discretion? This session explores the strategies and tactics firms can employ in pursuit of these goals. Our panel will offer diverse perspectives on how home offices and advisors should think about discretion and scale, the support tools that are most effective at improving advisor portfolio construction processes, and the role model portfolios play as home offices strive to recruit the next generation of advisors and deliver portfolio customization as wealth changes hands.
Moderator:
- Scott Smith, Director, Advice Relationships, Cerulli Associates
Panelists:
- Randy Bullard, Global Head of Wealth, Charles River Development
- Kara Julian, Managing Director, Head of Consulting Group, Morgan Stanley
- Izaak Mendelson, Head of Model Distribution, Invesco
ELECTIVE - Lessons for Sales Leaders: What’s ACTUALLY Working in Wholesaling
Based on thousands of wholesaler coaching sessions, Sales guru Brian Margolis discusses what is "actually" working in today's distribution world. Join us for a conversation on the success of quick hit calls, getting meetings with hard-to-meet advisors, what is "actually" valuable to advisors in today's environment, determining the ratio of in-person to virtual meetings, virtual meeting tactics, and more.
- Brian Margolis, Founder, PGwholesaling.com
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4:15 PM - 4:45 PM
30 Min(s) | Executive Fireside Chat - Craig Pfeiffer, President & CEO, Money Management Institute
- A. Charles Thomas, Vice President, Strategy, Operations and Analytics, Meta Platforms | |
4:45 PM - 5:00 PM
15 Min(s) | Day Two Wrap-Up | |
5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
2 Hours 30 Min(s) | Night Two Reception: Hill Country Social
Following a cocktail reception in the conference Solutions Center, the indoor/outdoor space at the Omni Barton Creek offers a perfect setting to take in stunning views of the Texas Hill Country. Our Hill Country Social provides a chance to mingle with industry colleagues in a relaxed setting while savoring authentic local cuisine and some unique Austin experiences. | |
