ROBERT ADLER - easysite.commonwealth.com

The

W ’INNER S
CIRCLEBY R.J. SHOOK
The Top-Ranked Advisor Teams in America

In our studies of America’s top advisors, one thing has mance reviews for others, and must identify weaknesses in
become clear: It takes a wealth management team to the team and among others. Then they work together to
win. And it is the clients who are the true winners. make improvements.

While there are many attributes that make a team strong, While team formations vary widely according to busi-

one of the dynamics that separate the Winner’s Circle teams ness and client types, this year we categorized teams into

from others is constant and effective communication from three structures: horizontal teams, which consist of two or

every member — from the senior partners on down. This more advisors who do most of their business together,

goes beyond sharing basic information like client data, or with each owning significant stakes; vertical teams consist

selflessly helping others to get ahead. These teams are singu- of one primary advisor; and family teams — we’ve decid-

larly unified for the purpose of deepening client relation- ed to eliminate the two-person parent-child team in favor

ships, pursuing their clients’ best interests, offering the high- of husband-wife teams and those teams with three or

est levels of advice and service possible, and endlessly seek- more closely related individuals, including cousins and in-

ing the best paths to recommend to their clients. laws. Criteria have changed somewhat since last year’s list.

Achieving this level of teamwork requires strong lead-

ership built of like-minded individuals. Whether they have GALA GATHERING

overlapping or complementary skills, they commonly In July, Franklin Templeton hosted our celebratory gala at the

share the same vision and infuse their team with their own Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Typical among all Winner’s

passion for pursuing each client’s best interests. From Circle advisors, each team was anxious to share their ideas on

there, they create a culture of high integrity, trust and how better to serve and advise clients. One of our attendees,

openness among members. The best teams view them- Franklin Templeton national sales manager Philip Bensen

selves more as family than simply colleagues. Each mem- pointed out a true commonality among all Winner’s Circle

ber knows he or she is free teams: “These advisors are suc-

to speak openly, whether cessful because they’ve sur-

venting frustrations with rounded themselves with

processes or arguing for the world-class teams and provide

benefit of working out the superior advice and service to

best resolutions for clients. their clients.”

Most of the top teams

reward individuals with R.J. Shook, founder of The Winner’s Circle

bonuses based on team per- ROBERT ADLER organization, has released his eighth book,
formance, which also con- The Winner’s Circle IV. His research
veys the feeling of owner- (Back row) Philip Benson of Franklin Templeton, Mark Sear of Capital Strategies also appears in annual cover stories
ship — and responsibility Group/Merrill Lynch and Dana Jackson of the Peninsula Group/Smith Barney; (mid- in Barron’s. Franklin Templeton is proud
— among all. In the desire dle row) David Hou of Capital Strategies, Bob Tyndall of Research and Jon Goldstein to support the Winner’s Circle and
for constant improvement, of the Peninsula Group; (front row) Charles and Lynn Zhang of Zhang & its mission of promoting best
one team requires each indi- Associates/Ameriprise and Winner’s Circle founder R.J. Shook. practices. To nominate an advisor and to
vidual to complete perfor- find out more about the program, visit
winnerscirclenet.com.

34 RESEARCH SEPTEMBER 2005

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

The High-End Boutique

Jon Goldstein & Dana Jackson “We’ve built a tremendous net offering them quality ser-
The Peninsula Group vice and advice and the ideal client experience the mo-
ment they walk through the door.”
Smith Barney, Menlo Park, CA
A primary relationship manager, typically Jon or Dana,

Jon Goldstein and Dana Jackson are setting a new indus- plus one junior partner, either Mike Texido or David

try standard in servicing the ultra-high-net-worth client. Arizini, attends to every client. For larger clients with

In a heated competition with several firms, financial more complex needs, Jon and Dana jointly service the ac-

advisors Jon Goldstein and Dana Jackson of the Penin- count. Additional team members include Karen Appleton,

sula Group at Smith Barney were a relationship manager who heads up

given a short amount of time to win the business development and market-

the account of an entrepreneur who ing efforts; three investment manage-

had just sold his company. The senior ment analysts; a fixed-income portfolio

partners of this 17-member team manager; and eight sales assistants.

treated the potential client’s issues ex- “Each client finds comfort in know-

actly as they would any other client. ing that we are their specialist and trust-

“We took the time to really listen to ed advisor and can speak to nearly all

his needs,” Jon says. their needs,” says Jon. Accordingly, they

For three hours the two advised him describe their jobs as being “the ulti-

on various investment strategies that mate quarterbacks, building concentric

would help him to offset the large tax li- GERRY GROPP circles around our clients and bringing

ability he faced with the sale of his low- in outside experts when needed.

basis stock. One idea was to establish a (Above) Michael Texido, Dana Jackson, David “We have the ultimate Rolodex, with
private foundation suited to the Arizini and Jon Goldstein of the Peninsula Group, a scale,” Dana says. “We connect clients
prospect’s philanthropic activities. At Smith Barney team, in Menlo Park, Calif. with best-in-class solutions.”
the end of the pitch, the prospect put

the brakes on the discussion and said,

“There’s no reason to talk to anyone

else. You’re hired.”

Jon and Dana joined forces in 1993 in

order to boost their potential to provide

comprehensive client service. They at-

tribute their success to their ability to

share resources and leverage the team’s

different skill-sets. The entire Peninsula Group team.
Last month the team relocated to

new offices more suited to a plush, high-end wealth man- Another hot competition came down to the Peninsula

agement boutique catering to ultra-high-net-worth clients Group and another elite boutique. The competitor flew

with $10 million to $100 million of investable assets. numerous philanthropic, trust and other experts from

“That is the sweet spot where we believe we have the New York to court this prospect. In the end, Dana and Jon

most opportunity to add value,” Jon says. “And, frankly, won the business because they took the time to listen and

that’s the most gratifying market, because those are the created a plan that responded to the prospect’s needs. “We

clients who can see and appreciate the value in what we do.” created a SWAT team approach of internal and external

“We’re working for one cause, the client,” Dana says. resources,” Dana says. And they earned a client for life.

SEPTEMBER 2005 RESEARCH 35

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

The Solutions-Based Team

Mark Sear & David Hou simply a matter of them walking the client — any client

Capital Strategies Group — through the same process. It’s a team approach that
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., Los Angeles levers five partners’ varying skills.

This is a level of customization few advisors can touch,

In late 1999, a client of the Capital Strategies Group sold but it’s one that ultra-high-net-worth clients need, and

his business to a Nasdaq 100 company and netted the one that corporate CEOs — the team’s target market —

same as his two partners: $50 million in stock. demand.

After carefully taking the client through all of the vari- When Mark and David met in 1993 at Goldman Sachs,

ous diversification alternatives, David Hou suggested the they were each trying to capture money in motion,

client simply just sell it all — as soon as prospecting the ultra-high-net-worth in

his prospectus was registered. Why not Silicon Valley. They realized that this

a more complex transaction? “Because group needed very sophisticated han-

the client wanted to simplify his life dling and very specialized services, so

and, being fully retired, wanted to they joined forces.

know exactly how much income he They started working closely with

could earn,” said David. Yes, that meant Alan Zafran, and each of them devel-

taking a tax hit to the tune of about $15 DAVID McCULLOUGH oped their own specialization within

million, but that left him with about money management. Alan became the

$35 million in cash and, as a company team’s fixed-income manager and strate-

executive, he was scheduled to receive gist. Mark primarily handled the con-

plenty of stock options in the future. Mark Sear and David Hou of Capital Stategies centrated stock diversification strategies
The client was surprised by the recom- Group, a Los Angeles-based Merrill Lynch team. and worked closely with trading-orient-

ed clients. David focused on investment

management and alternative investment

strategies.

In 1997, the team joined the Merrill

Lynch Private Banking and Investment

Group seeking an open-architecture

platform utilizing outside managers.

Since then, two new partners have come

aboard: Robert Skinner researches and

uncovers high quality outside invest-

Staff of Capital Strategies in their office. ment managers in all investment disci-

plines, including alternative

mendation, but agreed to do it, and shared the plan with investments; and John McNamee focuses on estate plan-

his partners. David and team immediately sold his shares. ning and insurance-related issues. The team recently hired

Three years later, the company filed for bankruptcy pro- Kim Ip, the team’s operating manager; the support staff

tection. The client hasn’t stopped thanking the team. (The reports directly to her.

client’s former partners did not unwind their positions on Together, the team provides the unique combination of

time.) personal attention and deep specialization in every aspect

Still, David and partner Mark Sear are both quick to of financial planning that wealthy families need. “We have

point out that while the timing of the transaction looks the scale and resources of a large Wall Street firm, with the

lucky in hindsight, there was no real luck involved. It was intimacy of a family office,” says Mark.

36 RESEARCH SEPTEMBER 2005

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

Business Partners, Life Partners

Charles and Lynn Zhang she handles services like designing profit-sharing plans
Zhang & Associates, Ameriprise for small businesses or specialized tax planning. She has
also built a name for herself in stock-option planning.
Portage, Mich. Charles specializes in investment planning and retire-

One day late last year, Charles and Lynn Zhang faced a ment planning.

dilemma. Both were booked in meetings, but one of them The most important rule is they never bring work is-

had to drive their son to piano class. They also had to fig- sues home, and they don’t bring any issues from home

ure out a way for a successful business owner to defer in- into the office.

come. With Lynn’s expertise in designing retirement plans Backing up the husband-and-wife team are two full-

and individual and corporate tax planning, she recom- time licensed assistants, also called paraplanners, and five

mended a defined benefit administrative assistants. As

plan, which would hit his goal a team, they are able to eval-

of deferring more than 50 per- uate every aspect of each

cent of his consulting income. client’s financial picture and

She also works with his plan put together a comprehen-

administrator regularly on sive plan to address every

such issues as tax reporting. concern. Charles likens his

Charles manages the plan’s as- planning processes to a doc-

sets — and drove his son. tor’s practice, with the para-

Lynn, a CPA, CFP and a planner playing a role

Kellogg MBA, gained her ex- analogous to that of a nurse.

perience as a senior consul- “The paraplanner and I

tant at a Big Six accounting look at a person’s financial

firm. Charles, knowing no situation thoroughly, perform

English at the time, left the necessary analysis, or

Shanghai to complete his surgery as I like to call it, es-

masters in economics at West- tablish well thought-out rec-

ern Michigan University (he ommendations, or prescribe

later earned an MBA from the medication, and monitor

Kellogg), and joined Ameri- the plan as needed once it’s

can Express in 1991 with no Lynn and Charles Zhang of Zhang & Associates/Ameriprise Financial. put in place,” he explains.
money and no contacts. Once
they were married, Charles, With so much personal

GLENN TRIEST attention going into each

now a CFP, ChFC and CLU, spent years trying to con- client’s plan, Charles doesn’t let his client list grow too

vince Lynn to join his practice. large. He only works from personal referrals, and he

She finally joined the team in 1997. Structurally, won’t take on more than 80 new clients a year of the hun-

Charles has more shares of ownership, “but Lynn spends dreds of referrals he receives. Charles will only take on

all the money,” Charles jokes. To make their arrangement clients who accept the financial-planning process and

work, they had to lay down some ground rules. The first benefit from his specialties in wealth preservation, retire-

rule is that they each have their own expertise, and the ment planning or general financial planning.

other doesn’t interfere. Charles’ forte is business develop- The last criterion is mutual respect. He says, “I believe

ment. Once clients are on board, Lynn works with the very the most important thing to remember is to always put

top clients. She’s a direct contact for any service needs, and clients’ interest first.”

38 RESEARCH SEPTEMBER 2005

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

horizontal teams*

*Two or more advisors who do most their business together and share substantial ownership.

TEAM NAME (INCLUDING PRINCIPALS) FIRM NAME LOCATION TEAM ASSETS

1 The Curtis Group Mark Curtis, Tom McCue, Smith Barney Palo Alto, CA $12,000,000,000
Karen MacDonald, Brian Araki, Brian Penzel, Ken Astarita

2 The Cenname Team August Cenname, Mike Denti, Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. Columbus, OH $5,100,000,000
Peter Motta, Charles Jarrett, David Sugar, Cindy Elmore

3 545 Group Gregory Vaughan, Robert Dixon, Morgan Stanley Menlo Park, CA $9,000,000,000
Mark Douglass, Jason Bogardus

4 Capital Strategies Group Mark Sear, David Hou, Merrill Lynch Los Angeles, CA $5,000,000,000
Alan Zafran, Robert Skinner, John McNamee

5 The Peninsula Group at Smith Barney Smith Barney Menlo Park, CA $5,000,000,000
Jon Goldstein, Dana Jackson, Mike Texido, David Arizini

6 Topeka Wealth Management Group Smith Barney New York, NY $5,000,000,000
Paul Tramontano, Lyon Polk, Sam Katzman

7 Rukeyser & Williams Peter Rukeyser, Alex Williams Morgan Stanley New York, NY $2,200,000,000

Private Wealth Management

8 The Potomac Group George Dunn, Peter Dunne Smith Barney Washington, D.C. $3,200,000,000

9 Private Asset Management Michael Klein, Gerald Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc. Milwaukee, WI $4,100,000,000
Gerndt, Philip Dallman, James Schultz, Kristin Lindblom

10 Eckerline, Bencini, Boyd Group Merrill Lynch Wayzata, MN $1,350,000,000
Peter Eckerline, Christina Boyd, Barbara Bencini

11 The Weil Cohen Group Noel Weil, Leigh Cohen, Merrill Lynch New York, NY $1,450,000,000
Brian Schiller, Michael Haskell, Joseph Waterman

12 Dewsnup / Godlewski / Sleiman Wells Fargo Salt Lake City, UT $945,000,000
Darin Dewsnup, Ed Godlewski, Sam Sleiman Investments, LLC.

13 Nelson Braun Oliger Group Robert Nelson, Smith Barney Seattle, WA $1,000,000,000
Dean Braun, Brian Oliger

14 Major & Close Wealth Management Piper Jaffray Minneapolis, MN $1,027,612,000
Charles Major, Louis Close ~ continued ~

40 RESEARCH SEPTEMBER 2005

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

15 The Stevenson Paxton Group John Stevenson, Wachovia Securities Quincy, IL $700,000,000
Bill Paxton, John Stevenson, Jr. FSC Houston, TX $500,000,000

16 Stavis, Margolis Advisory Services
Deborah Stavis, Mary Margolis, Trey Brady

vertical teams*

*One advisor that maintains substantial ownership in team.

TEAM NAME (INCLUDING PRINCIPALS) FIRM NAME LOCATION TEAM ASSETS

1 The Cash Management Group at Bear Stearns Bear Sterns New York, NY $7,450,000,000
Richard Saperstein, David D’Amico, Jerome Klein

2 High Net Worth Group Marvin McIntyre, AJ Fechter, Legg Mason Washington, D.C. $3,000,000,000
David Gray, Arnold Koonin, Donald Metzger, Bob Parr

3 The Erdmann Group Merrill Lynch Greenwich, CT $2,700,000,000
Jeff Erdmann, Robert Giannetti

4 The Sharma Group Raj Sharma, Merrill Lynch Boston, MA $3,650,000,000
Christian Kemp, Ken Sharma

5 The Optimal Service Group Joseph Montgomery Wachovia Securities, LLC Williamsburg, VA $6,800,000,000

6 The Halbfinger Group UBS Financial Services New York, NY $1,400,000,000
Martin Halbfinger, Clifford Stober

7 Carson Wealth Management Group Ron Carson LPL Omaha, NE $1,012,000,000

8 The Katz Team Sanford Katz, John Kang, UBS Financial Services San Francisco, CA $1,070,000,000
Stephanie Lewis

9 The Glassman Group Saly Glassman Merrill Lynch Blue Bell, PA $876,000,000

10 The Kulhavi Team John Kulhavi Merrill Lynch Farmington Hills, MI $710,000,000

11 The Deatherage Group Mary Deatherage Smith Barney Little Falls, NJ $775,000,000

12 Bartholomew & Company, Inc. Commonwealth Worcester, MA $550,000,000
Thomas Bartholomew

13 The Fox Group Stephen Fox, Keith Mahle Smith Barney Troy, MI $1,050,000,000

~ continued ~

SEPTEMBER 2005 RESEARCH 41

WCTIIRNheCNLEER’S

14 Financial Development Corp. Mutual Service Corp. Atlanta, GA $515,000,000
Kay Shirley Wachovia Securities
Oklahoma City, OK $575,000,000
15 The Blumenthal Group Jeff Blumenthal,
Morris Blumenthal

family teams*

*Classified as either husband and wife, or three or more related individuals; structures can be horizontal or vertical.

TEAM NAME (INCLUDING PRINCIPALS) FIRM NAME LOCATION TEAM ASSETS

1 Zhang & Associates Charles Zhang, Lynn Chen-Zhang Ameriprise Financial Portage, MI $800,000,000

2 Cooke Financial Group John Cooke, Chris Cooke, Wachovia Securities Indianapolis, IN $900,000,000
Brian Cooke

3 The Heck Group Robert Heck, Kenneth Heck, Smith Barney Rhinelander, WI $1,016,000,000
David Heck

4 Ciccarelli Advisory Services, Inc. Kim Ciccarelli, Raymond FSC Naples, FL $750,000,000
Ciccarelli, Paul Ciccarelli, Jill Ciccarelli, Anthony Curatolo

5 The Professional Planning Group Malcolm A. Makin, Raymond James Westerly, RI $600,000,000
Christopher Wallace, Daniel Makin, Peter Wallace

6 Sgroi Financial,LLC. Joe Sgroi, Patrick Sgroi, Jeffrey Cadaret Grant & Co. West Seneca, NY $775,000,000
Sgroi, Betsy Sgroi, John Clouden, Brian Clouden

7 The Kelly Group Brian Kelly, Brian Kelly Jr., Smith Barney Florham Park, NJ $500,000,000
Marybeth Emson

8 The Keator Group, LLC Sheila Keator, Wachovia Securities Pittsfield, MA $325,000,000
David Keator, Frederick Keator, Matthew Keator

9 The Lang Investment Group Bruce Lang, Todd Lang, Wachovia Securities Denver, CO $575,000,000
Drew Lang

10 Austin-Decher Group Wanda Austin, John Decher, Legg Mason Newport News, VA $300,000,000
Christina Austin

Ranking Criteria: The Winner's Circle® is an advocacy organization independent of the firms involved and does not receive compensation from the participating firms or its affiliates,
financial advisors or the media in exchange for ranking purposes. The organization promotes its missions of best practices in the industry, and the value of advice to the public. The
ranking process begins with a national survey of approximately 100 securities firms, insurance companies, banks, independent financial advisor practices and other organizations that
employ series-7 registered financial advisors; each of these firms promote objective and independent advice with open-architecture access to financial products. These lists are based
on qualitative criteria, including: managing partners with a minimum of 7 years financial services experience, and other weighted criteria ranging from productivity per partner, creden-
tials, acceptable compliance records and wealth management focus to customer satisfaction reports and other data that firms provide. Teams are quantitatively ranked based on an
algorithm that weights varying types of revenues, and custodied and non-custodied assets advised by the financial professional, with weightings associated for asset types.The ranking
does not consider client portfolio performance. Please see www.winnerscirclenet.com for more information.

42 RESEARCH SEPTEMBER 2005