Penny said (and I’m paraphrasing) “We are in the business of serving clients, and trust is our currency.” Well, guess what? That applies in the Field as it does in the Home Office. And the thing about trust is… it’s hard to gain, easy to lose. How does one lose trust? By over promising, under delivering, by saying you will do something and don’t do it, by putting your faith in things that aren’t real. And we are in a critical point in the firm’s history, where this currency matters more than ever. Don’t be dazzled by pretty slides. There’s a common saying in the consulting world … “death by a thousand slides”. Why does this phrase exist? Slides will not bring you the clarity you need. Nor CoPilot. Only by asking the right questions to trustworthy people, who love you and the firm enough to tell you the truth, not necessarily what you want to hear. Go and see how work is actually being done. Don’t assume your (implicit) assumptions are right. That’s how initiatives fail and organizations walk off a cliff. Read the book “Confronting Reality”. I don’t want us to end up in that book in a future edition. Learn how organizations fail in their transformational efforts…. Blockbuster, Kmart, BlackBerry… In some cases, the fall came swiftly. Blockbuster was successfully, until suddenly it’s not. In other cases, these organizations are a shadow of their formal self. Think BlackBerry. Not because they don’t have smart people. They all do, incredibly smart people. It’s because the smart people assume they’re right, and they stopped listening to the people closest to the work. It’s because they’re planning in ivory towers, completely ignoring the battlefield below. And the people bringing them the “news” so they can make adjustments to their strategies are n steps removed from the field. Watered down intel, like the telephone game we played as a kid. And guess what? It’s all entirely predictable.
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@ff same here. We always win the EDJ business. I have seen some crazy investments by FA’s at EDJ that definitely were not in the client’s best interest. after being with us for only one month the client’s money has grown substantially. It’s a win-win for everyone , well except for Edward Jones.
@qz Yes! Now you get it! As long as you do it with a smile and snappy suit on, it will feel better for everyone. Money is not our god, and trust is our currency. 🤡
@qw …and charge her 5.75% load? And then 4 years from now, roll those A shares into an advisory program that charges her 1%?
@qw Make sure they are A shares ! 🤣
Hey, guy who hates the company I work for: Ted is going to return from the grave and kick your a-s into the grass, then he's going to sell your widow some American mutual funds!
@ad I work at a competitor, and my eyes light up when I see an EJ statement. We win that business every single time.
I hate the company you work for, and I absolutely wish the worst outcome for the business.
You are 100% correct. The problem is we are seeing levels of "tone deaf" and disconnect like we haven't seen before. I'm sure the CES scores will be in the trash this year, but instead of trying to listen to feedback and fix it, they will double down on their war against the people who do the work. We are not dealing with emotionally stable people right now.
We are going to fail because selling mutual funds to widows is not a sustainable business model.