Episodes

Most advisors talk about alternative investments the way they’d talk about any new product: something to explain, justify, and hope the client buys into. Chris Reynolds says that’s exactly the wrong way to think about it. Chris has spent nearly three decades building one of the industry’s most respected investment firms and becoming, in Duncan’s words, one of the financial advisor’s greatest advocates. As Executive Chair of IPC Wealth, author of The Six Circle Strategy, and host of his own podc...

The old rule was simple: earn your stripes the hard way, then make the next generation earn theirs too. Alex Murphy thinks that rule is exactly what’s holding the industry back. As Chief Operating Officer at Cedarwood Financial Partners and host of the Beyond the Trees podcast, Alex helped found Cedarwood in 2022 with a vision to bring a family-focused approach to business and life. That philosophy shows up everywhere in his work, from how he mentors advisors just starting out to how he thinks ...

What if the greatest opportunity to grow your business isn’t finding more clients, but creating more value for the ones you already have? In this milestone 100th episode, Duncan MacPherson explores how advisors become indispensable by deepening relationships and becoming the first call long before money goes into motion. Join Duncan MacPherson for a milestone conversation with Chris Jeppesen, head of the advisor consulting group at First Trust Portfolios and, fittingly, the very first guest thi...

Why do some of your best clients, the ones with real revenue and a great attitude, never actually refer you to anyone? Terry Gronbeck-Jones calls this the mystery of the double A, and in this episode, he joins Duncan MacPherson to finally solve it. Join Duncan MacPherson for an in-depth conversation with Terry Gronbeck-Jones, a business development consultant who has been coaching financial advisory teams since the late 1990s, the majority of that time spent at Pareto Systems. Terry and Duncan ...

Two forces are converging right now that will define which advisors become indispensable and which ones become obsolete. One is artificial intelligence. The other is alternative investments. Duncan MacPherson calls them the two AIs, and in this episode, he and Matt Doran break down exactly what each one means for the future of advisor value. Join Duncan MacPherson for a wide-ranging conversation with Matt Doran, Leader of Advanced Planning at &Partners, a rapidly growing wealth management firm ...

What if the single biggest threat to your practice isn’t the market, isn’t AI, and isn’t the competition? What if it’s simply being invisible? Join Duncan MacPherson for an in-depth conversation with Mitch Slater, Executive Director of Digital Communications at UBS and self-described Chief Visibility Officer. With a career that began working alongside Larry King in all-night radio and later spanning 37 years as a financial advisor, Mitch brings a rare and battle-tested perspective on what it ta...

What if the biggest obstacle to growth isn't finding new clients, but trying to serve everyone the same way? With Duncan MacPherson away this week, Pareto coaches Jason Westover and Mike "Cy" Cajthaml Jr. take the mic for a practical conversation on one of the most common challenges facing financial advisors today: overwhelm. Drawing on their experience coaching advisory teams across North America, they explore how poor time allocation, unclear priorities, and ineffective client segmentation ca...

What if the biggest opportunity in financial advice isn’t finding new clients, but going deeper with the ones you already have? Join Duncan MacPherson as he sits down with Linda Sherman, co-founder of Financially Empowered and creator of the “Go There, Ask Her” strategy, to talk about why so many female clients feel disconnected from financial conversations and what advisors can actually do about it. Linda shares practical approaches to building trust with women clients through goals-based pla...

Your clients don’t want a portfolio manager. They want someone who’ll catch them when they fall. That’s the truth most advisors are too busy chasing alpha to hear, and it’s exactly why Duncan MacPherson sits down with industry legend Steve Sandusky in this episode. Steve climbs mountains, and he’s spent decades teaching advisors that the most important rope in their practice isn’t tied to the markets. It’s the belay: the quiet discipline of holding the line so your client can keep climbing wit...

Duncan MacPherson is joined by Pareto coach and team dynamics specialist Elaine Christakos for a practical conversation on one of the most overlooked drivers of growth in financial advisory businesses: building and leading a high-performing team. Together, they explore the shift from advisor to CEO, where leadership, delegation, and structure become the real drivers of scale. As firms grow more complex, Elaine shares how intentional team design, clear roles, and aligned communication create con...

What does it look like when a financial advisor builds a practice around purpose, not just profit? Join host Duncan MacPherson as he sits down with Kimberly Safoyan, founder of Anchor Wealth Management Group in Palm Desert, California, and a seasoned advisor within The Wealth Consulting Group (WCG), affiliated with LPL Financial. Kimberly shares how she has built a values-driven wealth management practice focused on philanthropy, community involvement, and purpose-driven financial planning to s...

Most financial advisors are really good at their job, and that might be exactly what’s holding them back! Duncan MacPherson is joined by Pareto coaches Jason Westover and Mike “Cy” Cajthaml Jr. for a candid, high-level conversation on what the best financial advisors are doing right now to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving industry. Together, they unpack what it truly means to become the “advisor of the future”, from growing up-market and attracting ideal clients, to making the pivotal shift from...

What will separate the advisors who thrive over the next decade from those who get left behind? Join Duncan as he sits down with Brad Johnson, co-founder of Triad Partners and host of the Do Business. Do Life. podcast, for a wide-ranging conversation on what it truly takes to build a sustainable, future-ready advisory business. Together, they explore how innovation, long-term thinking, and human-centered planning are redefining success in financial services. As demographic shifts accelerate and...

What if your client could sell a highly appreciated asset without triggering capital gains tax? And what if you were the advisor who made that possible? In this episode of the “Always On Podcast,” host Duncan McPherson sits down with Roger Silk, the CEO and co-founder of Sterling Foundation Management. They discuss the evolving role of financial advisors and the increasingly complex needs of high-net-worth clients. As financial landscapes shift, advisors must adapt to new challenges and opportu...

Nearly 90% of heirs leave their parents’ financial advisor. The real risk in the Great Wealth Transfer is not market volatility. It is irrelevance. Join Duncan MacPherson as he speaks with Natasha Kennedy, Pareto-certified coach and family legacy specialist, for a timely conversation on the greatest risk facing financial advisors during the great wealth transfer. Natasha breaks down why most heirs ultimately leave their parents’ advisor, how silence and avoidance around legacy planning erode t...

In this episode of the Always On podcast, Duncan speaks with Scott Danner, CEO, author, and advisor to enterprise-level leaders, for a fast-paced conversation on what every financial professional needs to know about the accelerating wave of M&A activity. Scott breaks down why enterprise value has become the ultimate scorecard in today’s advisory landscape, how top Financial Advisory teams are preparing years in advance for transitions, and the mindset shift required to move from being the indis...

Join host Duncan MacPherson and his guest Rob Montella of First Trust as they discuss moving upstream in client engagement, emphasizing the need to understand client needs and enhance services through advisory councils. Rob shares insights from his time at Goldman Sachs and First Trust, highlighting the importance of adapting strategies for high-net-worth clients. Rob introduces “higher and fire” criteria, explaining how advisors can differentiate themselves with specialized services. The conve...

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson sits down with Frank LaRosa, CEO of Elite Consulting Partners and host of Advisor Talk with Frank LaRosa Podcast, for a powerful conversation about navigating transitions in the financial services space. Frank shares his experience helping financial advisors make meaningful and measurable moves, whether scaling up, going independent, or rethinking their next chapter. Together, Duncan and Frank explore how to: Prime and prepare for any professional transition ...

In this episode of the Always On Podcast, host Duncan McPherson sits down with Jeff Ambrose to discuss the “advisor flight plan.” This strategic framework is designed to help financial advisors transition smoothly to new environments. Jeff shares his expertise on the evolving financial landscape and the importance of aligning professional settings with personal and client goals. Discover the key elements of the “advisor flight plan” for a seamless transition. Key Takeaways: Conduct effective du...

In this Always On episode, Duncan MacPherson and Chris Jeppesen, Chief of Advisory Practices at First Trust, cut through the noise to show how modern financial advisory leadership blends clear operating rhythm, role clarity, and intentional culture, with AI as a practical tool to compress research, sharpen meeting prep, and turn ideas from books like Good to Great, Traction, and Atomic Habits into daily workflows that scale client loyalty and growth. Key takeaways: Establish a simple weekly le...

In this episode of Always On, Duncan MacPherson sits down with financial advisor and entrepreneur Sten Morgan, author of The Seven Mindsets of Success. Together they explore the shifting demographics of the industry, the power of the mentor–protégé dynamic, and how younger advisors can break free from outdated models. Sten shares candid lessons from his own journey, including the importance of charging for ideas, becoming a better communicator, and creating client experiences that inspire long-t...

Join Duncan MacPherson as he reconnects with Kevin Bishopp, Vice President at First Trust, to explore the four key stages in an advisor’s business evolution: growing, teaming, scaling, and exiting. They unpack how AI is reshaping productivity, client experience, and enterprise value, and why execution and process are the real differentiators for future-ready professionals. Highlights: How AI boosts capacity, consistency, and client impact The importance of process in scaling and succession W...

How do you build a business that grows without losing its soul? Find out as Duncan MacPherson sits down with Chris Garcia, Private Wealth Advisor and CEO of The Azimont Group, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC. Chris shares how he evolved from a solo advisor into a multi-advisor enterprise by focusing on process, stewardship, and a powerful brand narrative. With a team of 20 and growing, Chris has built a scalable, referable, and succession-ready business...

Explore the intersection of leadership, scalability, and client impact through Duncan MacPherson’s compelling conversation with Jimmy Lee, Founder and CEO of The Wealth Consulting Group, and an advisor who operates at both the strategic and client-facing levels of his firm. Together, they unpack what it takes to build a business that is both transferable and transcendent. Key takeaways include: The advantages of having both a C-suite and client-facing perspective Why being sale-ready is abou...