For Growing RIAs, Single Role CRMs Don’t Make the Cut

In a recent article for Advisor Perspectives, Practifi CEO Adrian Johnstone explores what thriving RIAs should look for in a financial advisor CRM that empowers all roles, streamlines workflows and reflects the goals of its unique users.

He notes that a successful RIA involves more than just the front office. As firms grow, various teams such as compliance, operations, and marketing become crucial, each with unique needs that a generic financial advisor CRM might not address. Many CRM platforms cater solely to advisors or offer one-size-fits-all solutions, neglecting the diverse requirements of a thriving RIA.

To truly empower every team and the firm as a whole, a financial advisor’s CRM should evolve into a prism, offering role-specific views. For example, compliance officers need a CRM to manage risk and maintain audit trails — not an advisor’s dashboard filled with client engagement reminders. It’s time to move beyond single-role CRMs and embrace solutions that adapt to the complexities of a growing RIA.

Customization is key. It’s important to seek providers who are transparent about the process. Building in-house customizations is expensive but impactful. Generic solutions are cheaper, but less effective. A CRM designed specifically for complex RIAs will require less customization than a generic one and enable faster time-to-value.

When evaluating financial advisor CRMs or optimizing your existing platform, consider the following:

• How much work is required to create role-specific views within the CRM?
• Can you document the processes each role needs the CRM to enable and compare that against the cost of tailoring the user experience for each role?
• How much setup is needed to create dashboards that reflect the daily work of your key roles?

Read more here.