Creating a team of top advisors requires a culture focused on the client, says Michael Poppo, managing director of UBS Financial Services
“It starts with a philosophy and ours has always been that we are a resource; we are not selling products,” Poppo told SHOOKtalks. “Being an advisor is a calling; it is a commitment.”
Jennifer Tarsney, director of the Advisor Advancement Institute at New York Life Investments, moderated a Forbes/SHOOK session titled, “How the Best Become the Best.” Poppo was joined by Kevin Elko, Ph.D., a sports psychologist and motivational speaker.
Tarsney asked Poppo for insights into how he hires new advisors and integrates them into his team.
“Are there specific questions you ask? Are there specific red flags you absolutely look to avoid?” she asked.
“The first thing I look for is honesty,” Poppo said. “I want to talk to someone who is humble.”
Poppo said he looks for applicants who played team sports as a child. “When you play a team sport you are used to working with other people. If someone is joining a group of 12 people, they have to fit in.”
Elko, a top-ranked sports psychologist and motivational speaker for NFL and college football teams, added that winning and success don’t just happen. “This isn’t something that somebody just stumbles into.”
There needs to be a purpose and a focus, he added.
“Structure drives function,” Elko said, noting that inexperienced advisors, just like athletes, need help. “All successful people have a mentor.”
Poppo agreed that mentorship is an important part of team building.
In response to Tarsney’s questions about hiring, Poppo offered an anecdote about how he hired a college dropout who turned out to be exceptional.
“When I met him, he didn’t say anything about his college education. So I asked him where he went to school. He said, ‘Well Mike, honestly, I didn’t graduate.’”
“I said, ‘Well can you explain that to me?’’’
The candidate told Poppo his father had died and he had to quit school to take care of his mother and younger brother.
For Poppo, this candidate’s decision was a positive attribute because it underscored his commitment to his family. Today, the individual runs the Poppo Group’s operations in New York. “He is fabulous,” Poppo said.
Elko said success often stems from a state of mind. “How we frame something is everything. Somebody would say, ‘Oh my goodness, here comes change while others will say, ‘Thank goodness, here comes change.’’’
During the past year, Poppo said he told his team that they didn’t have to worry about pay cuts, even though the market was down. Treating team members like family is part of the culture he said he set out to create.
“We have lunch together every day; we order lunches in. The team sits down and eats together. We order from some great restaurants. Six times a year, we go out to dinner and different team members pick the places,” Poppo said.
“This is just time to share,” Poppo said. “We don’t talk business. We have built a comradery among the team.”
When talking with a client, “team members know what I am going to say before I say it,” Poppo said. “The end result is the message we deliver to the client is much more powerful.”
