New Study Finds Managers Who Recruit Can Substantially Increase Effectiveness With a Relationship-Based Training Approach

• A New Study by the Kelley Group Focuses on the Challenges of Recruiting Top Talents to Financial Advisory Firms and How to Overcome Them

The Kelley Group, a leading provider of training and coaching to the financial services industry, announces the results of a 4-month study, The Impact of Coaching and Training on the Manager’s Ability to Recruit Top Talents. Commissioned by a top Wall Street advisory firm, the study was designed to identify best practices for internal managers to recruit top talents in a challenging and changing business environment. The study results showed that with a relationship-based training approach, combined with training and coaching, managers could substantially increase the number of possible recruits in their pipeline.

Amid the pandemic, branch or agency managers at top financial firms have found it challenging to recruit top talent. Discouraged by the limited opportunities for face-to-face meetings, lack of preparation to recruit via virtual communications, and the evolving communication preferences to online versus in-person, managers have struggled with the daunting task of sorting through thousands of faceless prospects to identify prime candidates.

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“The most astute and successful recruiting managers can no longer rely on traditional methods to reach advisors,” said Sarano Kelley, co-founder of The Kelley Group and co-organizer of the study. “Today, it’s imperative for managers to sharpen their communications skills and refine their recruiting process.  Through this study, we found that a relationship-based approach is most efficient for identifying and recruiting the right advisors for their firm.”

During the four-month study, participating managers learned the art of listening to gauge an advisor’s satisfaction with their current firm and to address ethically and appropriately any of their concerns. Using a unique combination of training, coaching, accountability, and statistical tracking, the average increase per individual study participant are as follows:

• An 802% increase in established advocates to refer recruiting candidates to them
• A 314% increase in the number of meetings they had with prospective recruits (virtual and face-to-face)
• A 372% increase in interested recruits added to their sales pipeline

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This group of managers, ranging from “new to the role” to seasoned veterans, were selected to participate in the study. Key take-aways that attributed to their successes include:

• Building a network of ambassadors who can actively refer viable candidates to them.
• Identifying key characteristics and motivating factors of recruits to determine if they are a good fit for the firm.
• Sharing their and their firm’s unique value proposition in a way that answers, “Why would I want to work for you or your firm?”
• Identifying key concepts for addressing the needs and overcoming objections of recruits.
• Utilizing the powerful components of a successful “close.”

“Managers must evolve with the times and focus now on building a web of recruiting ambassadors to get their messages out broadly, and they need a plan to make that happen,” said Brooke Kelley, co-founder of The Kelley Group and co-organizer of the study. “While it sounds simple, without a well-defined process, it becomes a haphazard experience. Instead, they need to learn how to identify who their recruiting ambassadors are and then to leverage these relationships on a proactive basis.”

Many of the tools and techniques presented during the study are featured in the highly acclaimed book, A Guide to the Recruiting Conundrum: A Consistent, Disciplined Approach to Attract Top Talent, authored by The Kelley Group co-founders, Sarano and Brooke Kelley.

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