The survey is now closed. Thank you to everyone who participated. The 2014 study results will be published and available later this summer. This year’s study, part of InvestmentNews’ Excellence in Practice Management research series, specifically focuses on the drivers of financial performance and is the industry’s premier benchmarking tool for measuring the overall success and financial health of an advisory firm.

Managing growth is important for all firms. By tracking growth, advisers can clearly see the impact of marketing and adviser productivity (continue reading at InvestmentNews)

March 21, 2014 | Huffington Post | Philip Palaveev and Tricia Turton Conflict surrounds us in our business lives, but we tend to avoid it and hope it goes away instead of exploring it and perhaps using its creative potential. That’s right, conflict can be creative and constructive. Read full article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/philip-palaveev/sharing-punches_b_5006394.html

Diane Britton | WealthManagement.com As payouts in the IBD space have steadily risen toward 90 percent, this has challenged many firms—particularly small ones—that struggle with increasing costs. Read More…

Diana Britton | WealthManagement.com Firms are riding the tide of rising equity markets, more fee-based business and high-profile deals; so why do margins remain so thin? Read More…

Advisers looking to grow their businesses should carefully plot the expansion of their practice. They should expect to suffer a little, too. (continue reading at InvestmentNews)

I have this naïve, idealistic notion that an advisory firm should have a highly engaged owner group with each owner (“partner”) participating in the management of the firm and acting as a leader within their area of practice. (Continue reading at Financial Advisor)

An economist’s assets can be an accountant’s liability and vice versa. Take the odd nature of bank accounting, which has always intrigued me. Well, just a little bit. In banking, an institution’s loans are its assets while deposits are its liabilities. (Continue reading at Financial Advisor)

There is a clear link between success of your people and the amount of investment you make in training and professional development. (Continue reading at InvestmentNews — requires free registration)

Benchmarking Surveys are long. They ask a lot of questions. They make you gather all kinds of data about your firm. The questions are often unclear or just confusing. They feel like you are filing a second federal tax return. (Continue reading at InvestmentNews — requires free registration)