Started by Bill Bachrach, CSP, in 1988, Bachrach & Associates was a small training company that wanted to make a difference. Bill had experienced traditional product and sales training while serving as a Financial Advisor for a major wirehouse. He quickly realized that traditional training yielded traditional results, and Bill Bachrach was not seeking “traditional” results. To excel, he knew that he needed to do something different. He intuitively recognized that by behaving in a way that rapidly established a high-trust relationship with his clients, he no longer needed the tradition tools associated with product and sales training (i.e., he no longer needed to overcome “objections” because high-trust relationships do not foster “objections” since “objections” are a manifestation of distrust).
Since those early days, BAI has moved away from training and progressed to becoming a professional development firm. The distinction is based upon recognizing that training companies are not structured to overcome the barrier associated with “shelf-development” (i.e., training materials that just sit on shelves … possibly never being read and, almost certainly, never being implemented). It now employs professional consultants (Accountability Coaches) whose role is to help Advisors discover the answers that lie within them, keep them focused on their goals, make sure they celebrate their successes … and tell them the truth when they fail to honor their commitments. BAI has also applied state-of-the-art adult learning theory to its philosophy to create the most sophisticated Programs, Resources and Services in the Financial Services industry.
Every one of these investments goes back to BAI’s Vision “to transform the Financial Services industry into a true profession.” The goal is to create a higher level of expectation on the part of clients than exists today. In many cases, clients view Advisors as product sales people. As a result, they are skeptical about recommendations, want to debate theories (which, by the way, they are ill-equipped to do), and fragment the management of their financial assets by distributing them among multiple Advisors. No other profession manifests this type of Advisor–Client relationship.
Consider what would happen to an attorney who provided 15 law books to a client and said, “There are 15 cases I’d like you to read. Pick the one’s you’d like me argue on your behalf when I go to trial later this week.” Does the term “malpractice” come to mind? Clients would run away from an attorney who demonstrated such behavior. For the Financial Services industry to become a true profession, Advisors need to be elevated in status akin to the way clients view their most trusted attorney.
Similarly, while an attorney often collaborates with other attorneys and experts in the preparation and presentation of a case, there is one attorney who is appointed “First Chair.” Correspondingly, while a Financial Advisor should collaborate with other financial professionals (i.e., financial planners, tax specialists, etc.), he or she needs to manage the client relationship to ensure all elements of the plan are working in a cohesive manner. That is what comprehensive financial planning is all about. Yet, too often, Advisors accept whatever element of a client’s business they can get. This classic sales behavior (i.e., always trying to sell something) reinforces the negative impression of Advisors we are trying to overcome.
Another area of differentiation is that attorneys are completely comfortable charging for their time. After all, it is their education and expertise that makes their time valuable to their clients. It is fascinating that so many Advisors struggle with this concept. While it may be more comfortable to pretend that there is no charge for creating financial plans, does anyone really believe that clients do not know they are paying for the plan … one way or another? Since it is an Advisor’s education and expertise that have value to clients, why are Advisors so hesitant to openly charge for their time?
As with any worthy movement, there needs to be a shift in behavior among providers that, in turn, creates a shift in perception among consumers. While BAI’s contribution to transforming the industry into a true profession is focused upon providing world-class Programs, Resources and Services to support the behavioral element, the real champions of the movement are those Advisors who work with their Accountability Coaches to actually modify their behavior and build more professional practices.
Some Advisors are attracted to Values-Based Financial Planning™ (VBFP) because they recognize that something is “missing” in their careers, and it has to do with professionalism. Others are attracted to our philosophy because they simply want to achieve superior results. The former group assimilates VBFP very rapidly because it enables them to expand the level of relationships they have with their clients. The second group may travel a longer journey because they need to experience the shift in relationships before they can truly adopt VBFP as their belief. In the final analysis, it is the way their client relationships improve that solidifies their belief and commitment to serving their clients as professionally as possible. Like attorneys, they become comfortable in charging for their time; they form alliances with other subject matter experts to help them provide the most comprehensive plan possible, and above all else, they focus on creating a strategy that gives their clients the highest probability of achieving their goals for the reasons that are important to them.
Professionals learn to listen, optimize their time, and delegate responsibilities that do not require their unique skill set. As a result, they achieve a higher level of balance in their lives by helping their clients achieve balances in their lives; they achieve their goals by helping their clients achieve their goals; and they serve their clients, and everyone else with whom they come in contact, with absolute integrity. That is what “BAI” seeks for every Advisor in the industry: BALANCE, ACHEIVEMENT and INTEGRITY.
These wonderful Advisors represent the absolute best our industry has to offer. They are the foundation of the movement, and with their leadership, we will someday be able to accurately refer to ourselves as members of the Financial Services profession rather than the Financial Services industry.
