Letter from the Founder
Deciding to go independent and become an entrepreneur is not an easy decision to make. You will take on added responsibilities and spend more hours nurturing and developing your new business, but you are doing it for a very good reason. You want to help your clients by shaping your business to their needs without the bureaucracy, the conflicts of interests, and self-dealing inherent in the large investment banks.
We understand this need for independence and will help you achieve it. Over the past ten years, we have worked with countless advisors teams on their transition to independence and hybrid independence with other RIAs or aggregators.
It is never easy or uncomplicated, but we have refined a process that gives you control over the many options you have and provides you with a feeling of confidence. You are working with a firm that has the experience to guide you and your team to the next level.
We work with some of the best legal, marketing, and custody firms in the RIA world. We coordinate all of our efforts to provide a smooth, flawless transition, so you don’t have to. Yet you are in control and will make the final decisions about how your new firm will operate, what its identity will be, and how it will be communicated to your clients and prospects.
With The RIA Works, you can rest assured that doing what is best for our clients remains our number one priority. We will be with you every step of the way to provide guidance, expert advice and counsel.
We invite you to learn more about our services here on our website and to discover how we can assist you.
Warmest regards,
Becca Knauss
Founder and CEO
Who We Serve
For more than a decade, we have worked with advisors, RIA teams, middle-market firms, established RIAs and aggregators in the RIA space. We understand that “independence” comes in many forms, from creating an RIA from the ground up to joining an existing RIA or broker-dealer, and everything in between. We will help you decide what model works best for you and your team.
Our Approach
We treat each client individually. We believe that each team needs a customized approach based upon their strengths, personality and client base. We work hard to identify the team objectives, their target markets, their unique messaging to their clients and prospects, and the type of business structure that best fits their business.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does The RIA Works do?
RIA Edge— Transition Services
- Project Management
- Vendor Recommendation and Price Negotiation
- Administrative Support
RIA Next — Outsourced COO
- Accounting
- IT
- Compliance
- Marketing
- Human Resources
- Public Relations
- Legal
- Best Practices
RIA Trajectory — Identify the right targets and execute a successful M&A/Acquisition
RIA Succession Planning — Business evaluation, succession planning and making the right connections
How do you decide between going fully independent, joining an existing RIA or aggregator or taking on an equity partner?
We will help you sort out your options and choose the right path. Here are just a few of the options we will discuss with you:
- Independent RIA — You become the entrepreneur, full owner and CEO on the entity and ADV. You will have full equity ownership and you will be in charge of hiring employees, vendors contracts, office space, IT, marketing, legal and a host of other duties.
- Joining an existing RIA — You can join an existing RIA as an equity partner or as an employee. There is much more independence, but your responsibilities will increase according to the role you play.
- Joining an aggregator — An aggregator specializes in bringing a diverse number of advisors together onto one service platform in exchange for equity or service fees. As an advisor in this arrangement, you may choose to maintain a separate branding and ADV from the aggregator, but you can use most if not all of its back office facilities such as legal services, marketing, office space, IT and custody.
- Roll-up model — In this model, you become an employee similar to working for the wirehouses, but often on a much smaller basis with more say in the direction of the firm.
- Equity partner — Taking on an equity partner in exchange for financing, backoffice support and/or counsel can help you remain independent as an advisor, but cut into the long-term profits of your firm.
What’s a recommended timeline for a transition?
We believe planning should begin three months in advance of a transition. It takes 45 days to satisfy SEC ADV filing for a new RIA. Real estate build-out can affect the launch date as well. Three months will allow us enough time to set-up your business, plan for the transition of your clients, develop an identity for your new firm, and create a messaging strategy, branding and website.
Who will help us develop branding, a website and marketing materials?
We have a strategic partnership with Westcott Associates. They have been creating logos, messaging, branding and websites for RIAs since 2010. They are a trusted and creative resource partner that knows and understands the financial services industry and the needs of RIAs.
What criteria do you use to choose a custodian for our firm?
We recommend a custodian for your business based on a combination of factors including pricing, technology integration, benefit dollars and services provided. The types of services you may wish to offer clients could include:
- Lending
- Cashiering
- Money market funds
- Alts platform
- SMA platform
- Service
- CRM
- Trading and rebalancing
- Service team
We do a complete profile of your firm and we will work with you on recommending the right custodian, vendors and partners for your firm.
What The RIA Works is not
The RIA Works is not an RIA or aggregator. We are here to help financial advisors transition to full independence by taking care of the business details, marketing and legal issues. We do not take a stake in your firm’s equity nor tie you to an expensive, long-term contract as many others do.
We are not a technology platform, but will help you choose the right technology partners for your business.
We are not a custodian like Schwab and Fidelity, but we will help you choose the custodian that fit your business needs best.
Finally, we are not a legal firm or a print vendor. We are here to help you find and negotiate the vendors you will need to transition quickly, efficiently and without tying up your business for months during the transition.
Most importantly, you should be able to conduct business as usual during this process because we are here to make sure we take care of the details of your transition.
What are some of the common mistakes you have witnessed in the transitioning to RIA space?
Transitioning to independence is essentially establishing a new business and it’s a complex process. We’ve seen many advisors fall prey to bad advice offered by self-promoting firms. Advisors may be convinced to purchase the wrong technology, or much more than what is truly needed. Vendors may charge premium rates for goods and services that are available in the market at lower rates. Mistakes made in the transitioning spreadsheet for your firm can be very costly. Often trying to transition firm without help or inexperienced help can cost you not only money, but time and energy.
The RIA Works understands the exact requirements of the technology you need, now and in the future. We have years of experience and solid relationships with reputable vendors with whom we can help you negotiate fairly for their services. We are detail-oriented and understand the critical nature of transitioning client accounts and adhering closely to the transition spreadsheet.
Most important of all, we know what it takes to set advisors’ expectations appropriately. We all want to believe that transitioning a firm to independence is easy and once it is completed, the money and clients will roll in. Yes, we have seen that happen, but we also have seen teams take the responsibilities of transitioning their clients too lightly, which leads to a failed execution. Our job is to make sure appropriate care and attention is taken to give you the best opportunity for success.
Becca Knauss Bio
Specializing in breakaway advisors, existing RIAs and M&A deals, Becca Knauss has worked from the beginning of the RIA movement for firms such as High Tower, Dynasty Financial Partners and many others.
Throughout her career, Becca has assisted and guided hundreds of financial advisors representing over $100 billion in assets under management. She has successfully launched over 100 RIA firms and is experienced in every aspect of transitioning and forming new RIAs.
She founded The RIA Works in 2017 to focus on financial advisors looking to launch and grow their new RIAs. Operating in the independent wealth management industry, she provides transition services, M&A and supports transition departments within aggregators to build out their businesses. She also works with established RIAs to enhance growth with hands-on consulting services.
Before establishing The RIA Works, Becca was the Vice President of Transition and Relationship Management at Dynasty Financial Partners. She spent four years at Dynasty and helped launch more than 35 teams become independent RIAs. She was responsible for planning and executing each transition and provided guidance on meeting growth objectives. In that time, she became expert at a variety of the latest technology platforms including Envestnet, Folio, Addepar and Salesforce. Becca also worked closely with the largest custodians such as Fidelity, Schwab, TD Ameritrade and Pershing.
Becca began her career as one of the original employees as High Tower Advisors, a financial services firm that offered a platform of wealth management services built on the latest technology to advisors looking for a hybrid RIA solution.
She spent four years at High Tower transitioning more than 32 teams representing more than $20 billion to their platform. She supported the operational function for both RIA teams and broker-dealer platforms at High Tower.