No matter what the industry, conferences provide attendees with a number of important benefits. The value of gathering with one's peers, swapping stories, getting advice and making contacts cannot be overestimated, and those are only some of the benefits of conference attendees.
If anything industry conferences are even more important for financial professionals. The world of financial planning and wealth management is always changing and evolving, and industry conferences give brokers, agents, and other professionals a chance to learn about the latest changes and take advantage of the newest technologies.
As the owner of a financial planning or wealth management practice, you are probably already making your conference plans for the coming quarter. With only so much money to go around and lots of conferences to choose from, it is up to you to select the learning opportunities that provide the biggest bang for the buck. With that in mind, here is our look at the top conferences financial advisors should consider during the second quarter of 2017.
Taking place this April in Atlanta, Georgia, the FPA Retreat is one of the best conferences for the advanced practitioners. If you are looking for a quality conference for your top performers and members of the senior management team, the FPA Retreat is a perfect choice.
Designed for the most experienced practitioners, this conference offers a host of benefits, along with seminars and learning opportunities. Attendees will be confronted with new ideas, new ways to enhance productivity and better ways to serve the needs of their clients.
The fact that the FPA Retreat tends to attract the luminaries in the industry just adds to its appeal. When your top performers attend this conference, they will be rubbing elbows, and sharing ideas, with the best in the industry, and they will come home recharged and ready to forge a path forward. The FPA Conference takes place from April 24-27 at the exclusive Chateau Elan in Atlanta, GA.
The Morningstar name is highly respected in the world of financial planning and wealth management, so it is only fitting that the Morningstar Investment Conference made our list of top conferences for the second quarter of 2017. Aimed at financial advisors and wealth managers across the investment spectrum, this high-quality conference offers a host of seminars, get togethers and opportunities for networking and the sharing of ideas.
Attendees at the Morningstar Investment Conference will hear from a number of asset managers and others in the mutual fund industry, along with top fund managers and other investment professionals. While there is bound to be some salesmanship going on, there will also be plenty of solid information advisors and wealth managers can use to serve their clients.
The Morningstar Investment Conference takes place from April 26-28 in Chicago, Illinois. The conference is held at McCormick Place, and there is still time to get your reservations in.
Whether it is implemented in its current form or changed by the incoming Trump administration, the Department of Labor fiduciary rule promises to change the way financial planning and wealth management firms do business. That makes Fi360 2017, arguably the best fiduciary conference in the industry, more timely than ever before.
The Fi360 conference got its start in 1999, and it has grown enormously in the intervening years. Created by the Center for Fiduciary Studies to enhance education and understanding of the fiduciary standard of care, this conference focuses on client service and compliance with existing and upcoming financial industry regulations.
The Fi360 2017 conference takes place from May 21-23 at the Omni Nashville Hotel in Nashville, TN. Whether the DOL fiduciary rule survives in its present form or not, this excellent conference is well worth a look.
Formerly known as AICPA PFP, Engage 2017 is the perfect opportunity for financial industry professionals to meet, greet and learn. AICPA is perhaps the best-known organization in the financial planning and wealth management industries, and their stamp of approval alone should be enough to convince you, and your best brokers and advisors, to attend.
The rigor of this exclusive membership organization is one more factor in its favor, as is the fact that the conference includes five intensive educational tracks - one for retirement, investments, tax and wealth management, risk management and practice management. No matter which segment of the industry attendees fall into, they will find a lot to love at AICPA Engage 2017.
The location of the conference is another factor in its favor, and your top performers will be fighting for a spot. The 2017 version of the AICPA conference takes place in Las Vegas, at the beautiful MGM Grand Hotel and Casino. The conference runs from June 12-14, so get your reservations in and start making your plans.
Aimed squarely at the next generation of advisors, the FPA NexGen Gathering is the perfect choice for the young professionals on your staff. With the average age of financial advisors more than 50, there has never been a greater need for young dynamic professionals to take the place of the new retirees, hence the importance of the FPA NexGen Gathering 2017 and its place on your second quarter calendar.
The NexGen Gathering 2017 is unique in many ways, including the fact that it follows an open agenda format. This format allows young professionals and new financial advisors to ask questions, learn from their peers and make the most of their time away. The FPA NexGen Gathering 2017 takes place from June 23-25 in Chicago, Illinois. The conference is held at North Central College, and spaces fill up fast.
Industry conferences give individual investment advisors, members of wealth management firms and practice owners a chance to meet their peers, make new connections and learn from experts in their fields. The 2017 conference calendar is filling up quickly, and now is the time to make your plans. With so many conferences and so little time, it is important to choose the best venues for growth and education, and the ones listed above truly represent the cream of the crop for the second quarter of 2017.