8 Influential Financial Services Leaders You Need to Know
By Jack Sharry
WealthTech on Deck started 2025 with a bang. We’ve heard from eight impactful players operating at the intersection of technology and wealth management. Here’s a recap of what they had to say:
Mapping the Future: Turning Financial Conversations into Action with Adam Holt
We started with Adam Holt, CFP®, ChFC®, founder and CEO of Asset-Map, a technology financial advisors use to draw a “treasure map” of where high-net-worth clients have their money and how that intersects with family and others whose financial lives are so intertwined. A few of Adam’s key takeaways:
- Asset-Map is an advisor’s front-office tool for helping clients and their families understand the complexity of their financial lives and decisions.
- AI and technology will remove many mathematical and analytical tasks from advisors’ desks, freeing them to focus on relationships and grow their businesses.
- Asset-Map has expanded into foreign markets, including South Africa, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere.
Listen to Adam’s episode here.
The following is a representation of some of the themes that emerged from Adam’s episode:
The Future of UMH with Scott Smith
Scott Smith, director of advice relationships at Cerulli Associates and I had an in-depth conversation about the importance of the unified managed household, or UMH. Scott spends a lot of time with wealth managers trying to understand their unique perspectives on UMH, which informed these key takeaways:
- There are eight elements to achieving tax alpha—many more than most firms now address.
- Advisors struggle with the complexity of tax optimization and multi-account management.
- Automation is what can accelerate the UMH approach, making it easier for advisors and increasing their willingness to embrace it.
Listen to Scott’s episode here.
Creating Impactful Narratives: Franklin Templeton’s Storytelling Strategy with Jennifer Ball
I also spoke with Franklin Templeton’s chief marketing officer, Jennifer Ball, about the company’s revamp of its messaging framework. Throughout the process, Jen kept the following goals in mind:
- Communicate a coherent story about the company’s rapidly expanding capabilities achieved through acquisitions (10 in the past five years), new technology and investment capabilities.
- Customize messaging for different global markets and client segments to build awareness, shift perceptions, or highlight relevant capabilities.
- Align sales, marketing, and internal communications with CEO Jenny Johnson’s vision and ambition for Franklin Templeton.
Listen to Jen’s episode here.
How SEI is Setting New Standards with Michael Lane
January’s final episode featured Michael Lane, SEI’s head of asset management: “Whatever you thought SEI was, it probably it isn’t.” Michael explained that SEI is much more than most understand and described how SEI is positioned to capitalize on opportunities by:
- The convergence of banking, wealth and asset management, and financial advice.
- Its acquisition of LifeYield and the firm’s unified managed household technology capabilities.
- Accelerating consolidation of registered investment advisors (RIAs) seeking “a more robust offering and solution set.”
Listen to Michael’s episode here.
The Longevity Revolution: Rethinking Wealth and Health in Retirement with Ken Dychtwald
I spoke with Ken Dychtwald, founder and CEO of AgeWave to kick off February. Ken has been a guest before and this time, he had a special message for financial advisors: Look beyond your clients’ portfolio performance and account balances. He emphasizes that retirees with potentially 20 or 30 years of life ahead of them have a lot on their minds, including:
- Family concerns,
- Plans for new ventures and adventures, and
- Hopes and dreams.
According to Ken, advisors who don’t seek to learn about clients’ plans risk losing those clients to someone who does.
Listen to Ken’s episode here.
Helping Advisors Better Serve Women and Next-Gen Investors with Lacy Garcia
Also in February, I spoke with Lacy Garcia, founder and CEO of Willow. Willow is a wealthtech platform serving advisors through education, coaching, and marketing – with a focus on women and next-generation investors looking to be matched with advisors who “get them.” Throughout, Lacy spoke about:
- Willow’s certificate programs for advisors that emphasize personalized client relationships.
- The importance of recognizing underserved clients within the wealth management space and working to better address their needs.
- The critical importance of the E3 model, which focuses on empathy, education, and empowerment.
Listen to Lacy’s episode here.
Integration of Annuities and Social Security Planning with Jan Buchsbaum and Mark Fitzgerald
February’s final episode featured Jan Buchsbaum, chief product officer of Nassau Financial Group and Mark Fitzgerald, national sales manager. We discussed Nassau’s innovative approach to wealth management and the new solutions they’ve developed. Jan and Mark described how Nassau has achieved strong sales growth through:
- Innovative annuity products geared to their middle-market customers.
- Technology that enables producers to talk frankly with clients about retirement income while leveraging their Social Security benefits
- Carefully cultivated distribution relationships.
Listen to Jan and Mark’s episode here.
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