2 min read March 2023 — RBC Wealth Management provides wealth management solutions tailored to individuals, families and institutions. Invest: spoke with Russell Mansfield, senior vice president and branch director, about the firm’s unique opportunities, what advice they are giving in the current period of inflation and interest rates, how those have impacted investor confidence and ways the firm leverages technology for its clients and employees.
How has the Charlotte branch attempted to overcome recent challenges as you move forward?
We have 15 advisors in our Charlotte branch and six support staff. We’ve focused on keeping investors calm during these tough times. We have been proactive and have reached out to our clients instead of waiting for them to call us. We reached out to them to make sure they were holding steady with their investments and sticking to their personal plan. We also sponsored several branch events and brought them in for reviews.
What unique opportunities are available now with the current state of financial services and banking sectors in Charlotte?
We’re looking at the whole ball of wax instead of managing just one area of financial planning. We do holistic financial planning for our clients. Clients come to us to manage their finances, investments, tax situation, estate planning and kids’ education needs.
How does the influx of people and businesses coming to the Charlotte area affect your day-to-day activity?
It has helped our business. Charlotte has many people coming into wealth, either by making it on their own or inheriting money. We also have many transplants in the area from all over the country. We try to get in front of those people moving in and take care of their financial planning needs. It’s a good opportunity for us at RBC Wealth.
What’s the long-term impact of the growth in the market?
There’s a tremendous opportunity with so many people moving here. It opens the door for younger financial advisors in the business, not only in Charlotte but across the country. The average age for a financial advisor is late 50s, so there’s an opportunity for younger advisors to enter our industry.
How does the definition of financial freedom differ between generations?
Most of our older investors have money they’ve accumulated and are now starting to spend in retirement. The younger generation is now focused on budgeting and preparing for the future. These younger investors have become more serious about investing and saving money.
How do you advise your staff and clients regarding interest rates and inflation?
Many people get caught up in the day-to-day news. We look at the long term — 2022 was just a bump in the road. Our advice is to stay the course and keep investing. By investing at these levels, we’re buying things on sale now. People want to get out at the wrong time and wait until things get better. That’s absolutely the worst thing to do.
How do you think Charlotte would fare in the event of an economic downturn and is the area prepared?
I think we’ll weather the storm better than most. A recession will affect everyone, but we’ve been through some tough times before. A short reset wouldn’t be a bad thing. We’re not too worried about it here. Charlotte is a very financially healthy community. By the time you read about a recession, the damage has already been done and we will be on the path to recovery.
Where is investor confidence now and how is that different from a year or two ago?
It’s very low and people are generally not optimistic. Nobody believes the economy or the stock market is going to turn around. When everybody is negative, it’s usually a good sign that we’re at the bottom.
How does RBC Wealth Management continue to leverage new technological innovations to improve client and working experience?
We’re very engaged with technology to suit the younger generation, but we still have many old-school clients that come in with a legal pad. We satisfy both types of clients. RBC is also extremely prepared when it comes to cybersecurity and very cognizant of that problem. It’ll be an ever-present and ongoing problem.
What are some of the initiatives or projects that you’re excited to push forward for RBC?
We’re growing organically with our client base and bringing in the right people that we want to work with us at RBC. We’re looking to hire a few more financial advisors. The younger generation would provide some fresh, young perspective in the office. We want to grow in the right way. We tend to be more hands-on and tailor the portfolios for each individual client instead of using a cookie cutter approach. We invest for the long term and meet with our clients face to face.
What will clients be looking for in financial advising in the future and where’s the industry heading?
Clients are looking for holistic financial planning. The closer people get to retirement, they want to sit down with someone face to face instead of talking over the phone or communicating over email. That’s hopefully where the business is going because we’re well prepared for that.
What are the top priorities for RBC Wealth Management moving forward?
Keeping everybody in my office. There’s always competition out there. The biggest challenge we have is keeping our clients well-informed and keeping them properly allocated. Everybody in this office does a good job of that. We’ll do more client events as we already have a couple planned in the Charlotte area. We had a branch office remodel in 2022 which spiced up our office. We’re going to try to get more people in to meet with us because we haven’t seen them in a couple of years. We’re going to get back to business as usual.
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