Alex Ortolani
8 min read
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Registered investment advisor Halbert Hargrove has strived to build its firm on a unique business model in an industry known for aggressive recruiting and poaching: training and hiring interns.
Kelli Kiemle, managing director of growth and client experience at Halbert Hargrove, said the Long Beach, Calif.-based RIA often has five to six college interns at the firm at any given time. It also has a dedicated intern manager who runs the program, recruits interns and meets with them weekly.
“We actually have 10-plus employees at this point that have come from our intern program,” she said. “All of them are at different stages of their career, with some people who are just recently graduated, and I have a couple of interns who have been with us for 10-plus years and are at higher-level positions in the firm.”
Halbert Hargrove is among what industry watchers say is a relatively small group of RIAs with dedicated internship programs. These types of programs are rare, but much needed, said Jimmy Zhao, a partner in McKinsey’s Boston office and lead author of a much-quoted report forecasting a shortage of 100,000 financial advisors by 2034.
“An internship program can be an effective way to help bridge that gap and bring talent into the industry,” Zhao said. “It is also a way to differentiate your firm at this stage.”
Despite what should be the attractiveness of wealth management, Zhao said there “seems to be a reality-perception gap” for students when considering career options.
Several colleges and universities, as well as financial planning programs such as the CFP, are trying to change that. For example, Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, consistently ranks as one of the country’s best financial planning programs. Founded in 2011, it now has more than 300 enrollees a year.
“Many of our students come from blue-collar backgrounds and work part-time or full-time while in school,” said program director Scott Stratton. “Their drive to succeed in a demanding academic and professional environment is a big part of what sets our program apart.”
Stratton added the school maintains relationships with dozens of local and national wealth management firms, which helps source internship and full-time employment opportunities.
“Our students are often embedded within firms while still completing their degrees, gaining practical experience and building long-term career paths,” he said. “The feedback from firms has been overwhelmingly positive, often noting how prepared and professional our students are from day one.”
