In her latest column for IFA Magazine, Yasmina Siadatan(pictured), Chief Revenue Officer, Dynamic Planner, focuses on the importance of effective leadership in a financial advice business as she shares her top five tips for success.
If you’ve been keeping up with my column in IFA Magazine over the past year, I’ve talked about how you can position your advice business to thrive not only now but in the future. From your use of technology to the team you have around you, putting the right pieces in place today can help you and your business to be nimbler, more innovative and better prepared for whatever lies ahead.
But there’s one ingredient without which none of this can succeed, and that’s an effective leader. Here are my five tips which I’ve picked up over the years, having worked for some pretty epic leaders, to help you steer your ship into 2025 and beyond.
- Get your vision right
As a business leader, you face innumerable decisions, big and small. A clear vision gives you a north star by which to navigate.
How do you get it right? Evaluate the market, evaluate the trends. Where is the industry headed? Where is the future of your business going to come from? What’s unique about your business that will enable it to thrive in that future state? Set your vision based on that, and build a business aligned with that vision.
It could be, “We’re going to work with every high net worth individual within a 20-mile radius of the village”. Or “We want to specialise in women,” “We want to specialise in dentists,” “We want to focus on the next generation of clients.” By identifying your niche, making sure you really understand that niche and keeping your vision at the heart of all your decisions, you’re setting yourself up for success.
- Identify your purpose
Hand in hand with your vision goes your purpose: what you deliver for your clients. For example, if your vision is to be the go-to independent financial adviser for high-net-worth clients within a 20-mile radius, your purpose might be to ensure those clients can fund the lives they want. Your purpose is the reason your business exists. Keep it in sight.
- Bring people with you
Businesses work best when everyone is pulling in the same direction[SW1] . Your team members need to have the same laser-focus on your vision and purpose that you have yourself.
That means they need to really understand the vision, know their role in achieving it, and be motivated and rewarded for helping the business to progress towards it. And they need to share your sense of purpose and know what they’re delivering for your clients. Communicate this and keep communicating it so everyone stays on course.
- Bring your vision to life
Whatever the size of your business, you need to bring your vision to life in everything you do – in your branding, in your marketing, and in your conversations. Every decision you make should be weighed against that vision, whether you’re choosing premises, devising your investment proposition, weighing up where to advertise or the look and feel of your website.
Returning to our example, if you decide you’re going to go after high-net-worth clients in a 20-mile radius of your village, then you make sure you hire accordingly – people who live in, know and understand your area, and who are familiar with the people you’re targeting. Make sure your marketing speaks to your clients and is in places where they will see it. Put your beautifully designed office in a desirable and convenient location.
Be authentic: if you’re targeting women, don’t be a firm full of men. If you’re targeting a younger client base, think about their expectations – for example, by making sure you’re not only on the curve but ahead of the curve with technology. Get this right and everything about your business will feel aligned and makes sense.
- Lead from the front
Time and time again throughout my career, I’ve seen people make the same mistake. They failed in their business ventures because they tried to lead from the back, making other people responsible for the big decisions they should have made themselves.
Leadership is the one part of your business that you absolutely can’t outsource[SW2] . Your vision and your purpose have to come from you, not from a consultant you’ve brought in to think them up for you. Be confident in your ability.
And you have to be out there, leading by example. That means living and breathing your brand in the choices you make, the way you deal with clients and the way you deal with your team. If you embody what you care about, others will get onboard.
Your leadership is the difference between a business that’s buffeted by the tides and one that forges a strong course even as the conditions change. Keep a clear eye on the horizon, get your team working as one, and you’re set for success.
About Yasmina Siadatan
Yasmina Siadatan is Chief Revenue Officer at Dynamic Planner, and part of the Executive Management Team and the Board. She is an integral contributor to decision making in the business, working in tandem with the senior team at Dynamic Planner to lead and deliver on its marketing-led growth strategy and further build the Dynamic Planner brand.
She and her team are responsible for Dynamic Planner’s marketing and sales strategy which includes understanding market requirements and successfully matching them to UK advice firms. Previously, as Creative Director of Start Up Loans, Yasmina headed marketing and communications for the government’s flagship scheme which provided access to finance for small businesses.
She worked for Lord Sugar in 2009 having won the fifth series of BBC One’s The Apprentice, heading up his flagship tech and digital media organisation and overseeing product marketing and advertising sales to blue chip organisations. Following that she was headhunted by James Caan of Dragons’ Den fame to help run his private equity organisation. She graduated in economic history from the London School of Economics.
