Introduction
I started with CIBC Wood Gundy in 2005 after seven years on the banking side with Private Wealth Management. Lydia and I have been working together for over 10 years now. But in 2014, I felt it was important to expand the team in order to keep our service levels high and really focus on financial planning and I focused more on the portfolio management side. So Ravish came on board in 2014 to really focus on that part of our client relationship structure.
We spend a substantial amount of our time getting to know our clients and assessing their current financial situation so we can create a customized plan for them. And the reason we do this is so we can help clients get from where they are today to where they want to be in the future, in retirement and beyond. Ultimately giving them the peace of mind they're looking for.
We added another team member in Justin Bosworth. He handles more client communications, social media, portfolio construction. But overall, we're all very focused on our client relationships. Our relationship with our clients is two way street to us. Not only is it important for a team to be the right fit for the client, but also the client needs to be the right fit for our team. If we can foster a collaborative relationship with our clients, then we can be more effective in assisting them with growing their wealth and making the correct strategic planning decisions going forward.
We really customize our client strategies. That's really focused on their needs and their long term objectives. It's really not about selling them a product. We always say the product is the byproduct of the plan. Let's figure out what you want to achieve and then we build a portfolio around that. Those strategies around that to make sure it's a success or the long term. I started in the business as a teller in my university days and interacting with clients really helped me understand that money was important to them and it was a very emotional topic. So every day when I meet with clients and prospective clients, that really gives me a lot of energy. And it's very rewarding to see them achieve their goals and pass along wealth to the next generation and really help them along the way.