The Office Design that Maximizes Success

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Google serves as an example of the paradigm shift in the modern office. Design is now more collaborative with amenities that support openness and greater employee satisfaction. I’m not sure financial services is ready to follow Google’s lead and plant beach volleyball courts (with real sand, by the way) adjacent to the Bloomberg terminals. But there are a few elements of this model that advisors can use to improve sales success when prospects visit your office.

Shedding the shroud

What do you think of when you hear the words “financial advisor’s office”? A long mahogany conference room table and wood-paneled walls adorned with boring artwork of mountains, lakes, sailboats and beaches along with a Barron’s awards plaque or two.

For so long advisors have felt they needed to present a mirage to convey stature or gravitas. Until now everything has been shrouded, almost as if the human element was covered with a veil.

That’s all changing.

The crisis of 2008 changed all that and demystified the industry’s lofty image. People want to be recognized as human beings – they’ve had it with anything pretentious. Their portfolios crashing 30% overnight that they paid advisors 1% to watch over led them to throw that mirage out the window!

You’ll have to give your stuffy office a little makeover if you want the millennial children of your affluent clients to like you. Even if you’re not targeting the younger generations, you still want to include amenities as a way to make clients happier and improve their motivation to work with you.