The 2020 IA25: Mark Tibergien
The retiring CEO of BNY Mellon's Pershing Advisor Solutions and longtime columnist shares his advice on serving clients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mark Tibergien is CEO of Advisor Solutions for BNY Mellon | Pershing and a longtime monthly columnist for this publication (“Formulas for Success”).
The former principal at Moss Adams will retire from Pershing on May 31.
Top Advice
As a client of an advisor, I’d say the one thing that makes the difference is calming me down and putting things into perspective.
This [coronavirus pandemic] is something that we’ve never experienced before, but people have been through crises before.
Being the voice of reason at a time of emotion is the best thing anybody can do for their clients.
Biggest Challenges
I’ve been hunkering down in Manhattan, the current epicenter and also have a home in Seattle, which was ground zero.
The challenge is keeping preoccupied, while you’re worried about your health and are recognizing that usually vibrant cities are now incredibly quiet and desolate.
It’s also important to find ways to get exercise, to relax, to read, to listen to music and to do all those things that help us to get through it.
Of course, my circumstances are not by any means as bad as many others, some of whom are going through very hard times; I have the luxury of retiring and living where I want to.
I think of the poor souls who are losing their jobs, health insurance and loved ones, those are the individuals I worry about.