As nearly 200 advisors, consultants and solutions providers gathered on Florida's Gulf Coast this week for the 10th annual RFG Advisor Growth Retreat, the event felt less like a traditional conference and more like a preview of where the advisory industry may be headed.
While RFG has expanded to over 80 firms, representing roughly $7.8 billion in assets on the RFG platform — which has grown at roughly a 40% annual pace in recent years — the conversation in Clearwater wasn't about past growth. It centered on how advisors can build more scalable businesses while spending more time on the human side of advice.
Throughout the retreat, speakers returned to the same themes: artificial intelligence, advisor productivity, behavioral coaching and the changing definition of value in wealth management.
From 'Swivel Chair' to Command Center
Advisors often move between multiple systems, such as CRM, planning software, portfolio tools and reporting platform, before they can even begin their day. Shannon Spotswood, RFG's CEO, calls it the "swivel chair problem."
As such, the firm unveiled an AI-driven platform designed to address one of the industry's most persistent frustrations: fragmented technology.
"Our ClickONE Command Center moves advisors from the agony of the swivel chair to the joy of a true command center," she said. "Everything that powers the advisor's business lives in one place so they can spend less time navigating systems and more time serving clients."
The platform integrates client data, planning information, portfolio insights and operational workflows into a single environment powered by artificial intelligence. Rather than searching across platforms, advisors can ask questions using natural language.
5 Hours That Could Transform a Practice
As technology promises efficiency, what advisors do with the time they regain may matter even more. Brendan Frazier, RFG's chief behavioral officer, offered a revealing statistic that the average advisor spends only 18.5 hours per week on growth and client-facing activities. The rest of the advisor's time disappears into operational and back-office work.
"If you can reclaim even five hours from administrative tasks, the economics of a practice change dramatically," Frazier said.
Recovering those hours, Frazier offered, could allow a $1 million revenue advisory practice to generate roughly $270,000 in additional revenue. But reclaiming that time requires more than technology; it requires behavioral discipline. Among the biggest impediments to growth that he sees in advisory firms are unprotected calendars, reluctance to delegate and basic burnout.
Frazier also singled out email as one of the industry's biggest productivity traps.
"The average professional checks email 74 times a day," he said. "Email is the enemy of productivity."
His suggestion? Limit email to two or three designated windows per day.
The Human Advantage
Even as artificial intelligence dominated many discussions, several speakers emphasized that the advisor's greatest value remains deeply human. Daniel Crosby, Ph.D., Orion's chief behavioral officer, argued that the biggest risk that investors face isn't market volatility. It's their own behavior.
Investors often say they want superior returns, but what they truly seek is someone who understands their goals and values.
Yet Crosby noted that the industry still spends most of its time focused on technical topics. Only about 8% of advisors regularly discuss generational wealth, health planning or life purpose with clients, he said.
"That's where the real opportunity lies," Crosby said. "Connecting money and meaning."
Research consistently shows that behavioral coaching adds significantly more value to client outcomes than portfolio construction alone, he noted. Particularly as AI increasingly handles analytical tasks, that human dimension of advice may become the industry's most powerful differentiator.
Crosby termed it "a return on life."
Volatility and the Advisor's Role
Investment sessions highlighted advisors' role in helping clients maintain perspective. Liz Ann Sonders, Schwab's chief investment strategist, and Rick Weddel, RFG's chief investment officer, discussed th forces shaping markets, including oil price dynamics, inflation pressures and economic growth.
Despite these geopolitical headlines, Sonders noted, markets historically absorb military conflicts more quickly than investors expect.
Instead, sentiment and macroeconomic trends often drive longer-term market behavior. That environment creates opportunity for advisors.
"Volatility is when advisors shine," Weddel said. "Clients see the headlines and fear the worst. Advisors provide the calm."
Helping Clients Carry Less
Growth, however, requires more than investment insight. Derrick Kinney, founder of Success For Advisors, a speaking and coaching firm, challenged advisors to rethink how they communicate their value to prospects.
"Clients don't care about your credentials or designations," Kinney said. "They care about whether you solve a problem they're worried about."
His suggested opening line for advisors: "You know how people worry about running out of money in retirement? We fix that." Kinney calls advisors "luggage lighteners": professionals who help clients carry less financial stress.
"If you want to make it rain," he told the audience, "Connect with pain."
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