John (Casey) Roach ⋅ Greenwich , CT Merrill Lynch ⋅ 45 years experience

LT- You appear to be highly qualified to work in financial services. Having said that, you need to drill down and be much more specific. You can craft several resumes, but I would suggest you be specific. That means do you want to be a banker, a banking administrator, a broker, a financial advisor , a private banker. Continuing, do you want to work in a bank, or an investment management firm or an insurance company. If you want to go into the field of banking, I would be happy to continue a dialogue and make introductions to firms in Texas. Having spent over 45 years in financial services myself, I think I have a basic understanding of the field. However I hasten to add that Dodd Frank and Sen Warren have created significant legislation which hinders banks from performing their historical activity in a timely fashion.
Suffice it to say, I would be pleased to try and help if you feel my perspective might be of value. My coordinates are: casey.roach@gmail.com and 203-273-3629 cell.

John Green ⋅ Cary , NC Information Technology ⋅ 40 years experience

In my opinion, others may have different view, the CFP is more valuable than the "MBA candidate" tag. Focus on industry certifications exclusively, and you should not have trouble. However, the world is full of financial planners, and unless you offer differentiators, you will be part of a large pack. MBA adds little value here. If you are getting your MBA for your own personal gratification, thats one thing. But don't count on the MBA to set you apart from the crowd, because in the crowd you are pursuing, everyone has advanced degrees. What some people do not have is advanced certifications and currency in the latest laws. Do you have capital to open your own practice ? That would be the best option to drive revenue and the top line yourself. If you join a financial firm, the rewards are limited. Also, if you are going to be a financial planner, you should be a "fee only" one. Means not accept commissions from products you sell. Again, this is only my opinion, so please take with a grain of salt. Thanks for your military service.

Kit Lancaster ⋅ Chicago , IL GCG Financial ⋅ 5 years experience

Thomas,

Great question. Who do you want to work for? Where do you want to work? In what capacity do you want to serve as a financial advisor? You will need two years of industry experience before you can hang CFP after your name. An MBA is of little use in most areas of financial advisory. Give me a call when you get a moment. 312-344-0999. I can share with you the industry landscape.

Thank You,
Kit

Thomas Richter ⋅ Virginia Beach , VA U.S. Navy, Lieutenant ⋅ 8 years served

Casey,

I would really like to talk with you about your experience. I am not sure where I want to go. This is a new phase and transition for me and all I really know is Naval Aviation. When would be a good time to call you? If you are free Monday, that would work for me. I head to Italy on TAD orders for the summer and will return late August.

Your perspective is of great value to me. Feel free to email me at trichter26@gmail.com. Thank you for your time.

R,

Thomas

Thomas Richter ⋅ Virginia Beach , VA U.S. Navy, Lieutenant ⋅ 8 years served

John Green,

Thank you for the honest answer, I appreciate. I do not have the capital or experience to open my own practice right out of the gate but it is a goal or mine. I really would like to get employed at a financial institution that has an incentive base compensation plan. I am only a fan of salary as I get my feet wet but would like to transition to "fee based." But I still need to pass the CFP exam in November and finish my MBA from William & Mary by December 2017.

From your experience do you know how I can plan to differentiate myself? I would really like to specialize in Education savings and educating individuals/ families in Roth IRAs.

Thanks again for your "gouge." I appreciate learning from others and truly appreciate the time they take to share their information with me.

R,

Thomas