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Edward Jones:
Where Main Street and Amazon Meet

by Jack Sharry, FA Magazine

Edward Jones knows Main Street America like no one else. Advisors are active in and leaders of community organizations, from the Chamber of Commerce and Rotary to girls softball. They know their customers. And they continually find ways to serve them better—only now in the digital age.

Any competitors who consider Edward Jones “sleepy” or “boring” do so at their peril. This is why I included them among four leaders—along with Morgan Stanley, Empower and Franklin Templeton—with the potential to become “the Amazon of financial services.”

Leaders Set The Course And Get It Done

I’ve spent time with executives at these firms to get underneath their strategies. Each is responding in its way to a generational shift in what clients want and how advisors will work:

Advice will be digital and human—much more than the sum of those parts.
Technology will dynamically coordinate clients’ goals, investments, risk tolerance, preferences, timelines and tax brackets for better financial outcomes.
Personalized financial advice will be available to all, regardless of age, experience and wealth.
In Jones’s case, they are adapting and innovating by:
Investing $1 billion in technology last year, with much more to come.
Conducting groundbreaking research with Age Wave/Harris Poll redefining retirement.
Growing executive and staff talent, including 1,500 to 1,700 new advisors.
Making significant changes to branch operations, including teaming options for advisors and their support personnel.
Adding lending to its services.
Reshaping the legendary Jones culture for the future of advice.

Many call me crazy when I say Edward Jones is a transformational leader. They wonder if this 101-year-old firm measures up. But see for yourself and listen to my WealthTech on Deck Podcast with Ken Cella, head of branch development at Edward Jones, and Age Wave founder and CEO Ken Dychtwald.

“We’re building out a renewed focus fueled by our purpose,” Cella said.

New Ideas Are Not New At Edward Jones

Founded in 1922 by Edward D. Jones Sr., the company was a traditional broker-dealer based in St. Louis.

Ted Jones, the founder’s son, broke new ground by selling securities door to door. John Bachmann became managing partner in 1980 and led the firm’s dramatic growth, expanding beyond small cities and towns to large metropolitan areas. Jones tripled in size in five years.

With nearly 19,000 advisors and branches in 68% of U.S. counties today, Edward Jones is part of the fabric of the communities they serve. Cella said today’s changes are as consequential as those launched by Ted Jones and Bachmann. I believe what’s being built now will have an exponential impact.

“We’re doing this with an outsized investment in people and an outsized investment in technology,” Cella said. Investing in people includes “providing the right support for women and people of color to join our firm.”

Retirement Redefined

The research Dychtwald and The Harris Poll conducted is in plain sight on Jones’ website. The study identified four pillars of retirement—family, health, purpose, and finances—and five forces shaping it:

Greater longevity
More boomers and Gen Xers
Long-term care woes
Personal responsibility for retirement income
The Covid-19 pandemic

This research informs Jones’s strategy around training, operations, and technology. Advisors are trained in client conversations that explore what matters most and address worries about outliving savings, healthcare costs and family and legacy issues.

“We found it has ignited a passion that already existed among our advisors,” Cella said, adding many were thrilled to expand conversations beyond fluctuations in the markets.

Technology Enables Advisors

Their tech transformation is expanding advisor capacity to attract and serve more clients and produce better outcomes as they embrace keener market segmentation and improve practice management.

Because even with the firm’s sprawling geographic footprint, it serves only a fraction of the clients who could benefit from financial advice, Cella said.

Jones is working with Envestnet|MoneyGuide to empower advisors to create comprehensive views of clients’ portfolios and optimize their financial plans. Capabilities to be added will enable advisors to improve outcomes across a client portfolio with the following:

Appropriate product mix
Risk management strategies
Generating tax alpha in both accumulation and retirement income
Social Security optimization

“Our transformation is not robotic. It is not about clients interacting with machines,” Cella said. “Our approach is human to human with strong technology in the background that supports that, but in an experiential-driven way.”

Heard From the Field

Jones advisors have told Dychtwald their clients notice and like the change in their discussions resulting from the insight the research provides and training they’ve received.

“I’ve had other financial advisors in my life. No one asked me questions” about family needs, purpose in retirement and worries about the future, Dychtwald said.

“They just asked me about market risk and my age relative to retirement. Widening the discussion to more holistic concerns has yielded a great reaction from clients.”

This article was published on Feb. 2, 2023 in FA Magazine.

Edward Jones Named One of the World’s Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE Magazine

February 15, 2023/in Awards & Accolades, In the News Optional /by Symphony Talent

Awards & Accolades

Edward Jones Named One of the World’s Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE Magazine

Financial services firm Edward Jones has been named to Fortune® magazine’s 2023 list of the World’s Most Admired Companies, a recognition of the most respected and reputable companies globally. The firm ranked No. 5 in the Securities/Asset Management industry category.

“As a firm, we are built on deep, trusted, personal relationships. Being named a Most Admired Company is a testament to the depth of these relationships among our 8 million clients, 50,000 associates and 3,000 communities where we serve,” said Kristin Johnson, Edward Jones Chief Transformation Officer. “At the heart of our relationships is a shared determination to grow our impact and to live in harmony with our firm’s purpose: to partner for positive impact to improve the lives of our clients and colleagues, and together, better our communities and society.”

Positive impact manifests in a multitude of forms. During the past three years, financial advisors have guided clients to navigate market volatility and uncertainty with confidence, and as the opportunity arose, the firm added 725 new branches to serve additional clients in local communities. Beyond its work with clients, the Edward Jones Financial Fitness in-person and online education programs have helped nearly 450,000 learners increase their financial literacy since 2020.

“As a firm, we are built on deep, trusted, personal relationships. Being named a Most Admired Company is a testament to the depth of these relationships among our 8 million clients, 50,000 associates and 3,000 communities where we serve.

-Kristin Johnson, Edward Jones Chief Transformation Officer

For associates, the firm encourages participation in the Day of Caring, a paid day off to volunteer for an organization of their choosing — with nearly 58,000 hours donated in 2022. The firm’s generous parental leave policy, comprehensive wellness program, flexible work policies, financial education resources and profit-sharing program contribute to associates’ sense of physical and financial well-being.

The firm’s impact to the community is significant, as well. The firm has raised $35.7 million since 2016 (against a goal of $50 million by 2025) for the Alzheimer’s Association, in its fight to end Alzheimer’s disease. Through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation, 11,000 trees were planted in U.S. cities and through reforestation projects in 2022. More than $33.5 million in corporate, Edward Jones foundation and associate giving contributed to 318 organizations around the U.S.

In 2022, Edward Jones began accelerating its journey and aspiration to serve clients more completely through deep personal relationships and comprehensive planning and advice. The firm believes it has an opportunity to serve 40 million families in North America — relationships that go beyond traditional investment advice to an experience that enables its clients to achieve financially what is most important to them.

To create the ranking of Most Admired Companies, Fortune® magazine and research partner Korn Ferry began with the 1,000 largest U.S. companies by revenue plus foreign companies listed in Fortune’s® Global 500 database. Using nine criteria, ranging from investment value to social responsibility, they whittled down to the highest-revenue companies in each industry, a total of 645 companies (453 U.S.-based and 192 based elsewhere) across 52 industries. A survey of 15,000 senior executives, outside directors and industry analysts determined the top-rated companies from that pool of 645. The final list was announced in February 2023.

2023 Fortune® World’s Most Admired Companies list, published February 2023, in partnership with Korn Ferry, data as of November 2022. Compensation provided for using, not obtaining, the rating.

From Fortune®, ©2023 Fortune® Media IP Limited. All rights reserved. Used under license. Fortune® is a registered trademark and Fortune® World’s Most Admired Companies™ is a trademark of Fortune® Media IP Limited and are used under license. Fortune® and Fortune® Media IP Limited are not affiliated with, and do not endorse the products or services of, Edward Jones.

Penny Pennington Ranks Among Fortune’s 2021 Most Powerful Women

October 6, 2021/in In the News Optional /by Symphony Talent

In the News:

Penny Pennington Ranks Among Fortune’s 2021 Most Powerful Women

For the third year in a row, Edward Jones Managing Partner Penny Pennington is named among the Fortune Most Powerful Women in Business list. Pennington, who has served as the firm’s managing partner since 2019, is responsible for the firm’s strategic direction, working together with more than 49,000 associates across North America to make a positive impact in the lives of Edward Jones’ clients, colleagues and communities.

Pennington is ranked at No. 34 on the 2021 Fortune list. She began her Edward Jones career in 2000 as a financial advisor in Livonia, Mich. In 2006, she was named a principal and relocated to the firm’s St. Louis headquarters where she held various leadership roles. Pennington is the sixth managing partner in the firm’s 99-year history, and the first female to serve in this role.

2022 American Banker’s Most Powerful Women in Finance, published October 2022, research by JPMorgan Chase, data as of May 2022

Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors 2021

October 4, 2021/in In the News Optional /by ndowney

In the News:

Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors 2021

Edward Jones is pleased to recognize our financial advisors named to the 2021 Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors ranking. Rankings were based on best practices, industry experience, credentials, assets under management and more.

Ted Oberg
AMS®

Dallas, PA

Jordan Husted
CFP®, AAMS®

Great Falls, MT

Brooke Donley Behrens
CFA

Olathe, KS

Michael Bishop
AAMS®

Redmond, OR

Leo E Priemer
CFP®, AAMS®

South Bend, IN

Weston Kissee
AAMS®

Springfield, MO

Johnny Martinez
AAMS®

Inman, SC

Chris Carr
CFP®

Olathe, KS

Chris Reeves
CFP®

Plaquemine, LA

Shellie L Haluska
CFP®, ChFC®, CLU®

Carroll, IA

Eric M Robbins
CFP®

Columbus, IN

Ben Maxwell
ChFC®, AAMS®

Fredericksburg, VA

Neal F McDaniel
CFP®

Fleming Island, FL

Chance L Hiskey
AAMS®

South Jordan, UT

Ryan Wipf

Carroll, IA

Important Information:

Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors Data provided by SHOOK® Research, LLC. Data as of 3/31/21. Source: Forbes.com (September 2021). SHOOK considered advisors born in 1982 or later with a minimum 4 years as a financial advisor. These financial advisors have: built their own practices and led their teams; joined teams and are viewed as future leadership; or a combination of both. Ranking algorithm is based on qualitative measures: telephone and in-person interviews to measure best practices, client retention, industry experience, credentials, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, such as: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC.

Penny Pennington Among Female CEOs on Record-Breaking Fortune 500

June 14, 2021/in In the News Optional /by Symphony Talent

In the News

Penny Pennington Among Female CEOs on Record-Breaking Fortune 500

With more than $10.2 billion in net revenue for 2020, a 6.7 percent increase, Edward Jones moved up 41 spots to No. 295 on this year’s Fortune 500, which features an all-time record of 41 female CEOs, including Penny Pennington.

As the sixth managing partner in the firm’s 99-year history, Penny is responsible for the firm’s strategic direction, with a strong focus on initiatives that foster growth and development for all colleagues, and career opportunities for diverse candidates interested in joining Edward Jones.

The ranking places Penny, now in her third year as managing partner, on a short list of women leading companies in the top 300 on the Fortune list.

“As we grow, we are growing our impact and living our purpose to make a meaningful difference in the lives of our clients, colleagues and communities,” said Edward Jones Managing Partner Penny Pennington. “We are incredibly honored to be among the nation’s top 500 companies in service of our 7 million clients, 49,000 colleagues and thousands of communities across North America – helping to improve the financial resiliency and vitality of individuals and families so they can achieve what matters most to them.”

Penny began her Edward Jones career in 2000 as a financial advisor in Livonia, Mich. In 2006, she was named a principal and relocated to the firm’s St. Louis headquarters where she held various leadership roles. She was recently named No. 33 in her second appearance on the Fortune Most Powerful Women in Business list.