Chuck Roberts is an experienced financial advisor and a managing director/investments at Stifel. As the head of The CR Wealth Management Group of Stifel, he leads a nine-person team catering to a clientele of ultra-high-net-worth individuals, families, and business owners, as well as foundations, endowments, nonprofits, corporations, and pension plans. The team offers comprehensive wealth planning, including financial planning, retirement planning, and related services.

Mr. Roberts has more than 30 years of experience in the industry. He began his career with Lehman Brothers in 1990 and was a managing director at Smith Barney and Morgan Stanley for over 11 years before joining Stifel.

Here, he explains his philosophy as a financial advisor and describes his team’s approach to wealth management.

What is your professional philosophy in your work with clients?

I’ve always had a deep interest in helping people pursue their financial goals, and I’m gratified that my clients place their trust in my guidance. That’s why I work so hard to earn it; a strong, trust-based relationship with clients is essential in wealth management. This industry is just as much about serving people with excellence and integrity as it is about money. Listening to clients and understanding their goals, financial circumstances, and appetite for risk is paramount for providing exceptional, personalized service.

In addition, at The CR Wealth Management Group, we also prioritize objectivity and simplicity. We believe the best financial strategies are simple and even elegant, not needlessly convoluted or confusing. And by always prioritizing objectivity, we are able to develop cohesive strategies that truly align with each client’s unique needs and goals.

How do you help your clients begin creating a wealth management plan?

Helping clients develop clear financial goals is one of the earliest steps in our process. We want to empower clients to take control of their financial future, and without clear objectives, it is impossible to create an effective plan to reach that future. For example, a client might have a goal of buying a house, saving for retirement, passing on wealth, or funding a child’s college education. With solid, specific goals, we can then help clients understand what steps they must take to achieve these objectives.

What are the other steps in your wealth management process?

Assessing the client’s current financial situation is another early step in the process. We work closely with clients to take a comprehensive inventory of all their assets and income streams so they can understand their current net worth. Having established this starting point, we calculate the funds needed to achieve the client’s goals, taking inflation and other factors into account. With that information, we can then develop a customized plan of action that respects the client’s risk tolerance and positions them to pursue their goals. The process as a whole involves a large amount of information gathering, in-depth conversations with clients, and analysis.

What guiding principles do you follow in developing strategies for clients?

Whatever financial goals our clients may seek, a few overarching principles guide our strategy development. First, we aim to create strategies that are personal—rather than cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all plans, our strategies are tailored to each client’s goals and individual financial situation.

Flexibility is another main priority. A good financial strategy should be flexible, in that it can be adjusted or edited based on changing life circumstances and priorities, and still meet the client’s major objectives. Finally, our plans are comprehensive. We offer a wide range of investment products and services to assist clients.

What’s something that people often forget about wealth management?

Any kind of financial plan is a not a “set it and forget it” type of strategy. Financial circumstances change; life happens. A career change, the loss of a job, retirement, a marriage, a divorce, the birth of a child, or the death of a partner are just some of the life events that can affect a wealth management strategy—and that’s to say nothing of economic shifts, market downturns, and other macro trends that can have an impact.

That’s why it’s critical to review any financial plan regularly with your advisor and make adjustments as needed. In addition, this is also a reason why it’s so important for advisors like myself to have strong relationships with clients—we aim to be by their side, offering guidance in navigating a changing financial landscape for the long term.