The Exceptional Advisor Podcast

Hosted by Investments & Wealth Institute

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Episodes

100

Latest episode

Aug 2026

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About the show

The Exceptional Advisor Podcast, produced by the Investments & Wealth Institute, is a conversation series for financial advisors who serve high-net-worth clients and want to sharpen how they practice. Each episode features a working practitioner, researcher, or industry leader on the topics shaping the profession: market outlooks, retirement income, investor behavior, building and leading advisory teams, earning client trust, and the role of AI in advice. Past guests include Michael Kitces, Liz Ann Sonders, Mark Casady, John Bowen, and behavioral finance researcher Herman Brodie. The show is built for advisors who already have the fundamentals and want the next layer of expertise — the kind that separates a competent advisor from an exceptional one. Expect practical conversations about serving clients with complex needs, standing out in a crowded market, and communicating your value in terms clients understand. The podcast comes from the Institute that administers the CIMA®, CPWA®, and RMA® certifications, and it reflects the same standard: advanced, practitioner-focused, and grounded in the decisions advisors make with clients every day. Listen and follow wherever you get your podcasts.

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60 recent

August 10, 2026Episode 836 min

Where Asset Allocation Meets Client Psychology

Christopher Geczy, Academic Director of the Wharton Wealth Management Initiative and the Jacobs Levy Equity Management Center for Quantitative Financial Research at the Wharton School, talks through why asset allocation still drives most of a portfolio's risk and what happens to that discipline the moment a client gets scared. The conversation covers: Why the rebalancing plan comes first. Volatility can work in an investor's favor, but only if the plan for rebalancing exists before volatility hits—once it does, risk aversion spikes and rebalancing gets hard to do. The neuroscience behind FOMO and the panic call. FOMO sits near a pain center in the brain and carries a strong social component; the panic call that comes during a downturn draws on that same wiring. Running the outbound call. With three or four hundred clients, advisors have to rank who gets called first during a downturn, based on what they already know about each client in good times and bad.

July 13, 2026Episode 740 min

Two Credentialing CEOs on the Future of Advice

K. Dane Snowden, Chief Executive Officer of CFP Board, joins Investments & Wealth Institute CEO Sean Walters for a wide-ranging conversation on where the financial planning profession is heading. Two association leaders who have spent their careers building standards for the advice profession, Snowden and Walters cover AI's four possible futures, the problem of finfluencer noise, why the psychology of financial planning is the profession's most defensible skill set, and what it will actually take for advisors—new and experienced—to serve clients well in the decade ahead. Their conversation covers: AI as a tool, not a replacement. CFP Board's working group mapped four AI scenarios for the profession. The most likely outcome blends two of them—and in both, advisors who treat AI as a productivity tool rather than a threat are the ones who gain. Finfluencers and fiduciary theater. Plenty of platforms and personalities now market advice as personalized. But many are built around engagement and product sales, not the client's actual interests. The case for specialty certifications. Why CFP Board added the Certified Investment Management Analyst® (CIMA®) to the accelerated education path and why the profession's future isn't fewer specialists but more advisors whose specialized expertise is grounded in a holistic, ethical framework.

June 9, 2026Episode 636 min

AI and the Meaning of Money with Mark Casady

In this episode of The Exceptional Advisor, Mark joins host Sean Walters to discuss what AI changes about wealth management — and what it doesn't: Why the real advisor shortage is bigger than the headlines suggest, and what that means for firm leaders right now Why the advisor of the future leads with the meaning of money, not the management of it What the next five to seven years actually look like for the profession, and what to be doing about it today Required listening for any advisor or firm leader thinking about where this profession is headed.

May 8, 2026Episode 529 min

The Future of Advice with Michael Kitces

Michael Kitces, Head of Planning Strategy at Focus Partners Wealth, Co-Founder of XY Planning Network, and one of the industry's most recognized voices, joins Sean Walters on this episode of The Exceptional Advisor for a "This Or That" conversation on: Investments or wealth? Firms do both, but individual advisors are increasingly specializing in one or the other as investment management centralizes. Solo or team? Both paths are thriving, and it has never been more profitable or easier to run as a solo advisor, despite what mega firms want you to believe. Utopian or dystopian? Why Kitces is bullish on advice, even as AI raises the bar for everyone. It's a wide-ranging conversation with one of the sharpest minds in the business and a must-listen for advisors.

April 8, 2026Episode 437 min

How Great Advisors Build Trust With Herman Brodie

Herman Brodie, behavioral scientist and Founding Director of Prospecta Limited, has spent years studying how people build trust and why they lose it. In this episode of The Exceptional Advisor , he joins host Sean Walters and shares insights for financial advisors navigating today's polarized, noise-filled world, including: Why salient headlines and changes draw client attention and how to redirect it How "behavior residue" and political polarization are showing up in client relationships How vulnerability outperforms self-promotion when building new relationships The importance of competence and benevolence in building trust This is the conversation every advisor needs to hear to understand what trust really means and how to build more of it.

March 17, 2026Episode 330 min

What Makes an Exceptional Advisor with Libet Anderson

What truly makes an advisor exceptional? In this episode of The Exceptional Advisor, Libet Anderson, Community Care Leader at Cetera, joins host Sean Walters to discuss what excellence really looks like amidst rising AI adoption and fiduciary expectations. She walks us through her career in the industry, the evolving standards of excellence, and what separates the best from the rest, along with how leaders can raise the bar across entire teams.

February 13, 2026Episode 238 min

2026 Outlook with Liz Ann Sonders

In this episode of The Exceptional Advisor , Sean Walters sits down with Liz Ann Sonders, Chief Investment Strategist at Charles Schwab, for a timely conversation on navigating markets defined by uncertainty, shifting economic signals, and relentless headlines. Liz Ann shares her current outlook on the economy, where she sees resilience beneath the volatility, and how advisors can separate meaningful data from short-term noise. The discussion moves beyond forecasts to focus on discipline — how to communicate with clients during uneven cycles, manage expectations, and reinforce long-term strategy when sentiment swings. For advisors leading teams or building credibility within them, this conversation offers a practical perspective on aligning messaging, maintaining consistency, and guiding clients with clarity in complex environments.

February 4, 2026Episode 139 min

2026 Outlook with Liz Thomas

What's ahead for advisors in 2026, and how should they prepare? Host Sean Walters welcomes Liz Thomas, Head of Investment Strategy at SoFi, for a market update focused on the 2026 macro outlook. From balancing concentration risk and client FOMO to keeping clients calm, Liz covers plenty of ground, giving advisors a strong framework for smarter allocation decisions and stronger client conversations.

March 31, 202555 min

Opportunities and Obstacles for a Successful Retirement

A Discussion with François Gadenne, Jan Gundersen, CFA®, and Lori Lucas, CFA®, moderated by Robert Powell, CFP®, RMA®

September 19, 2024Episode 12240 min

Unlocking Exceptional Performance: John Bowen on Building Dream Teams for Financial Advisors

In this exclusive interview, John Bowen, President of CEG Worldwide and CEG Insight, shares powerful research insights and practical strategies to help financial advisors create high-performing teams and accelerate their success. The Dream Team Effect: www.cegwin.com/iwi-team #certifiedfinancialplanner #financialadvisor #continuingeducation