Wealth Planning Associate

Challenge your thinking and build an amazing career with the best people in the financial services industry! Baird's Financial Advisors provide advice, strategies, and solutions to high-net worth individuals and families across the United States, serving as true partners. True wealth management goes beyond managing investments. At Baird, we understand it begins with learning all we can about what our clients want for themselves and their families. We work closely with them to prioritize their goals, utilizing Baird's resources and expertise to create a tailored plan to ensure success as they've defined it. Our 1,700+ private wealth associates serve clients coast-to-coast from over 160 + locations in over 33 states. We have been recognized on Barron's Top Wealth Management Firms for 10 consecutive years and hold over $255 billion in client assets. Check out this video to learn more about our Private Wealth Management business.

The Wealth Planning Associate (WPA) role is primarily responsible for fostering and promoting the Baird Mission:

"To provide the best financial advice and service to our clients and be the best place to work for our associates."

The Wealth Planning Associate is expected to, under limited supervision, provide holistic wealth planning support to Baird Financial Advisors and other internal departments. Duties include collecting and reviewing data provided by Financial Advisors, creating analyses using firm standard tools. This role will provide support to and collaborate with other members and initiatives of the geographically diverse Wealth Planning Department with research, project management, etc.

The Wealth Planning Associate needs to display an adept ability to manage personal workflow while identifying opportunities to add to their technical skillset as it applies to various wealth planning tools and topics.

As a Wealth Planning Associate, you will:

• Provide support to promote and train on the Wealth Management Experience to Financial Advisors and their teams in a defined region, including participation in data gathering and/or analysis presentation and facilitation of meetings or conference calls with advisors and their clients.

• Facilitate creation of analyses for and training of the standard firm tools to Financial Advisors and their teams. Training includes explanation of general functionality, point-and-click navigation through the program, and detailed assistance in understanding calculations and conclusions.

• Occasionally travel to Private Wealth Management (PWM) branches within a defined region to promote the services and capabilities of the team, as well as establish and maintain relationships with Financial Advisors and their teams.

• Answer and discuss basic to moderate tax, estate, and general financial planning questions from advisors and their clients via multiple forms of communication, including a team-shared inbox and department phone line. For more advanced questions, be able to research solutions and/or work with other department members or specialists to find an answer.

• Be familiar with various planning documents, including account statements, Social Security benefit estimates, retirement benefit estimates, tax returns, wills, trusts, etc.

• Work with other members of the Wealth Planning Department to develop standard deliverables and service tiers to ensure consistent support across the firm.

• Understand the products and services offered within a brokerage environment and be able to work with representatives of those departments. Recognize when to involve other specialists within the firm in a particular situation.

• Help manage workflow within department via department activity tracking system to accurately record workflow and store client documentation to meet compliance requirements.

• Assist in advisor and client-facing content management across intra-web sites.

What makes this opportunity great:

• Be a part of a regional planning team to provide holistic support to our clients.

• Work from one of our branch offices in either Louisville or Lexington and experience the unique culture that values diverse backgrounds and perspectives while emphasizing teamwork and a strong sense of partnership.

• Fast paced environment that will enable you to grow as a professional.

What we look for:

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics, or pre-law preferred. If no such degree or similar degree, ability to demonstrate expertise commensurate with such a degree is required.

• Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Enrolled Agent (EA), Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Juris Doctor (JD) strongly preferred, or must have the ability to earn such designations.

• Experience in the brokerage industry a plus, including possession of basic brokerage licenses (SIE, Series 7, 66) preferred, or must have the ability to earn such licenses.

• Experience with MoneyGuide or other financial planning software(s) a plus.

• Experience reviewing and/or completing individual tax returns a plus.

• Experience reviewing and/or drafting an individual's estate planning documents a plus.

• Strong computer skills, including working knowledge of Microsoft Office products.

• Ability to work independently on projects and effectively relate to others in order to accomplish work responsibilities and objectives.

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Commitment to Inclusion & Diversity

Baird is committed to inclusion & diversity for our clients, our associates and the communities where we live and work. This commitment stems from our culture of integrity, genuine concern for others and respect for the individual. We view inclusion & diversity as an ongoing journey - one of shared responsibility, continuous improvement and a focus on progress. We invite you to join us as we work together to foster an environment where diversity unites rather than divides us. Learn more here.