Blaine Arnold, Executive, Vice President, Corporate Development, Wellington-Altus
- NATALIE NOBLE
- Sep 4
- 6 min read
Updated: Sep 29
BLAINE ARNOLD
“Advisors join Wellington-Altus because they want to be surrounded by like minded people, entrepreneurs and extremely growth-focused people. They gain back their independence, entrepreneurship and energy.”
Wealth management professionals are notoriously entrepreneurial, especially in those phases of focused business development. But what happens when they work with a firm that ties them down with restrictive practices and little decision-making power?
They risk losing their zest for work, and drive for growth.
“The industry has changed so much. A lot of freedom and flexibility has been taken away from Advisors. The fun has been pulled out of the business,” says Blaine Arnold, Executive, V.P., Corporate Development, Wellington-Altus. “Working in corporate development, we talk to Advisors who are unhappy every day. They’re disenfranchised with where they’re at. They don't have the ability to customize and run their business the way they want to – from the products they provide clients, to service offerings, how they market themselves and how they build their own brand. Not only does Wellington-Altus allow them to do all those things, we encourage it. We know that's what makes them unique. That's what inspires renewed growth.”
Born out of an entrepreneurial and independent spirit, Wellington-Altus is changing that restrictive trend across Canada one Advisor at a time. In fact, the eight-year-old company has been ranked the number one brokerage firm in Canada on the Brokerage Report Card for six years in a row.
“Our Advisors rank us extremely high in all our service provisions and we work hard to maintain that,” says Blaine. “They come here because they want to be surrounded by like-minded people, entrepreneurs and extremely growth-focused people. They get a feel for the culture of our firm and realize, ‘hey, these are my people.’”
At Wellington-Altus, every Advisor joins as a partner and significant shareholder, giving them a voice. “At their previous firm, they may not have had much say in what goes on day-to-day with the business. The firm was calling all the shots and controlling everything, making decisions with very little input from Advisors,” says Blaine. “With us, because Advisors come in as shareholders from day-one, they all have a say. They're very much part of our decision making as a firm, which directly helps us all. When Advisors grow and have success, our firm does as well.”
Made in Canada
Independent firms are less common in the Canadian wealth management space, with about 80 per cent of Advisors and wealth across the country sitting with big banks. With that in mind, Wellington-Altus’s rapid growth is interesting. “Today, 40-plus percent of our growth comes from Ontario and we’re very active in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces,” says Blaine. “We’re right across Canada now.”
A lack of quality firms among Canadian independents may be attributed to Wellington Altus’s edge in the industry. “For an Advisor at one of the other independents, or more specifically at one of the banks, we became interesting,” says Blaine. “Here we are coming in and we're bringing the fun back. We’re very Advisor centric. We’re focused on listening to our Advisors, helping them with whatever they’re working on. When we get a request from an Advisor, it’s not a ‘no;’ it’s ‘let's look at this, understand better and figure out how we can work through this together.’”
While that mentality should be the norm across the wealth management industry, unfortunately, the opposite is a growing trend. “A lot of Advisors were highly entrepreneurial when they started in their businesses. But over the years, that entrepreneurship was pulled away from them,” says Blaine. “Our founders are extremely entrepreneurial people and that’s refreshing for Advisors.”
In just eight years, the company has reached $40 billion under management, while many firms can take 20-to-50 years to get there. “That’s five billion per year in growth and 125 Advisor teams now,” says Blaine. “No firm in the industry has come remotely close to that type of growth.”
Why Wellington-Altus Works
At Wellington-Altus, there are a number of key differentiators driving their expansion. First is that partnership-shareholder structure. “When Advisors show up as a partner versus as an employee, it's a mindset shift. They realize, ‘I can monetize based on my business and my book, but I can also monetize by increasing the enterprise value of the firm,” says Blaine.
Advisors also appreciate open communication with the executive team. “That's freeing for Advisors, knowing when they have something to say, somebody's going to listen,” says Blaine. “They know, ‘when I need help, they answer my calls and respond to me, I have a line to the CEO of the firm and our executive team, and they're always going to go out of their way to help me.’”
Further to that, Wellington-Altus has regional managers on the ground working with Advisors every day, identifying areas to support and coach them. They also have a Practice Management Group. “This is a team of professionals who come in and quickly identify the areas an Advisor is concerned about, tear them down and then help the Advisor build them back up again in a way that is transformational and meets the last 10-to-20 years’ industry changes,” says Blaine. “Advisor teams get tremendous value out of that local coaching the regional managers provide, but also the larger engagement with Practice Management.”
Who is the ideal Wellington-Altus Advisor?
As a firm, Wellington-Altus is tailored to high-net-worth clients and Advisors focused on this space with at least 100-million-plus assets under management (AUM). The average Advisor team tops the industry at about 280 million AUM,” says Blaine. “When a large team like that joins us, it shows that they see value in our offering and in our culture.”
For ambitious Advisors with expansive expertise who might not quite be at those impressive numbers yet, Wellington-Altus offers a sponsorship program to support them in scaling their business.
“Our Advisors are experts and active in financial planning, insurance planning, tax planning and wealth transfer. All the areas a high-net-worth client would see value in is something we must provide as a firm, and we do,” says Blaine. “Our advisors are holistic in their offerings and the value they provide clients.”
Is it time for change?
For the growth-focused, sitting still and staying comfortable breeds a stale business and an apathy towards daily work. “The best way to protect what they've built is to ensure it keeps evolving and growing. Advisors should confirm their current firm still aligns with their values and that they're able to serve their clients in the best way,” says Blaine. “If they don’t do that, over time they increasingly lose control as they’re tied into what the firm dictates. The Advisor’s frustration grows.”
Instead, Blaine recommends Advisors regularly do their homework on what’s happening at other firms. “Exploring isn't disloyal. An Advisor built something meaningful. Sometimes they may feel they're betraying the firm they're at,” says Blaine. “You don't have to be unhappy to ask yourself questions like: am I growing the way I want? Is this still the best home for my business? The Advisors with fewest regrets are those willing to explore. That’s a great way to safeguard your business.”
He adds that all firms are different. “When the time comes to make a change, Advisors should be educated and equipped to make the best change, put care into it to ensure it's a great relationship on both sides.”
To support these transitions, Blaine and his corporate development team of 12 are Canada-wide and oversee Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) Advisors and investment counseling businesses. “I've got a great group of professionals that meet with Advisors in their local markets. We are focused on building relationships and trust with Advisors,” says Blaine. “It's not a quick process or an easy decision. Our team and the Advisor do our due diligence both ways to ensure we’re the ideal fit.”
Of course, the biggest fear is clients not coming over with an Advisor, but statistics show when a new Advisor joins Wellington-Altus, they are back to 100 per cent their previous numbers, or better, within 12 months. “Most of them go on this growth trajectory,” says Blaine. “Many of the Advisor teams have doubled their business in just a few years. It's something that took them 20-to-25 years to build, they make a change, and within five years, they double what took them decades to build.”
Experiencing life as a Wellington-Altus Advisor can feel like a fresh start. “Advisors are re-energized and invigorated again. It gives them that career boost they've been missing for many years,” says Blaine. “All of those things they had early in their career – the independence, the entrepreneurship that waned over the years – they gain that back. They see new and bigger opportunities. Their business experiences tremendous growth because they're showing up in a different way every day with their clients and prospects. It’s so rewarding to see that life-changing impact we have on people.”
Natalie Noble’s love of writing stems from her passion for hearing and sharing people’s stories. Over the years she has written for various business, real estate, and agriculture publications. At the heart of her work is a desire to continuously learn and connect.
Blaine Arnold, Executive Vice-President,
Corporate Development
Wellington-Altus Financial Inc.
306-808-4189