This is the retail adviser role, and the adviser market has changed shape. More of the business now sits with national advice firms, networks and consolidators who buy centrally, run panels and make decisions at a senior level. A Head of Intermediary has to cover those firms properly while keeping the regional adviser base engaged, with the right mix of national account people, regional Business Development Directors and post-sale support behind them.
The good ones lead a team that sells a proposition rather than a product. They know the consolidators well enough to see who's buying, who's still integrating their last acquisition and when a panel is coming up for review, and they make sure their team is in the room before it does.
Where I place Heads of Intermediary and Sales Directors
- Investment platforms
- DFMs
- Asset managers
- Life and retirement providers
Who I've worked with
I placed a Director of National Network Distributors with Brooks Macdonald.
How I work
Exclusive or retained, one brief at a time. That means a proper look across the whole market rather than the first ten CVs on a database, and a shortlist of people I've actually spoken to. Usually four, not forty.
If you're hiring a Head of Intermediary or Sales Director, I'd like to hear about it.