Advisors say the biggest limit on their practice growth isn’t client demand or market conditions. It’s time, according to new research from T. Rowe Price.
Key Takeaways:
- Advisors point to time, not client demand, as the top barrier to growing their practices.
- AI note-taking tools are gaining traction as a way to free up hours for advisors.
- Referral-based growth often fades quickly without a defined, repeatable approach.
The firm’s advisor survey found professionals are spending less time on pure investment work and more time on tasks tied to growth, capacity and client experience.
Client rosters have grown more complex in recent years. Advisors are fielding requests that go beyond fund selection, from tax planning to estate questions to family wealth transfers.
T. Rowe Price grouped advisors’ priorities into six areas: operations, growth and marketing, client communication, team structure, service expansion and compliance. The firm frames these six areas as a roadmap advisors can use to reclaim time and deepen client relationships over the next year.
Advisors Look to AI and Team Structure First
Recurring tasks such as meeting notes, quarterly reviews and follow-up paperwork are an early target. Advisors pointed to AI note-taking tools as a way to save time, T. Rowe Price found, provided the technology fits within a firm’s compliance rules.
See more: T. Rowe Price: Automation Has Its Limits With Clients
Growth habits often depend on referrals or conference visibility, which tend to spike and then fade. A steadier path starts with defining an ideal client profile, the firm said, which then shapes marketing, staffing and service decisions.
Client communication is shifting from reactive to scheduled. T. Rowe Price recommends a 12-month calendar covering reviews, midyear check-ins, tax reminders and family meetings, each with a defined purpose.
Team structure is getting more attention as practices scale. The firm suggests sorting work into four categories, advisor-only, associate-led, staff-led and technology-enabled, before adding headcount.
Advisors are also expanding beyond investment talk into broader planning topics such as retirement income and estate reviews, rotating a new focus area each quarter, according to the report.
Compliance work rounds out the list. Updated client records and documentation support continuity as teams grow and spread across locations, T. Rowe Price said.
Even so, the firm’s follow-up research found that recognizing a need to change often moves faster than the ability to act on it, as market swings and daily client demands crowd out longer-term plans.
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