How To Be A Change-Maker Today

Travis Forman came to a stark realization when he started his career in wealth management. “There was a whole private side of the market which high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors had access to that the typical Canadian did not,” he says. “This means certain groups were getting richer because they had access while others were not getting richer, because they did not.”

This mission, of providing access to financial information and wealth management for all, is part of what drove Forman to forge an alternative path—forming Strategic Private Wealth Counsel within Harbourfront Wealth Management. He shares why he chooses to be a hands-on leader “knee-deep within the funds” that the firm recommends to his clients, why educating Canadians on the basics of wealth management without too being too technical is so critical—and what other leaders might learn from his path.

Not only do you run a successful wealth management practice, you’re also instrumental in architecting and managing the Rockridge Private Debt Pool, Forsyth Private Real Estate Portfolios and Laurier Private Real Estate Pool for Willoughby Asset Management. How do you juggle these multiple hats?

By trade, I’m a financial advisor and portfolio manager. But by prerogative, I [have] one goal: to provide financial advice that leads to real outcomes.

Simple right? Well, that’s how it should be—but in the financial advisory landscape, typically it’s not.

I run a wealth management practice with a value proposition and mission to deliver wealth management that is prudent, probable and predictable. This means regardless of what is going to be in my best interest, I’m going to do what’s right for my clients. In other words, I won’t suggest private investments if it doesn’t serve their long-term goal. I’m not going to rebalance portfolios if it’s going to worsen the outcomes. I will keep clients informed of changes ahead so they can have a plan.

In order to be the best I can be for my clients, I have to be knee-deep within the funds that I’m suggesting as opposed to just on the outer shell. Otherwise, how I can understand if there is true benefit, what it is and how to explain it? Therefore, I don’t see this as me juggling multiple hats, but rather doing what’s necessary to ensure my clients get what they need and what they deserve.

Financial education can be biased. Education given, especially direct from the financial services industry, is not always delivered in a way that can be understood by all. It can be too technical or delivered ineffectively and leave room for more questions that don’t get unanswered.

A few years ago I started my Across Canada Education Tour and this year alone, from January to July, I hosted more than half a dozen events across major cities in Canada to discuss tax planning, retirement strategies, alternative investments and the housing market. I delivered five presentations across five cities at several of my brokerage’s Canadian offices in just three days.

This aspect of my job is equally as important to me because I am a firm believer in the education of wealth management, and I will continue to participate in these seminars to educate all over Canada.

What sparked your interest in wealth management and portfolio management?

I started my career at Royal Bank as a teller. It was during my time here I learned about wealth management and that I could become a financial advisor. My colleague had mentioned to me that she was applying for a job in the field, which she landed but chose not to pursue. She put me forward as a potential candidate as it had really sparked my interest. I took a leap of faith, landed it and have never looked back since. 

While that was my journey into wealth management, once I stepped foot into the field, I went from being interested to being invested at a personal level. One of the things I learned pretty immediately was that the majority of Canadians did not have access to privately structured funds outside of what was on a bank’s product shelf. The only investment vehicles clients had access to was what the bank decided it wanted to offer and most of these were the classic 60-40 split equity and bond funds.

Yet, there was a whole private side of the market which high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors had access to that the typical Canadian did not and this means certain groups were getting richer because they had access while others were not getting richer, because they did not.

That’s why when I came to Harbourfront Wealth Management and formed Strategic Private Wealth Counsel, it became my mission to launch alternative-style funds to give access to all Canadians.

Your company is growing fast organically. What have you done to expand into new markets and achieve your growth? What factors do you consider when entering a new market?

It’s really the education-first approach that we’ve taken which is what’s helped us expand into new markets. We don’t enter new markets thinking that we can compete with other practices without flashing our colorful feathers. For us, those feathers are the education we offer to the general public, prospective clients and existing clients.

Right now, we are entering the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in history, a whopping $1 trillion into the hands of the next generation in Canada alone. This is a monumental moment for the wealth management industry. This also means as we enter new markets, we have to consider these new shifts that are taking place and what they mean for Canadians.

What is your advice for other CEOs on how to successfully focus on an untapped market?

Conduct thorough market research to uncover gaps or underserved segments and gather customer feedback to understand unmet needs. Also analyze competitors to identify areas of weakness or underperformance. Most importantly don’t be scared to do things differently. I cannot overstate the importance of breaking out of an oversaturated market by positioning yourself differently.

What is it about your approach that other CEOs and businesspeople can learn from?

I’ve been in the wealth management industry for more than 25 years, meaning I’ve had time to gain exposure to the industry’s strengths and also its weaknesses and challenges. Before reinventing the wheel, as I’ve seen many try and do, it’s more important to fix parts of the current one. This can be done through innovation, new programs, the introduction of new funds for a broader audience, among other things.

I believe change is important and for CEOs and other business leaders it’s important to not talk about the change you plan or want to make—but actually demonstrate that you’re making progress on the changes you speak about. Change doesn’t always mean starting fresh. It means addressing the gaps and that’s the approach we’ve taken, and it’s worked.

One of the biggest gaps we’ve filled through our approach is what I call the “education gap.” We are committed to educating our clients on every strategy, approach and fund they have access to. Our education techniques are not limited either. We’ve created a client committee that helps inform us of gaps we may not be seeing.

We speak and host seminars, events and workshops on different topics, locally and also across Canada. Additionally, we are regularly in the media commenting on subject matter that pertains to our industry. This is something we do well and that makes us different.