Michael E. Kitces

About the Author

Michael E. Kitces

Michael E. Kitces, MSFS, MTAX, CFP, CLU, ChFC, is the director of research for Pinnacle Advisory Group, a private wealth management firm located in Columbia, Md., that oversees approximately $1 billion of client assets. He is the publisher of the e-newsletter The Kitces Report and the blog Nerd’s Eye View through his website www.Kitces.com. Kitces is also one of the 2010 recipients of the Financial Planning Association’s “Heart of Financial Planning” awards for his dedication to advancing the financial planning profession. Follow Kitces on Twitter at @MichaelKitces.

• Fees and Fiduciary: Good Business, Bad Marketing, Pt. 1

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  June 15, 2012

  Some of the words advisors use most commonly to inspire trust, like "fee-based" or "fiduciary," are actually some of the most negative and confusing words in the advisors’ lexicon, from the perspective of the client.

• The Problem With Essential vs. Discretionary Retirement Strategies: Pt. 2

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  June 5, 2012

  In planning for retiring clients, it's crucial to get an understanding of what the client's goals are in the first place.

• Why Continuing Education and Multidisciplinary Networking Make for Bad Chapter Meetings: Part 2

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  June 4, 2012

  The approach is fatally flawed, as affiliated professionals are unlikely to find the content and sponsors relevant.

• The Problem With Essential vs. Discretionary Retirement Strategies: Pt. 1

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  May 31, 2012

  In planning for retiring clients, it's crucial to get an understanding of what the client's goals are in the first place.

• Why Continuing Education and Multidisciplinary Networking Make for Bad Chapter Meetings: Part 1

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  May 29, 2012

  The approach is fatally flawed, as affiliated professionals are unlikely to find the content and sponsors relevant.

• In The Future, New Clients Will Seek—and Find—Best Firms: Part 2

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  May 3, 2012

  Advisory firms that want to succeed must take action on the following four steps.

• In The Future, New Clients Will Seek—and Find—Best Firms: Part 1

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  April 27, 2012

  Recent research on advisory firms has shown that a new category of marketing has quietly emerged as the one with the greatest growth: online search.

• Markets May Be Volatile, but Risk Tolerance Isn’t, Pt. 2

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  April 17, 2012

  A key point from FinaMetrica's research: investors are ultimately driven by two factors: their risk tolerance and their risk perception. Advisors' challenge: managing clients fluctuating risk (mis-)perceptions.

• Markets May Be Volatile, but Risk Tolerance Isn’t

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  April 13, 2012

  What's changing through market cycles is not the client's risk tolerance, but instead risk perceptions.

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  3 Reasons Financial Planning Firms Should Blog: Pt. 2

  By Michael E. Kitces  |  March 26, 2012

  If you're considering a blog for your firm, the first step is simply to understand why you would use the blog in the first place, as that can impact everything from the content you produce, to how often your produce it, to who you send it out to.