The 'Premier Alternative' to Wall Street

Integrity, conservatism, independence and client first. Economic conditions change,  but an organization-wide commitment to those four core values will not, says CEO Paul Reilly.

"Our core values won't change, and there is opportunity in front of us," Reilly indicated during the Raymond James Financial shareholders meeting in February. "The power and placement of this firm is being realized, so we're in a unique position to thrive. Our advisors have been good to us, and people actually like working here."

Expect Reilly to reinforce and expand on those messages during the remarks he delivers to help close this year's RJFS National Conference for Professional Development in Las Vegas. Reilly will expound on Raymond James' plans for applying its core values in the effort to equip its advisors with the retail resources they need to thrive using the independent model, realizing that the fortunes of Raymond James and its advisors are inextricably linked.

"We share an increasingly unique market position, one in which we can offer advisors the benefit of personalized attention, with the scale and scope of the industry's largest firms. We are positioning ourselves as the premier alternative to Wall Street," Reilly asserts in remarks aimed at RJFS advisors.

The question is, how best to take advantage of the opportunities that come with that strong strategic positioning? One challenge Reilly cites is how to help each of RJ's businesses grow while staying true to the fundamental values that attracted people to Raymond James in the first place. Also front-of-mind, he says, are such key strategic initiatives as niche acquisitions, strengthening the Raymond James brand, investing in people and leveraging synergies between business units.

Here's how Reilly envisions those initiatives dictating strategic priorities at specific RJ business units:

• Private Client Group (PGG) — Increasing advisor productivity; recruiting and hiring; expanding the company footprint; and training.
• Capital Markets — Deepening existing businesses; recruiting and hiring; and international activities.
• Asset Management — expanding product lines, increasing institutional efforts, expanding retail effort.
• Bank — Co-manager role on loan syndications; mortgage banking expansion; lending in Canadian currency; and securities-based lending.
• IT/Operations — Decoupling systems to improve flexibility; systematically assessing and upgrading key platforms; driving efficiency and service with operational platforms; exploring infrastructure requirements and solutions; and hiring talent to meet current and future needs.

"Overall," concludes Reilly, "we're focused on how and where we will grow, and we always remember that PCG represents the majority of our business. And, we are focused on being your firm of choice...the place you want to be."