Dan Richards, one of the investment industry’s most influential market researchers, has joined Cartier Partners Financial Group as chief executive officer. Richards succeeds chairman of the board and former CEO Jean Dumont who will maintain his role as chairman and continue to play an integral part of Cartier’s senior management team.

“The addition of Dan Richards to our executive team signals the next phase in Cartier Partners’ growth: strengthening the capabilities of our advisors to enhance the client experience across our three key business areas — life insurance, securities and mutual funds,” says Dumont.

Prior to joining Cartier, Richards held several consulting positions after he sold his industry research firm, Marketing Solutions Inc., last summer.

Richards says his number one priority in the coming year will be to focus on providing the tools Cartier advisors need to build their businesses effectively. That includes things like improving portfolio construction tools and client service. He says Cartier is well positioned to be a leader in the industry due mainly to the solid foundation Dumont and his team have built over the last four years; acquiring firms like Balanced Planning and Regal Capital Planners as well as Quebec-based Courvie Dubeau Group.

Consolidation usually leaves a company shaken and it showed in last month’s Planners’ Report Card where Cartier advisors ranked the firm in ninth place, out of a possible 12. Richards doesn’t see this in only negative terms but can look on the bright side of the firm’s placing.

“The challenge is clear,” he says. “It’s actually great timing because we have a benchmark and we’re hoping that a year from now our rating will be off the chart.”

Cartier Partners has the largest sales force of any independent financial advisory firm in Canada with 3,500 advisors. Its founding firms include Great Pacific Management Group, The Investment Centre and Heritage Financial Services as well as the aforementioned firms.

“In the initial phase of our business we have focused on integrating the firms we acquired in 1999 and 2000 and on building a strong foundation,” says Dumont who’s known Richards for years and made the same offer to him before. Richards accepted the CEO position now because he says the timing was right.

Richards also wants to put into practice what he’s been preaching for so many years. Dumont has great faith: “He’s a much better CEO than I am, exceptional talent.”