With the solid backing of his chairman, Berkshire-TWC Financial Group Inc.’s new CEO says he’s getting aggressive in carving out a strategy that will help distinguish the independent financial planning firm from the rest of the pack.

“Michael [Lee-Chin] has allocated the capital to this business and he has made the necessary changes, including my appointment, to make sure we take Berkshire to the next level,” says Vancouver-based Bob Levis, who took over the role in July. Berkshire is part of Lee-Chin’s privately held empire, which also includes fund company AIC Ltd. and National Commercial Bank of Jamaica Ltd.

“People will be surprised by what will happen over the next 12 months,” says Levis.

A large part of Levis’s task is to investigate the selection of a potential strategic minority partner. Berkshire’s strategy in this regard is composed of several elements that lean on the company’s distinctive strengths, says Levis.

Berkshire owns what Levis describes as a “short-term technology edge” because it has specially adapted its back-office system, ADP Datafile, to meet both Investment Dealers Association of Canada and Mutual Fund Dealers Association compliance requirements. Advisors who want to make the switch to the IDA platform from the MFDA — and they do so at the rate of a dozen or so a month at Berkshire — simply need to take their securities course and the switch is near instantaneous, he says. The lion’s share of assets under management — $7.5 billion of the company’s $12 billion total — is under the IDA system.

Levis says Berkshire’s technology platform would make it a suitable partner for a bank on the lookout for a sales force that could sell its products and services.

“Berkshire has 220 branches, it has scale, it’s making money and it has this phenomenal technology platform,” says Levis, who began his career in financial services as a corporate and securities lawyer. “I want to take it to the next level and get extremely aggressive.”

Berkshire’s preference would be to have a partner with a recognized leading brand name in Canada, although Levis makes it clear that Berkshire is still assessing suitors. Several offers have been made, but no decision is imminent or necessary, he says: “We’re going to be very selective. This isn’t an auction. If we can’t find someone, we’ll do it on our own.”

For the record, Levis won’t say what banks Berkshire is interested in forming a relationship with, but he doesn’t bristle when names are repeated often in the interview. Bank of Nova Scotia would leverage off Lee-Chin’s influence in the Caribbean. HSBC Bank Canada is a logical choice because its advisory sales force in Canada is small and the company is looking to grow it.

But then, what bank wouldn’t consider adding to its sales force — for the right price?

“The banks in Canada are recognizing that independent planners are here to stay, that they’re very valuable,” says Levis, noting that Berkshire is adding two Toronto-based investment banking analysts in the fall. “Banks know it’s important to have a relationship with planners. And they would like to have a better relationship with them and they would look at collaborating with another organization to do that.”

Berkshire wants stability from a banking partner, as well as a recognized brand name and a little bit of buying power so it can grow its advisor base.

But Berkshire advisors are as nervous about institutional ownership and control, as any group of advisors would be. Levis is aware of their concerns: this is a breed of advisors who like their high payouts, control of their costs and their relationship with their clients, he says. Berkshire’s workforce is also interested in a potential additional share sale. (Planners were offered options last year).

“The most important thing for us is to preserve the independence of our advisors,” says Levis, who arrived at Berkshire from the planning firm TWC Group of Cos. after it was acquired by Lee-Chin in 2003.

And this is where a naysayer may tap the thin edge of the wedge into Berkshire’s strategy. What’s in it for a potential partner? Mutual fund dealers are not known for their huge profitability. Berkshire’s investment banking business is growing, but it’s not shooting the lights out, either. Furthermore, the books on Berkshire are locked so far.

@page_break@So, what else can Berkshire offer a potential partner? In addition to access to a planning force, Levis says, Berkshire can leverage “a significant competitive advantage” in its chairman’s international reputation — especially in the Caribbean.

“Michael is launching a private-equity business,” explains Levis. “And we’re looking at seeing how we can let some of our advisors and clients participate in some of the things that he’s doing, and have some access to the products based on relationships he has in the Caribbean.”

Berkshire wants to get creative with how it structures a deal, he says. He believes Berkshire has something desirable for suitors, even if it takes them time to realize that.

Levis will offer no more details but adds that none of this constitutes a prelude to a complete sale of Berkshire: “I think people know what Michael Lee-Chin is all about. So far, he has not been a seller.”

Levis describes a firm preparing for a public charge. Berkshire has established independent committees and reporting structures, and Lee-Chin is delegating more these days as his business interests grow. Says Levis: “He’s given me the autonomy that a CEO would have in a normal organization to build it.”

Levis, a marathoner who also holds a chartered financial analyst designation, says Lee-Chin appointed him as CEO partly because they share a competitive and entrepreneurial spirit. Levis co-founded Altara Capital Corp., a full-service investment dealer, and was president and CEO of Altara’s primary holding, Altara Securities Inc., when it joined TWC in 2001.

“I’m a pretty good leader,” says Levis. “I know how to motivate people and I built Berkshire’s capital markets group from scratch, really. It didn’t have one before we brought it over from TWC.”

Levis doesn’t know when he’ll run his next marathon, he says. But then, maybe he’s in one already. “I’m going to have to think about that one after taking on this new role,” he quips. IE