Much has been written over the past decade or so about the evolution of the financial advisor’s role — from a focus on transactions, progressing through consultative selling, right on to the ultimate “trusted advisor” relationship with clients.

While this progression has been taking place on the advi-sor’s side of the business, far less has been said about a similar evolution among branch managers and others charged with attracting and selecting top-performing advisors.

High-Trust Leadership: A Proven System for Developing an Organization of High-Performance Financial Professionals, by industry icons Bill Bachrach and Norman Levine, is an attempt to fill that gap.

Although this book was most recently revised in 2002, I have always thought it delivers an important message for anyone who includes recruiting and the development of successful advisors in their job description.

Although some organizations do have dedicated “recruiters,” this book is directed at the more traditional branch manager, who, in addition to attracting the right candidates, has the added responsibility of coaching recruits to success.

In fact, the basic premise of this book rests on the belief that in today’s world, there is far more to the induction and launching of successful advisors than “selling the career,” “selling the company” or waving a large transition allowance cheque in front of potential candidates from other firms.

In the authors’ view, the big shift between “then” and “now” is that success in today’s advi-sor-development arena demands that branch managers graduate beyond traditional management practices to become true leaders.

The difference? Managers ensure there is a proper place to work, provide procedures and systems to follow and supervise a reward/penalty system that holds people accountable for results.

Leaders, on the other hand, build high-performance teams by making relationships with their advisors a top priority. That means becoming a “trusted leader” in much the same way clients look for a “trusted advi-sor.” Everything else takes second place.

Here are some specific examples of how managers and leaders typically differ in their approach to their tasks:

> Attracting. Managers “coax” people to consider the career by selling it, often overemphasizing the potential and softpedalling the risks and challenges.

Leaders “attract” people by being great listeners as potential candidates describe what they want from their lives.@page_break@> Recruiting. Managers adhere to the “funnel” concept so prevalent in last century’s sales training: put enough candidates in the top of the funnel and someone will emerge at the bottom as a suitable candidate.

Leaders practise “pipeline management” to ensure a steady flow of prospective advisors. No one goes into the pipeline unless the leader feels he or she has what it takes to be successful.

> Selection. Managers look for people who can pass the company’s minimum acceptance requirements, including aptitude testing and financial stability. They assume the company’s training and support mechanisms will do the rest, with their supervision.

Leaders seek individuals who will flourish under their tutelage and attain even greater heights than they imagined they could.

> Motivation. Managers use money, recognition and other tangible rewards to encourage production.

Leaders take time to understand advi-sors’ deepest personal values and demonstrate how success in the business can allow advisors to live their lives according to those values.

> Education. Managers mandate that advisors complete company training programs so those advisors can meet the performance measures that are set by the company’s head office.

Leaders encourage and support broad-based education and training, from inside and outside their firms, without fear that exposure to others’ thinking will put the advisors’ loyalty at risk.

> Accountability. Managers hold advi-sors accountable for meeting production objectives.

Leaders hold advisors accountable for meeting their life goals and living according to the values they set for themselves.

If you have been a fan of the authors (as I have been for years), you will be familiar with much of the content of this book. For example, Bachrach’s “values conversation” and “success road map” — tools he has used in previous books about selling — are prominently promoted as tools to be used in the recruiting and development process.

Similarly, Levine’s “non-interview” process, a technique for encouraging clients to talk, is adjusted to fit this purpose. Keeping in mind that this book was first published in 1999, it is surprising how well it fits into today’s financial services industry.

Even so, you may find some of the language uncomfortable for your personal style. That’s OK; even the authors disagree on a few points.

Just adapt to suit yourself and try out their suggestions. You will certainly find sufficient insight to make it worth the read and your consideration. IE