When andy mitchell took the helm at Worldsource Financial Management Inc. last spring, he vowed to transform the Markham, Ont.-based mutual fund dealer into a premier wealth-management firm. And with the recent launch of a four-tiered training and development program known as FRAMEWORKS, he may be moving closer to that goal.

FRAMEWORKS was introduced in late January under the guidance of Cindy Jenner-Cowan, who joined Worldsource last August as head of training and development.

Mitchell and Jenner-Cowan previously worked together at Performa Financial Group Ltd., which was sold to Desjardins Sé-curité Financier early last year. It was during that experience that they came to know the needs of independent advisors first-hand.

The problem with traditional training programs is clear, says Jenner-Cowan. “What so often happens when advisors go to training conferences and seminars is they come away with these fabulous binders full of material. But then they get back to the office, it just sits there,” she says. “What we really want to do is give advisors something that is easy to implement.”

The idea behind FRAMEWORKS is to target advisors at every stage of the career cycle, whether they recently joined the firm or are months away from retirement. The program plays directly into the firm’s goal to double its assets under management to $10 billion by 2010, Jenner-Cowan says, because it smooths out many of the transitional wrinkles advisors often face when they join a new firm or move from one stage of their career to another.

“One of the things we want to do is give individuals what they need when they join us,” she says. “What this program does is provide consistencies in how things are done — and once you have consistency of training, you have consistency of workflow, and then you have consistency of procedures. It improves processes for everyone.”

The first step in that direction is the Orientation and Business Integration component, a mandatory 13-module program that introduces all new employees — advisors and assistants alike — to the Worldsource culture. New hires are placed in various modules, depending on their experience and expected duties, and they then participate in the live, Web-based training program that runs over the course of five days. Topics range from Worldsource policies and procedures to processes and culture.

From there, advisors move on to the Annual Training Program, a Web-based seminar that tackles a new theme each year, such as compliance changes or economic trends. The firm is adding a new “ask the expert” feature that will host an expert on a particular topic, and advisors are encouraged to suggest themes for upcoming programs.

Although all new employees must go through FRAMEWORKS, the program doesn’t abandon advisors in the more advanced stages of their careers. Those who want to build their practices can participate in QUEST, a practice-management coaching series that runs from March to December each year.

Targeting topics such as eliminating business barriers and creating value in their businesses, QUEST begins with a series of “pre-coaching” sessions to go over the material to be covered prior to attending the seminars on-site.

The on-site component consists of four one-day seminars, accompanied by 15 to 20 hours of associated work and follow-up coaching calls.

Given that the program can accommodate only 48 advisors a year — 12 at each location in Vancouver, Calgary, Markham and Oakville, Ont. — advisors are asked to sign a commitment letter prior to registration. Although Worldsource absorbs the cost, anyone who fails to complete the program will be charged a fee.

What makes QUEST different is that it seeks qualitative results, says Paree Katharos, senior communication specialist at Worldsource.

“We’re not just implementing the program and then abandoning the advisors at the end of their session,” she says. “We’re capturing and benchmarking their situations so we can follow them throughout the program and ask them a year later if it worked. We want to see measurable, positive results.”

Finally, the firm is taking aim at succession planning through an elective Succession & Continuity planning program, which is offered in two parts. The first half helps advisors develop and implement a business exit strategy and is open to advisors not plying their trade at Worldsource. The remaining half, exclusive to Worldsource advisors, is for buyers and sellers and helps advisors with book valuation tracking, sales numbers and financing.

@page_break@Although this last program is particularly timely, given that the average Worldsource advisor is 49 years old, Jenner-Cowan hopes it will also attract younger advisors who are interested in buying a book or simply thinking ahead.

“If you know your exit plan and how you will go about implementing it, this will help you tremendously in building your practice,” she says. “It’s never too soon to plan your exit.” IE