Advisors Must 'Go Out Into the Community': TCI Wealth CEO

“For our industry to reclaim its position as a respected industry, we’ve got to be willing to go out in the community and help a lot of people that we traditionally have not helped — young people, particularly, and [the] diverse,” argues Bob Swift, founder and senior advisor of TCI Wealth Advisors, in an interview with ThinkAdvisor.

“The perception of our industry has been one of advisor and company first, client third,” says Swift, who has hired a diverse group of young advisors and led his firm in launching financial literacy and access programs for young people.

A passionately independent advisor and the winner of a 2022 ThinkAdvisor LUMINARIES award in the category of community impact, Swift focuses on multigenerational retirement planning and uses a conservative investment strategy to manage some $3.7 billion in assets.

There’s little doubt that the Tucson, Arizona-based firm — which has five offices, all in the Southwest — will remain independent: “We’re totally independently owned, and we don’t plan on selling or taking outside money going forward,” declares Swift, who founded TCI in 1990.

In the interview, the entrepreneur, 68, explains the company’s partnership structure — one vote no matter the number of shares owned — and his succession plan.

Seven years ago, he shifted out of management. This fall, he will retire. Sam Swift, 39, his son and a TCI financial advisor for more than a decade, was just elected to take over as CEO.

TCI serves a broad range of clients. The senior Swift describes his own book of business as “mainstream … not the uber-wealthy but the nicely wealthy, or maybe not even wealthy.”

As for helping folks get a firm grip on their finances and learn about investing early, TCI established ASPIRE, a program to give young professionals access to financial planning and investment management at the start of their career.

Further, TCI founded 3rd Decade, a financial literacy program whose partnerships now include Charles Schwab Foundation and Dimensional Fund Advisors. About 2,000 students have completed the program to date.

ThinkAdvisor recently interviewed Swift by phone; he spoke from his Tucson home office. Mid-conversation, he noticed a bobcat jump off a neighbor’s roof and then scamper across his front yard.

“It was beautiful, but I thought, ‘Whoa!’ We don’t have a lot of bobcats here, though we occasionally have little rattlesnakes. So we have to be careful,” Swift said.

At TCI, the top priority is to protect clients’ assets from harm, he emphasizes. The firm has always had a conservative investing strategy: “long-term preservation of principal first, then full-on wealth planning,” Swift said. This “pretty dull conservative approach,” he added, “has attracted a lot of people.”

Here are highlights of our interview:

THINKADVISOR: What’s the biggest challenge facing the financial services industry?

BOB SWIFT: For our industry to reclaim its position as a respected industry, we’ve got to be willing to go out into the community and help a lot of people that we traditionally have not helped — young people, particularly, and [the] diverse.

Some of the African American community has a very big distrust of Wall Street. They need to know that they can benefit.

In what way, specifically?

So many people are left out of solid financial planning. So it’s figuring out ways that firms like TCI can reach a whole lot more people earlier with the message of solid saving and debt management.

Not just tell them about it but help them: Be willing to sit down with them and their family and say, “Let’s start saving!”

Please elaborate on the industry’s reclaiming its position as a respected industry.

The perception of our industry has been one of advisor and company first, client third. Reasons for that include high minimums and no allocation of time for young people from different neighborhoods than ours.

Virtually all internal and external marketing is how to reach those of very high net worth.

Has your firm done anything to meet the industry’s challenge as you see it?

We’ve provided lots of educational opportunities. We started a [financial literacy] nonprofit, 3rd Decade, specifically for those 18-35.

All advisors are encouraged to meet with virtually anyone who needs help — gratis, if appropriate. We waive minimums for savings-committed young people.

We’ve hired a diverse group of young advisors.

What’s TCI’s approach to financial planning?

Our approach is that it’s multigenerational and long term. We’re slow and deliberate.

We view it like a marriage: If we’re going to sign on the dotted line, we’re interviewing you and you’re interviewing us.

If we sign, we’re going to be married because we’ll be working with you and your kids and your grandkids.

The original name of your firm was “The Conservative Investor,” then it was shortened to TCI. Is conservative investing still your strategy?

Yes. Long-term preservation of principal first, and then let’s see what we can do after that [by] full-on wealth planning.

We’ve always had a pretty dull conservative approach, and that has attracted a lot of people.

That doesn’t mean just buy bonds and annuities. We’re in the stock market.