Produced By: Ensombl
In the ever-evolving landscape of financial advice, there is growing urgency to streamline processes, elevate service standards, and deliver meaningful advice in an ethical, client-centered way. It is a constant balancing act between compliance, profitability, and offering a human touch—one that requires ongoing reflection and a willingness to embrace transformative change. Recently on The Engine Room podcast, host Andrew ‘Roxy’ Rocks and collaborator Sue Viskovic, Founder and Managing Director of Elixir Consulting, explored three financial advisory practices that embody this delicate balance. Those practices—led by Amy Baker (of Rekap Advice), Sam Perera (of Perera Crowther Financial Services), and Jonathan Elliot (of Collins SBA)—each offer unique insights into the power of innovation, business-minded strategy, and ethical decision-making.
This article draws from the key themes and anecdotes shared on The Engine Room, focusing on professionalism, ethics, and the practical lessons that can help other firms thrive in a rapidly changing environment. By examining these voices in unison, we discover common threads in how they address complex challenges, from refining fee structures and client rosters to deploying technology effectively and nurturing team culture. What emerges is a portrait of how to blend strategy, empathy, and best-practice ethics in a way that benefits both businesses and the communities they serve.
Every great business story begins with a readiness to pivot. Before a practice can embrace new technology, revise pricing models, or expand services, there must be a fundamental acceptance of the need to change. In a professional context—particularly in financial advice, where public trust is paramount—this mindset goes hand in hand with ethics. The willingness to rethink business models must always be underpinned by a commitment to transparency, integrity, and the good of the client.
On The Engine Room, Jonathan Elliot shared how his multi-disciplinary firm, Collins SBA, came to a crossroad: they realized they had too many clients for the depth of service they wanted to deliver. Rather than compromising on quality, they made a transformative decision to reduce the number of clients each adviser served. On paper, this might alarm a standard business mindset that values relentless growth and expanded revenues. Yet, Elliot’s practice proved that quality over quantity—backed by an ethical rationale—can be the sounder path. By focusing on the needs of clients who truly required ongoing, complex advice, they were able to preserve revenue, elevate service, and free up valuable capacity to develop better systems and processes.
Likewise, Amy Baker had a moment of self-reflection regarding her own business model. Despite being highly credentialed, experienced, and multi-talented, she found herself undervaluing her advice and working countless hours pro bono. In conversation with her business coach, Baker realized how a lack of rigorous process and proper pricing not only undermined profitability but could weaken her ability to deliver the most ethical and attentive service. Refusing to price services appropriately can lead to suboptimal business practices: rushed client meetings, burnout, and fewer resources invested in professional development. Baker’s eventual clarity underscored how ethical responsibility begins with valuing one’s own contribution fairly, ensuring the sustainability of a practice that can continue to support its clients, staff, and community.
A parallel can be drawn from Sam Perera, whose early exposure to mentors such as Russell Collins ingrained in him the notion that a financial adviser is also a business owner. Perera underscores that building a sustainable enterprise does not conflict with ethics; rather, it creates the necessary infrastructure—human capital, technological investments, and time—to focus on the welfare of clients. By consciously dedicating resources to develop staff and reinvest in the business, Perera effectively amplifies the ethical dimension of service delivery: each client is served by a robust support system, not just an overextended individual.
Thus, central to each of these stories is the idea that real transformation stems from deep self-awareness and willingness to recalibrate—even if that means losing certain legacy clients, temporarily slowing expansion, or stepping out of one’s comfort zone. When done with integrity, it frees an organisation to serve ethically at a higher level.
Once a practice identifies areas requiring change, the next challenge lies in actually implementing it. Whether refining processes for more efficient advice documentation or unifying the client experience across multiple services, systemisation is a key component in delivering professional and consistent results. Yet systemisation is not only about efficiency—it is intimately tied to ethics. By standardising high-quality procedures, advisers reduce errors, ensure compliance, and ultimately deliver better outcomes for their clients.
Amy Baker candidly shared her struggles in searching for the right project management or process-management tool. She tried Trello, Monday, and a range of other platforms before settling on something that worked better with her brain and the unique workflows in Rekap Advice. The important lesson here is less about the tool selected and more about the discipline of documenting processes. For Baker, the realisation that “it’s all in our heads” underpinned the urgency to convert implicit knowledge into explicit, replicable procedures. Without properly mapped workflows, a growing team can quickly deviate from best practices, risking everything from compliance breaches to inconsistent client experiences.
Sam Perera’s experience underscores another dimension: building efficient processes is invaluable, but the best processes in the world mean little without the right people to drive them. Perera’s firm, for instance, grew substantially through strategic acquisitions of other practices. Yet the true success factor was securing the talent that came with those deals—particularly individuals like Janelle, who transitioned from the vendor’s team and has since become Perera Crowther’s practice manager. Her expertise bridged the gap between old and new systems, allowing the newly acquired clients to transition smoothly and ensuring the practice adapted effectively to an expanded client base.
Some businesses opt for a fully customised solution, as with Jonathan Elliot’s implementation of Salesforce at Collins SBA. Integrating a single “source of truth” across accounting, financial planning, and risk means clients receive comprehensive care. However, building and tailoring an enterprise platform is neither cheap nor simple. Elliot openly admitted that Collins SBA had faced setbacks early on, including a failed implementation with an external consultant. That willingness to persevere, learn, and re-strategise ultimately led to an internal solution aligned with their particular needs. This unwavering focus on building a robust, technology-driven process is a testament to professional best practice—data is maintained accurately, compliance is easier to document, and client needs do not fall through the cracks.
Regardless of the tools employed—Salesforce, Xplan, Midwinter, or a more specialised system—advisers must consider how processes and technology intertwine with ethical practice. Consistency of service, transparent record-keeping, timely client follow-ups, and secure data management all hinge on a well-chosen and diligently applied platform.
In many advisory businesses, the desire to accommodate a broad set of clients can become a double-edged sword. One of the most transformative discussions on The Engine Room centered on how each firm identifies which clients they serve best, how they price for those services, and the ethical implications of scaling down the client base.
Jonathan Elliot’s firm reduced its client roster by almost half over an 18-month period. This decision was driven by the realisation that certain types of clients either did not require the full breadth of ongoing advice or were not economically viable under Collins SBA’s revised service model. Letting those clients go was a calculated decision and potentially nerve-wracking. However, the outcome was telling: they did not suffer a dramatic loss of revenue, and they improved their capacity to deepen relationships with clients who needed them most. This highlights an ethical dimension—delivering thorough, best-in-class service to clients with complex needs rather than overselling to those with simpler needs who may not fully benefit.
Few advisers relish the idea of ‘moving on’ from clients, especially when a longstanding personal relationship exists. Yet if an adviser is charging a fee that does not align with actual client needs, or if the adviser themselves is unable to sustain the level of work required, maintaining that relationship can strain resources and degrade service quality across the board. The ethical approach, as Elliot demonstrates, is to be transparent with clients about whether the current service still fits their needs. Some clients might be offered a one-off engagement, referred to an alternate adviser, or serviced through a different division. This ensures clients continue receiving appropriate advice, while the adviser’s team concentrates on those requiring substantial, ongoing guidance.
There is a popular notion—often derived from “Dunbar’s Number”—that a single adviser can manage meaningful relationships with around 150 people. This concept, though useful in some fields, can be misleading in financial advice. As Sue Viskovic points out, advisers often rely on sophisticated CRMs, file notes, data analytics, and an extended team to keep track of client issues, ensuring relationships remain vibrant even beyond 150 households. Indeed, the real question is not whether an adviser can remember the names of each client’s family members at a barbecue. The question is whether a structured approach, leveraging technology and a properly trained support team, can scale a high standard of personal, ethical service. Many forward-thinking firms now aim to serve far more than 150 clients per adviser—provided they have the right systems in place.
Throughout The Engine Room conversations, one recurring motif was that of the adviser who consciously evolves into a business owner. This shift in mindset is fundamental to building a practice that values professionalism and ethics as much as it values profitability. When advisers remain stuck in the “individual producer” mindset, they tend to undervalue broader processes, team development, and strategic reinvestment. By contrast, those who see themselves as stewards of an enterprise often make the bolder decisions required for long-term viability.
Amy Baker’s journey illustrates how easy it can be for an adviser to overlook the real value of their expertise while striving to do ‘everything.’ When she dissected her workload, she discovered significant amounts of unpaid time spent on pro bono cases, side projects, and community endeavours. While altruism is commendable, Baker realised that consistently underpricing one’s services or giving time away for free can ultimately be a form of self-sabotage. It depletes energy and finances that might be better utilised scaling the practice or improving client outcomes. Bringing in a business coach helped her see the psychological blocks—often termed ‘imposter syndrome’—that were holding her back from growing an efficient, ethically grounded practice. Facing these issues courageously is not just personally empowering but professionally necessary, ensuring the firm can thrive long-term and maintain the ethical duty of care to its clients.
Sam Perera’s belief in “man at work and capital at work,” a concept he attributes to Russell Collins, highlights another aspect of professionalism: strategic reinvestment of capital. For Perera Crowther, that capital can take the form of technology acquisitions, but more often it is about human capital—the right hires, a training framework, and a supportive culture that fosters growth. Perera has made multiple acquisitions over nearly two decades in business, reinforcing the firm’s client base and staff capabilities. As he puts it, there are only so many hours one can personally work. By putting capital to work, he ensures the business does not solely rely on his individual output but stands on the foundation of a capable, well-resourced team.
At Collins SBA, scaling down client numbers per adviser opened new horizons for innovation. Freed from the perpetual churn of too many case files, the team could brainstorm how to serve clients even better—whether through investment in new technology or conceptualising the future structure of adviser-client relationships. This correlates with an ethical principle in any professional domain: the best solutions often emerge when practitioners have the mental and emotional space to engage in forward thinking, rather than being perpetually overwhelmed by day-to-day firefighting.
No modern discussion of financial advice can be complete without addressing the role of technology. However, it is not a simple matter of “plug and play.” Technological adoption must be approached with a well-articulated vision, proper training, and a synergy with human processes.
For some businesses, particularly those focused on wealth management, instituting a managed account structure (e.g., individually managed accounts or MDAs) can reduce administrative burden. Jonathan Elliot explained how Collins SBA pursued an MDA solution early on, even encountering friction with their then-licensee. Ultimately, the firm’s commitment to a streamlined, client-focused investment process propelled them to become self-licensed, enabling them to implement the MDA program the way they believed best served clients. This approach underscores a strong ethical rationale: less administrative friction means more proactive monitoring, swifter portfolio adjustments, and the avoidance of endless waiting for compliance sign-offs. In other words, technology that is well-chosen and well-managed can support clients’ best interests.
Sam Perera, representing a risk-specialist practice, highlights the ongoing frustration with insufficient data tools for insurance advisers. Tools like LifeBid have promise, but the industry at large still struggles with aggregator solutions for policy details, underwriting updates, and real-time portfolio analysis. When efficiency suffers, so can client outcomes—delays in policy confirmations, confusion around coverage changes, and a patchwork of manual updates create fertile ground for errors or overlooked details. To raise professional standards, insurance-focused practices must continue advocating for better software solutions that simplify compliance, track policy changes accurately, and provide clients with clear, timely updates. That, too, is an ethical consideration: technology that fosters accuracy is technology that underpins ethical and professional service.
An interesting theme throughout these conversations is the importance of outside help. Whether it is a business coach with a background in psychology, a collaboration among peers, or a strategic partnership that offers new resources, the best businesses rarely operate in isolation.
Baker’s collaboration with a coach who has a background in psychology allowed her to peel away layers of self-doubt and articulate a clearer vision for Rekap Advice. This approach exemplifies a broader truth: running a business can be isolating, especially when tough decisions must be made about staffing, client segments, or technology budgets. A neutral, informed perspective—someone who can challenge assumptions and hold a leader accountable—can be invaluable. Coaching also inherently ties to ethical practice because it expands leadership capacity, allowing an adviser or principal to solve problems more rationally and compassionately.
For those who find private coaching beyond reach, peer advisory circles or mastermind groups can offer supportive environments to exchange ideas, dissect challenges, and share solutions. In the age of virtual conferencing and social networks, many advisers have found that proactively connecting with others in the field leads to not just technical solutions but also emotional support. This sense of community is critical, particularly given that financial advisers can grapple with legislative complexities, compliance obligations, and the emotional weight of holding clients’ financial futures in their hands.
What unites Baker, Perera, Elliot, and indeed so many other financial advisers is their openness to share and receive feedback. The synergy of continuous professional learning, combined with a willingness to showcase vulnerabilities, fosters an environment where advisers can accelerate each other’s progress. The result: a more cohesive profession that can better serve the public. This dynamic of sharing knowledge—on podcasts, in conferences, or through published research—demonstrates that prioritising professionalism and ethics need not be a competitive disadvantage. Instead, it can be a rallying cry for sustainable success, helping businesses refine their value propositions and strengthen client trust.
The collective experiences of Amy Baker, Sam Perera, and Jonathan Elliot highlight a compelling roadmap for aspiring and established financial advice firms seeking to remain relevant, profitable, and ethical. Crucially, none of these practitioners relied on short-sighted strategies or rote methods. Each exhibited a willingness to grapple with internal struggles—like imposter syndrome, undervaluing one’s work, or running an under-resourced operation—and transform those challenges into catalysts for innovation.
Financial advice, as a profession, rests on a bedrock of trust. The pursuit of professional standards and ethical conduct is not something that occurs in a vacuum. It arises from everyday choices—how advisers price services, whether they invest in staff training, how they handle client data, and the level of transparency they maintain in strategic decisions. The stories gathered on The Engine Room serve as vibrant examples of how to navigate this high-stakes industry in a way that upholds both client interests and business sustainability.
Ultimately, the experiences of Baker, Perera, and Elliot can inspire advisers at every stage of their practice. The challenges they faced—scaling effectively, curating client rosters ethically, and ensuring robust systems—are not unique to large, established enterprises. Smaller firms can glean tangible lessons about anticipating future growth, balancing personal aspirations with business viability, and never forgetting that at the core of every major decision lies the responsibility to serve clients faithfully and diligently. In that sense, The Engine Room captures a shared vision of a profession evolving toward a more ethical, client-focused, and innovation-driven horizon. It is a future where good business sense and professional integrity need not be mutually exclusive, and where the positive evolution of financial advice continues—one transformed practice at a time.
Accreditation Points Allocation:
0.10 Technical Competence
0.10 Client Care and Practice
0.10 Regulatory Compliance and Consumer Protection
0.10 Professionalism and Ethics
0.40 Total CPD Points