ELITE FIRM ASSESSMENT
I. Firm Profile
This section helps us calibrate your results based on your current firm architecture.
Your First Name
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Your Last Name
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Company Name
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Date
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Month
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Day
Year
Date
Email
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example@example.com
Role
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Please Select
CEO/Founder
Leadership Team (C-Suite or Director)
Team Lead Advisor/Advisor
Operations Team
Administrative Team
Other
Firm AUM
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Under $100 AUM
$100 - $250 AUM
$250 - $500 AUM
$500 - $1B AUM
$1B + AUM
Team Headcount:
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II. The Diagnostic
Please answer with the most correct response for each of the following nine questions.
Can a junior advisor close a $5M prospect using a proprietary firm process, or is the "close rate" entirely dependent on your personal involvement?
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I have to be in every "whale" meeting or it doesn't close.
They can handle small clients, but I’m still the "closer" for the big ones.
Our process is the closer. Any lead advisor can run the system and win.
Does your "Right Hand" have the documented authority to hire, fire, or spend up to $2,500 without your prior approval?
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I approve every expense and interview every person and/or intern.
They have some leeway, but they still "run it by me" to be safe.
They are empowered leaders. I only hear about the result, not the process.
How many times per day are you interrupted to make a decision that an employee earning $60-$100k/year should be capable of making independently?
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My day is a series of "Do you have a quick second?" Slack/Teams or Email messages.
3–5 times a day. It’s distracting, but manageable (for now).
Zero. My team handles everything within their role-based authority.
If a Private Equity firm audited you today, would they categorize your profit as "Sustainable Enterprise EBITDA" or simply "The Principal’s Excess Salary"?
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If I stop working, the profit stops existing.
We have some structure, but a buyer would definitely "haircut" my valuation.
This is a turn-key institution. The profit is tied to the firm, not my heartbeat.
Are you currently paying for a "Billion Dollar" tech stack (Salesforce, Orion, etc.) while your team still relies on manual re-entry and spreadsheets?
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We have the tech, but we mostly use it as a digital filing cabinet (no automations/integrations).
We use about 50% of the features, but "manual" is still our default.
The tech is the backbone. Data flows once; the system does the rest.
When you look at your calendar for the next 90 days, what percentage of your time is spent on Defending (service/admin) versus Architecting (growth/leverage)?
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90% Defense. I’m a high-paid firefighter.
50/50. I’m growing, but I’m exhausted.
80% Architecture. I spend my time on the future, not the past.
Is your client onboarding process fully automated from initial contact to asset implementation, or does it rely on manual "reminders" and checklists?
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It’s a "bespoke" process every time. We rely on people’s memories and notes to get it right.
We have solid checklists, but a human still has to manually "push" the task to the next stage.
It’s a true workflow. The system triggers the team automatically; I just track the progress.
If you decided to sell your firm tomorrow, would the buyer discount your valuation because the "Standard of Excellence" lives in your head rather than in a system?
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Yes. I am the "Secret Sauce." The excellence isn't documented; it's just "how I do things."
We have some SOPs, but the "nuance" that clients love still relies on my and my team's personal touch.
No. Our "Standard" is baked into the firm’s DNA. The excellence is repeatable without me.
Does your team know the exact 3-year growth target for the firm, or are they simply working on the tasks that feel most urgent today?
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They know we want to "grow," but their daily focus is just clearing their inbox and to-do list.
They know the goal, but there is a gap between the "Vision" and their daily activities.
Total alignment. Every team member knows their specific "Growth KPI" and how to hit it.
Calculation
Submit
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