Cleveland area RIA platform OneSeven has dabbled in small format M&A and advisor recruiting since its formation in 2022, bringing on several teams and sole practitioners with up to a few hundred million dollars in client assets. This year, the Beachwood, Ohio-based firm is taking its biggest swing yet.

Chief executive Todd Resnick told Citywire his firm expects to bring on a team of advisors managing $1.5bn in July. He didn’t disclose the target’s identity, but said OneSeven sees the group becoming a key part of its business.

‘We’re building out some programs and initiatives to really help make them kind of a cornerstone of OneSeven and help them grow even more effectively,’ Resnick said.

OneSeven currently manages about $6bn in assets under management; Resnick said he anticipates that figure will rise to between $9bn and $10bn by the end of 2025.

To sustain its new additions, the company follows an Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) strategy and philosophy, focused on looking six to 12 months ahead to prepare for growth.

‘We’re not positioned today for $6bn,’ Resnick said. ‘We’re positioned for $10bn, and we’re hiring the people … and then we’ll start growing and putting more processes and strategies in place for $15bn.’

OneSeven now has about 75 advisors in its network working across 19 states. Resnick said the firm most recently struck an affiliation deal with Sharon, Pa.-based Hemlock Wealth Management from B. Riley Financial, adding four employees including president and head advisor Clancy Atkinson to its platform. The company is also currently onboarding about five new teams and expects them to be part of OneSeven by Labor Day, Resnick said.

Formed in 2022, OneSeven as it is known today was founded through a merger between Resnick’s We Are One Seven and RIA MGO Investment Advisors. Later that year, serial RIA investor Merchant Investment Management bought a minority, non-controlling stake in OneSeven. Resnick said Merchant currently owns about 20% of the firm, which is not presently pursuing any other investors.

Resnick, formerly OneSeven’s president, was named CEO in January, with co-founders Rick Gross and Ron Gross moving to become president and chairman, respectively. Resnick said he sees the business differently now, prioritizing advisor engagement as ‘the most critical’ aspect to OneSeven’s growth.

‘We continue to talk to advisors that are looking for the right home for the rest of their lives, hopefully, and we structure it through a mission of creating life-changing opportunities for advisors, their families and clients,’ Resnick said. ‘Everything we do is put through that lens of, “what can we do to make the advisor’s life more productive, more engaging, more successful?”’ 

To that end, the company launched a formal coaching program for its advisors earlier this year, Citywire reported. Led by a professional coach, the 90-day program consists of group and individual sessions where advisors learn to improve and grow their businesses through personal development. Participants are completing their final coaching instruction in Denver this week.

Resnick said he thinks the coaching program will be a ‘game changer’ for advisors, allowing them to focus on organization, strategy and team structure.

He added OneSeven is building out its home office leadership team to support its growing network of advisors, including hiring a new full-time CCO last week in John Carey, the former director of compliance at insurance brokerage and financial services firm OneDigital. And during the second half of the year, Resnick said the company will look to hire for a new position focused on relationships with OneSeven’s advisors. The exec said he also hopes to hire a trainer to educate advisors on technology efficiency next year.

‘At the end of the day, whether it’s three years from now, five years from now, ten years from now, it’s just the philosophy of, if we bring deals to other people, if we help other people, it’s all going to come back to us,’ Resnick said. ‘Helping our advisors grow, it all plays together in that long-term picture of success.’

This content was previously published on citywire.com.